Velomobiles rock!!

It's long been a dream of mine: Owning a velomobile. I haven't had enough money to get serious about buying one, so haven't invested in going to Texas to test out factory demos of the FAW+ or a Quest. As I'm not close to buying, I'm reluctant to ask folks who have them for test-rides.

I have, however, been able to play with one that belongs to a friend for a day or two. He built his FAW+ from a kit, as many do, but lacked the patience to get the front end alignment right. We worked on it a bit last spring, and it was better, but his life was such that he wasn't able to ride it for a while, and so the story goes.

He and I talked a few days ago, and he wanted me to do some fine-tuning on the alignment and install his electrical system for him. As a result, I've taken the liberty of riding the thing a bit (test-riding my work, don't you know), and have a couple of observations:

My largest observation is that I'm a bit wide and heavy for this thing. I can make do, but it's not quite comfortable for me. The foot area isn't quite wide enough (I have big feet, which is part of the problem), and my feet rub the inside of the wheel wells. So do my calves.

One possible fix is a narrower bottom bracket, and perhaps a different crank with a narrower q-factor. I hesitate to do this, as a) it's not my machine, and b) if it was my machine, I'd wonder whether the narrower q-factor would be harmful on my hips or knees.

If I ride with my elbows at my sides, as I did when I had a V-Rex, I'm not moving side-to-side. I'm snug in there. I can ride with my elbows out, but that would probably not work if I'm using the cockpit cover.

Aside from those fit issues (that are most certainly NOT the machine's fault), it's a neat little ride.