Is it harder to ride a comfort bike on a paved trail than a hybrid?

Question

If I am on a "normal" paved by trail, hills, and straights, not mountains, sunny weather, and I have two bikes, a comfort bike and a hybrid. Is one harder to ride than the other?  The distance will be about 10 miles, paved, mostly flat trail.

One reason I ask is that if two people ride together and one is on a comfort, the other on a hybrid, if the comfort is hard to pedal, ride, etc., I would never be able to stay together (I would have the hybrid.)

For the sake of argument, both are higher quality bikes, not big box.  Is there some reason a comfort bike is inherently harder to pedal?

This is an example of what I saw:

https://www.performancebike.com/shop/bikes-frames/path-pavement-bikes/comfort-bikes/tuesday-bikes-march-7-womens-pavement-bike-31-7312

and,

https://www.performancebike.com/shop/bikes-frames/path-pavement-bikes/comfort-bikes

"Beach Cruiser" was also a term used.

Criggie · Accepted Answer

Yes a comfort or beach cruiser bike is harder to ride at the same speed as a hybrid/commuter bike.

The hybrid bike will have larger rims (29"/700c) but narrower tyres (25-35mm) where the comfort bike could be anything from 20" to 26" and with a tyre width of 30-50mm.

The comfort bike will have roughly zero body weight on the hands - almost all the rider's weight will be on the saddle and a very small amount on the forward pedal.  The hybrid will have more weight on the hands, allowing more pedal pressure and therefore more power.

So the hybrid will be faster than the comfort bike for the same effort.

That said, sometimes its not about the speed, its about the fun and "smoothness" of the ride.   We have some shared bikes are work that are almost comfort bike shaped, and while they don't go fast they are smooth and swoopy.  I'd be tempted to call the ride "plush" and unhurried.   I might only be putting in 50 watts, but I don't care cos its a nice ride.

Struggling uphill on a comfort bikes, or through a long loose gravel  path would be hard work and not much fun.

Argenti Apparatus · Answer

'Comfort' and 'hybrid' are not particually specific terms. Let's assume:

Comfort bike means a bike with an upright riding position - the rider's back is nearly vertical. Handlebars are high and relatively close to the rider.

Hybrid means a cross between a road and mountain bike rider's back 45-30 degrees from vertical. Bars far enough forward so that riders arms are nearly straight.

(Almost) all other things equal: wheel diameter, mass, tire width and pressure, the more upright riding position of the comfort bike makes it harder for the rider to apply power to the crank, hence it will be harder to ride at the same pace as the hybrid. The comfort bike will likely have a lower gear ratio range to accommodate the lower possible power.

Kev Peard · Answer

A hybrid bike will generally take less energy to move along a paved surface for the following reasons.

Frontal area/wind resistance as a result of rider position and tyre cross section is likely to be lower on a hybrid. Effort increases at the square of the wind speed, so the faster you go, the bigger the difference will be.
Weight over the pedals will make applying power less fatiguing over 10 miles.
Assuming the cruiser is heavier, it will make cycling uphill easier on the hybrid.
The hybrid is likely to have more gears available to suit a variety of speeds. Not so important for a short trip to the shop, but a factor when cycling ten miles.

Opinion warning: Cruisers are made to look cool - not to make it easy to get from A to B.

Is it harder to ride a comfort bike on a paved trail than a hybrid?

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