RANS
Rocket Recumbent Bicycle - The Rocket was
discontinued in 2008.

RANS Rocket
My first recumbent was a Rocket, so I'm biased. I've ridden Rockets 3,000+
miles, most always in comfort. I never had much fun (or comfort) on the
second half of a 100 mile “century” ride till I rode one on a recumbent,
the Rocket. I've enjoyed four century rides on Rockets, each comfortably
in fewer than 7 hours. Don't let anybody tell you it is a slow bike 'cause
it isn’t. It's one of the fastest in its price range (though the Lightning
Thunderbolt is another great performance value, especially for a medium to
large rider.) I've ridden Rockets with and without my homemade tailbox &
partial faring. I like the handling of the Rocket; it is nimble at low
speed and I find it pretty stable at higher speed. Some riders feel it is
unstable; you should try one and see what you think. There have been three
frame designs in the Rocket. In 1995 the original square tube rocket came
out. The 1.5” round tube rocket introduced about 1997 was lighter and less
shaky. These older Rockets had a shorter wheelbase and were less stable
than the newer, longer models which have a 2” frame tube. For me the
biggest draw of the Rocket (aside from the price) is the comfort of the
RANS seat and the way the RANS’ Flip-it handlebar stem adjusts to fit most
any taste. The Rocket allows a lot of rider position adjustment for
comfort and performance, as does the V-Rex.
The dual 20” design of the Rocket has strengths and limitations:
Dual 20” wheel strengths:
Only one size spare tire and tube to carry on a tour;
Good tire selection available;
A little more room behind the seat for luggage. I had a homemade tail-box
with lots of space on my Rocket.

RANS
Rocket
Compact size, my fully assembled Rocket fit in our little '87 Chevy Nova
hatchback (with the Chevy's back seat down.)
Dual 20” wheel drawbacks:
You will feel road bumps more;
A large 63 tooth chain-ring gives decent road gearing but racing gears are
a difficult to add,
Front shifting is a bit sluggish.
The Rocket is great performance recumbent for the money, if you like OSS &
SWB. If you‘ve got a couple bucks to spare test ride a V-Rex, the V-Rex
has most all of the Rocket advantages with a few more of it’s own.
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Click Image for Enlarged View |
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Peter rides
in the 1995 Century Ride on his first recumbent, a RANS Rocket. (the tailbox
is for luggage, the fairing is for wet weather.)
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Gershon rides his RANS Rocket in Israel |
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