Making the switch to a trike, seeking opinions...

It's less likely as long as you don't dive into turns like a raving lunatic (normal lunatic speed is usually acceptable with a little body english) or try to ride a Tadpole trike without straps or cleats. If your foot is unsecured and comes off the pedal, pulling your leg under the cruciform.....that's not a good thing.....(i.e. FootSuck) I haven't had any injuries riding a trike for ~7 years or so.

 

Yes and no.
Trike is by a definition more stable, so you're safe from "falls due to low speed" - VERY practical when you are stuck behind pedestrians or such on "rush" cycle-path. Or tight spaces manevuering.
When you meet some sand in a corner, is is also more like "fun" rather then "instant fall", same for ice, if you ride through the winter.
You don't have to take your foot off the pedal, when waiting on red light or such, so setting off is way faster and more reliable discipline. On top of that, there is no issue with clipless pedals (I highly remcomend those) when stopping - you can stay clipped in even when stationary.

On the other hand, this stability may throw you into "false safe" state of mind and you will overdo something sooner or later. For example, when you are pushing the limit when riding through a corner at speed just on the edge of balance and then some bump hits your inner wheel, that is very likely to throw you over. Same goes for riding offroad - unexpected bump may do same favor for you, when you are already leaning to "wrong" direction.
Also, trikes put lateral stress on wheels, so there is always some risk of wheel failure. I personally broke several spokes already, luckily, no failure of the wheel as a whole - always got home just fine (just more carefully )

 

I will have a new ride by this weekend and plan to take the 1st excursion this weekend on the relatively flat greenway accessible from my house. The pedals from my road bike will transfer until others arrive in the mail. Thanks for the info. I'll report back once I ride.

 

I took my 1st ride today. 9.2 slow miles. I'll need to tweak the seat position and figure out a way to get the rear wheel off the ground for things like adjusting gears etc. Also need some decent spd pedals. The pedals that Catrike supplies don't fit my shoes which I find strange because I've ridden spd for years on multiple bikes and pedals without an issue.I ended up using an old set that need to be rebuilt but parts are NLA

Also need to find a mount and space or the Wahoo. The 559 came with a side mirror and the Wahoo could go there but the tube is much smaller than handlebars and would require lots of shimming. Using a side mirror takes getting used to because I've had a helmet mirror for years.

Gearing is another issue. Even with a 30 chainring and 36 in the cassette, it would be difficult to get up the hills. What do those who live in east TN use (not counting a battery). Over all, different but enjoyable - sort of like a new adventure.

 

And now I'm figuring out how to adjust the SRAM GX rear derailleur because it wasn't going through the entire gear range. What I thought was the barrel adjuster doesn't have threads to make anything happen. The shop that sold the bike set it up so that the cable was limiting the high gear side when it should be the limit screw. My road bike has an old Shimano 105 set and the details are different.

I talked to a friend that has ridden various recumbents for years and has only recently gone back to an upright. I'm amazed that he kept up as well as he did on a trike.

I'm off to go shoot down some mistletoe. My older son just called requesting some. Apparently, he's reminiscing about his childhood when I lived in the Woods full time. I kept the place because I knew that I'd never get another once it was sold.

 

I figured out what the deal was on the derailleur. The threaded part of barrel adjuster seats in a plastic ferrule which goes into the derailleur. The ferrule was just spinning and not doing anything as far as adjusting. It's strange because this trike was literally picked up from the store that only sells trikes just a few days ago. Anyway, I now have access to all of the gears and will be riding whenever the temps are above 40. I'll go down to 35 once I'm acclimated but have been off for 7 weeks.

Thanks for the info.

 

I was sort of where you are back in July: switching from upright bikes to a trike.

I wound up with an ICE "Adventure HD' with what ICE calls "Full Suspension". Quotes bc two inches of un-damped elastomer travel does not match my personal definition...

If my bikes were a "10" on the Fun/Functionality scale, this thing was a "2" or a "3" out of the box.

Adding pedelec and 26" front wheels have gotten it up to maybe a "5".

I do not know enough to say which of my perceived limitations are generic to tadpole trikes in general, which are specific to my particular make/model, and which are just my own stupidity.

What I can say with some confidence is:

• Trikes do not climb as well as upright bikes. Part of it is the increased weight and part of it is the unnatural position: more akin to doing leg presses than lunging out of the saddle on a bike. The solution for me has been a TSDZ2 torque-sensing powre assist. Mostly I ride with zero assist but when I come to a hill where I would be grinding my way up, I just dab up the assist to where it still feels good...
• Trikes do not handle off-camber situations well. I've dumped this thing four times already. Yeah, it's always been at walking speed and mostly on grass - but my fear is of being on a sidewalk and having one wheel go off an 8" curb and me getting dumped into moving traffic. Obviously lower trikes are less prone to this, but they are all vulnerable.
• Trikes lack visibility. Both ways.. it's hard to see and it's hard to be seen. One of my mitigations is a six-foot LED-illuminated flag pole, but it's still scary when I am in proximity to cars - as when riding through a supermarket parking lot, or even just crossing the street on a pedestrian crosswalk. The other mitigation I have come up with is a "Loud Bicycle Horn" (https://loudbicycle.com/horn#classic). I suspect it may have saved me a couple of times already.
• Strangers like trikes. Seems like every time I go out, at least one total stranger solicits conversation with me - always about how cool my trike is. Even little kids make positive remarks. I find this tb the trike's primary redeeming trait.
• Taking a break is easy. Hot day? Getting a little knackered? Just find a shady spot, pull over, take off the helmet, grab the sweat rag, open up the thermos, and chill. Another redeeming trait.

Bottom line for me is that the trike beats hell out of laying on a couch all day, but I am shopping for a quad to supplement and maybe replace the tadpole in hopes of the quad being more terrain-friendly as in but without the 4wd and with regular MTB rims instead of the fatties.

Maybe in the same way that a full-sus MTB supplements a rigid road or gravel bike.

The big unknowns for quads with me are:

• Turning Radius: looks to me like Utah Trikes' tadpole-to-quad conversions add a good six or eight inches to the wheelbase and my Adventure's turning radius is already no prize. I am guessing that the purpose-built quads like above have shorter wheelbases than converted tadpoles.
• Legality: Much of my use is as a pedal-powered wheelchair and my strategy for delaying the day when I become road kill involves use of sidewalks whenever practical. So far, no hassles on the trike - maybe the two canes sticking out of the seat back help... but I have to wonder if my luck would hold up on a quad.

 

I'm about to the point where I ride the trike anywhere I take the bike. My experience has been that cars give me more room than when on the bike. We ride mostly rural roads and some in-town roads.

I ride with my body where the right car tire goes. This usually but not always pushes cars into the other lane to pass when I'm on the bike. They almost always go over when I'm on the trike.

Some get pissed at the bike but not the trike. I have 2 bright LEDs in back and a bright Cateye 1300 headlight regardless of what I'm riding. The taillights are visible at least 1/2 mile away and cars have slammed on the brakes when they see the headlight.

Dogs are another issue and I don't like being slow and at face level with them.

 

Re/"Am I correct that except for getting hit by a car which I have no control over (if riding roads), bone breaking or severe road rash is much less likely on a Trike?"

I moved from bike to trike in July of 2021 and am just approaching 1,000 miles on my ICE Adventure HD with 26" wheels.

My take is that the most risk on a trike comes from being so close to the ground - and therefore not so visible to cars.

If I become road kill on this thing odds are that it will be in a supermarket parking lot where somebody backs out of a parking spot into me or crossing a busy street where I am hidden by the stopped vehicles to somebody making a free right turn.

Also, these things tip over rather easily. My five capsizes to date have all been at walking speed or slower and three have been on grass. But on concrete in warm weather, like the movie title says "There Will Be Blood"....

 

My experience has been that cars give me more room when passing and don't get as upset that I'm daring to be using their road. I always ride with 2 bright, blinking taillights and a good headlight.

The only time a wheel lifted was when I hit the brakes when the rider in front stopped suddenly.

I haven't decided on how to handle dogs.

 

I think most riders would highly recommend test riding as many different brands and models as you can to discover what works for you. I personally am a big fan of Catrike. I don't think you could go wrong buying any model of Catrike. There are some brands I would advise you to stay away from but I won't mention them here as I am sure it would offend some people and get an argument started.

 

Too late. I have a 559.

 

I'm also in Mid-TN, I assume you bought your 559 in Murfreesboro from Bobby(?) Are you riding on the Greenways in Murfreesboro?
I ride greenways for the most part and from what I found the dogs I come across are on leashes, well behaved and usually curious of trike riders. Luckly I haven't had any bad experiences with dogs or cage drivers. I sometimes ride around the lake area but feel better on greenways.

Murfreesboro is a bit of a haul for me, I'm in Hermitage, but I've ridden it and seen a few trike riders there. I usually ride the Stones River Greenways in Hermitage and Donelson and put in at the Percy Priest Dam, Kohl's or Heartland.
Heartland is my favorite and I ride to Shelby Bottoms.
Plenty of hills between the Dam and the Bottoms so be prepared.

Super nice area is in Brentwood, Crocket Park or enter at Concord road behind the YMCA.
As a former two wheeler I'm loving the my ICE Sprint X FS, so comfy.
A cool app to have, if you don't already is Strava

You mentioned something about a trike stand. There are some ingenious homemade designs out there made from wood and PVC. I have managed to get by with using jack stands for the front and a wood stand for the back. I have a roll around shop chair and my setup is the perfect height.
As far as pedals, I like the heel straps that Terra Trike uses.

Enjoy!!

 

I rode with some people on the greenway but they don't ride as much as the club does so I'm doing road rides and reconciling to just enjoying the pace.

Cars seem to give the trike more space and haven't been a problem. I only see 2 or 3 cars in 30 mi on the roads here. I haven't dealt with dogs yet

We're riding from Rockvale today. I'm getting ready now. Mborobike.com message board to see the routes.