In 2016, I bought a used bike: a 2009 HP Velotechnik Grassopper, which is a recumbent bicycle; I wrote a blog post about buying it and fixing it up on our Adventures blog. Here’s what it looked like in early 2017:

In 2025, I electrified the bicycle, adding a front-hub motor; I wrote a blog post about the experience of installing the e-bike kit as well.

Back to 2017… I decided it would be helpful to have a bag that was semi-permanently attached to the bike, to store my lock, sunglasses, and a few tools. On a recumbent bicycle, one convenient place to put such a bag is on the back of the seat. I looked around online for a bag that would work well and fit on the seat (which is a “BodyLink” seat, one of two styles that HP Velotechnik puts on their recumbent bicycles and trikes), and I didn’t find one. So, I decided to make one!

I’m still using the seat bag in 2025; I also made one for my partner Zach with a similar design, for his HP Velotechnik Street Machine. If you want to make one for yourself, you can download a PDF that contains the pattern for the seat-back bag, as well as some notes and pictures of the finished bag.