'Bent Riders

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Comment by brizmatt on April 17, 2012 at 8:54pm

Raymond was right, it was me me taking some banana plants to work- and they matched the banana like flag!! this week have changed to a divers below blue and white flag.

Comment by Raymond on April 14, 2012 at 8:37pm

I don't know about a banana tree, but Matt's Greenspeed trike has a banana coloured/shaped flag on it...

Comment by Mick Fanning on April 14, 2012 at 8:06pm

I've been seeing a recumbent trike on the corrugation drive pathway quite regularly of late. Not sure if I was seeing things the other day but I'm sure there was a banana tree in back of one as I whizzed past.

Comment by Aaron Ball on April 14, 2012 at 7:00pm

No worries Doc. Next time. It was a great ride. Thanks Melvyn, Raymond and Paul.

Comment by Doc Embrey on April 14, 2012 at 3:23pm

Profuse apologies to all for missing my first BRAG ride :(

An unfortunate decision to adjust the boom and chain length this morning before I got on the road went a bit awry ... followed by some urgent derailleur adjustments which took some time to get right.

Comment by Doc Embrey on April 12, 2012 at 7:47am

Now that I have a recumbent, I'm wondering where the best place to buy beards and sandals is? Also, (seen on Treehugger), a tricycle to match my beard and sandals:

Comment by Melvyn Yap on April 8, 2012 at 9:53am

That's a very detailed first impression of the GT3. The smaller turning radius will definitely come in handy riding in the urban area. I'm eager to hear about your first ride impression :)

Comment by Doc Embrey on April 8, 2012 at 9:33am

In my eagerness to go forth and recumbent (I have decided in my arrogance that the word ‘recumbent’ may now be used as a verb), I seem to have forgotten to make space to store the trike on my return. Having nowhere then to store the new cycle, I decided that it would be alright as a piece of furniture until the next day. It makes a very comfortable chair and quite acceptable to watch “Wallace and Gromit” from.

An unexpected feature of a trike with 16” wheels is that riding inside the house becomes possible . Sure, you don’t want the kids to see you doing that - and on reflection, it’s probably best if no-one else sees you doing that either, bit it’s fun. Riding down the hallway is vexatious and should be avoided as it results in the ungraceful technique of ‘flintstoning‘ (described to me by the good Dr Martin - the “Fred Flintstone” technique for Mango’ing around switchbacks - feet down and paddle backwards). I see now, that keeping up with the bigger faster trikes will be no problem at all. All I need to do to is to lure them inside houses where the superior maneuverability of the 16-inch wheels should come to the fore.

When I arrived to pick-up the tricycle, I was met by a very pleasant young person, but my expectations about the size of the trike swan-dived when I realised that, if this was the previous rider, I was going to find pedalling it a little cramped. Not so though - when the pedal is furthest from me, my legs are at full stretch. I reckon now that this trike is set up for someone the size of Big Steve or Damian. I can get the correct leg position if I ‘scrooch down’ on the seat and become more recumbent, but there will be some boom-shortening and links removed from the chain very soon.

The trike seems to be in excellent condition and I quite like it so far (yeah alright it’s only Day 2, I haven’t ridden it outside yet and the novelty is yet to wear off). Standard GT3 specs from what I can see - bar-end shifters, Sturmey-Archer brakes, brake-levers with locking-pins, 3x9 speed and the Capreo 9-26 cluster on the back - the gearing seems too low to me, but then I see that Greenspeed in their infinite wisdom sell chain-rings up to 80-tooth and since they sell them, I figure they must want me to have one. The only blemish I see is that the very comfortable sponge-grips have split a little near where the gear cables exit - no big deal as some tape will fix that and stop the problem from getting worse. Some nice features I did not expect too - there is a mount on the frame near the back wheel which I think is for a bottle dynamo ... a bit ‘old-worldish’ maybe, but something I think should be on all my bicycles and something I will be adding to each of them over time. I rode motorcycles with ‘lights-on’ and all the motor vehicles where I work also run lights-on for visibility. Seems a good idea to ride bicycles in traffic the same way, and dynamo lights would be ideal for that. The height of the vehicle still worries me as it is very low. I think I will be running with flashing lights on the front and whenever I am on the road. The front mudguard-mounts are useful for grabbing when getting in and out of the seat. I think I would like the head-rest and will get one ... I wonder if Greenspeed sell gimbal-mounted stubby-coolers?

The smaller wheels come with as many advantages as disadvantages. It fits it in my diminutive automobile brilliantly - as good as the folding bicycle and better than any other bike I own. The ground clearance is miserly, but may not be as big a problem as I thought as the lowest part of the frame is just behind the front wheels so it should ride over obstacles better than the ground clearance would suggest. So, I will give it a ‘check-up’ today and maybe wander down to the bike path early tomorrow and see how it all goes. Very happy with it all so far!

Comment by Aaron Ball on April 7, 2012 at 3:46pm

Looking forward to the outcome Doc.

Comment by Doc Embrey on April 7, 2012 at 10:16am

The big day is finally here, and I prepare to journey deep into the heart of the Gold Coast hinterland to pay for and (hopefully) return with a recumbent tricycle. I have consulted the tomes of Greenspeed and measured my diminutive automobile twice now, and, in my most humble opinion, it should slide straight in unfolded (albeit with the back end sitting on the front seat next to me. So, folded, it should be a non-event and still leave room to swing a small cat!

An interesting side-note and a soothing thing to know for affronted cat lovers is that the phrase"room to swing a cat" comes to us from the Royal British Navy (from some hundreds of years past now), and refers to clearing room on the deck of a sailing ship to 'flog' some unlucky sailor with a 'cat-of-nine-tails'.

Plan 'B' is to take with me the recommended Greenspeed assembly tool-kit of three Allen keys and three spanners. (I may also take a small stock-whip with me to swing as it may help pass the time on what will be a three-hour return trip along what is arguably one of the most boring bits of sealed road in Queensland.)

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