Newbie on Trike - advice?

[Cunobelin]

A simple cable tidy will do the job nicely



However a 'cinch strap" is better and stronger

[bikey-mikey]

I finished the Reservoir Triple 200.

This may be the report, hopefully, if URL copying works..

http://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=61078.msg1266860#msg1266860

Trike based issues?

Well I learned that I am shorter than AH cos my knees began to really hurt around 40 kms..  I stuck with it for a while, spinning, and then discovered that if I slouched down and slid forward, thus sitting more on the front edge of the seat than you would have thought possible, I stopped overextending and the pain completely disappeared.

Padded shorts helped in that position. !!

This morning I have a PITA that turns sitting down into a reminder to shorten the chain and boom!!

I had some minor mechanicals... The flag disappeared but I found that an orange Sainsburys bag, tied to stop it inflating, and held on by a long elastic band, worked a treat... The right front mudguard came loose but a bit of multitool cured that.. The nice rear mudguard has clip together stays but they tended to re-unclip and rattle, though easily reclipped. I did reach 58.1 kph at some point, mind you.....

Amusing incidents? Well I got stuck on an uphill where an entire wet muddy field had been thoughtfully spread all over the road by the farmer and his cows.. (not just mud - cow poo as well). The rear tyre just span around, and cos I hadn't yet sorted the 'hand' brake, I really struggled to even get out and push or pull. I'm gradually finding out how to enter n exit gracefully but had no chance there.

I got passed by what seemed like everyone on one hill and down the other side got most of them back, though I had to feather the brakes cos the riders had fanned out and I was going a LOT faster!!

I'm glad to have read the post on weaving when working the pedals n going fast. I thought it was me!! Well it was of course... but now I understand I can get better

Visibility? Hmmm! Barely out of the start and still properly beflagged a very short lady in a very large jag saloon, pulled up and stopped on my left at a give way,  as I approached on the main road, and I saw her head twist right and left, and as I was going by she started to pull out, with me hidden below the bonnet.. I swerved right and let out an enormous bellow, which she, thank god, heard. Lesson? Don't assume they have seen you!!

Thanks once again to Auntie Helen, for trusting me with the Trice:-)

[jogler]

Have a whistle on a lanyard.Heard moreso than a bell or a yell & IME engenders more of a panic type emergency stop by other road users.eg..

"F**ck Me,you frightened me to death"

a.k.a. I braked hard j.i.c.

[Euan Uzami]

enjoy trike riding Mike but remember you can still afford to take it easy, you're still on approximately double anyone else 

[Kim]

Visibility? Hmmm! Barely out of the start and still properly beflagged a very short lady in a very large jag saloon, pulled up and stopped on my left at a give way,  as I approached on the main road, and I saw her head twist right and left, and as I was going by she started to pull out, with me hidden below the bonnet.. I swerved right and let out an enormous bellow, which she, thank god, heard. Lesson? Don't assume they have seen you!!

Sounds like a standard SMIDSY, rather than anything recumbent-specific.  Usually being on something weird-looking helps with that scenario (in as much that they'll look for longer and more accurately judge your speed), but there's no accounting for chunky A pillars and drivers who aren't paying attention.  As ever, drivers at side roads should be assumed to be blind idiots until proven otherwise.  My usual approach (regardless of type of cycle) would be to take a strong primary position and slow down as necessary until sure that they've either seen me or completed their manoeuvre.

Anecdotally, I find that bright front lights help, in as much as people at side roads tend to give way more when they're on.  I suppose it makes you look more like a motorcycle (fast) than a wheelchair (slow), or something.  I don't use a flag, but I'm not below bonnet height.

[bikey-mikey]

enjoy trike riding Mike but remember you can still afford to take it easy, you're still on approximately double anyone else 

That's a good thought, but the 50% rule complicates it, and you can't easily tell...

I'm really riding cos it's my life, and prizes, if they come, would be nice no doubt, but they can't beat the thrill of the road!

Anyway, I have an obligation to keep the North Wales NHS busy:-)

[Cunobelin]

I finished the Reservoir Triple 200.

Visibility? Hmmm! Barely out of the start and still properly beflagged a very short lady in a very large jag saloon, pulled up and stopped on my left at a give way,  as I approached on the main road, and I saw her head twist right and left, and as I was going by she started to pull out, with me hidden below the bonnet.. I swerved right and let out an enormous bellow, which she, thank god, heard. Lesson? Don't assume they have seen you!!

Thanks once again to Auntie Helen, for trusting me with the Trice:-)

The way you ride is important, and the Primary is VERY important.

At junctions or potential hazards place yourself slap bang in their sights in their field of view so they cannot miss you

[bikey-mikey]

Thanks Cunobelin - very good advice

[bikey-mikey]

I had the Trice Q serviced by my LBS, and seven links came out of the chain with a fair shortening of the boom, which made riding much easier, now that I'm not overextending. I am adapting nicely and am generating more power.

They also replaced the brake cables and unseized the left front brake, which I didn't even know had a problem. It stops a lot better now!! (if you're wondering, it wasn't seized 'on' !! !! !! )

They also had a flag on a short pole extension, which is better than my Sainsburys bag!!!

[Auntie Helen]

Interesting stuff! The brake seizing must be over the last couple of months as when I ride it with a brake lever either side it's dead obvious if one isn't working if you're just using that brake. With a dual-pull I guess it's less easy to tell as the thing just stops (hopefully). ICE have always been good at setting up the trikes so you don't get very much brake steer at all - I often just use one brake if I'm signalling with the other hand with no problems.

Mikey, I am managing 12.8mph average on my trike this month (used to be 10.5) by working myself harder and spinning a little more, although I still tend to ride in big gears as that's my style. I'll be interested to know how you get on after more rides when you are more adjusted to it - I suspect you will be waaaaaaaay quicker than me, even with the M+ tyres!

[bikey-mikey]

Interesting stuff! The brake seizing must be over the last couple of months as when I ride it with a brake lever either side it's dead obvious if one isn't working if you're just using that brake. With a dual-pull I guess it's less easy to tell as the thing just stops (hopefully). ICE have always been good at setting up the trikes so you don't get very much brake steer at all - I often just use one brake if I'm signalling with the other hand with no problems.

Mikey, I am managing 12.8mph average on my trike this month (used to be 10.5) by working myself harder and spinning a little more, although I still tend to ride in big gears as that's my style. I'll be interested to know how you get on after more rides when you are more adjusted to it - I suspect you will be waaaaaaaay quicker than me, even with the M+ tyres!

I hadn't thought about brake steer but it might explain what I had assumed was a camber effect.....

The LBS also said the headset was a bit too tight - Nigel, the owner, who did the work, has three trikes, so I'm sure he knows his stuff. 

I'm definitely slower than AH at the moment, but I can use that as a motivator...... .

[Arch]

Re: the thing rolling away unattended. Develop the knack of knowing when you need to run after it, and when it'll stop on it's own (if there's just a little dip in the tarmac, or a kerb for it to bump against etc.) In the latter case, you can then just say "Stay!" loudly at it, and if you time it right, it looks like it obeys.

Small and stupid pleasures.....  (I do this with the work Maximus too )

[bikey-mikey]

It normally stopped eventually!!  Usually wrapped around one of my feet