Originally Posted by
mebesaturday
Hello all,
Let me first start with a little information about me. I'm 33yrs old, single, current location is Charleston South Carolina. I am a professional photographer and have a bad case of wanderlust.
My plans are as follow... Purchase a Recumbent in the next few months (before the fall oops maybe I should call it Autumn) Train for a long distance week trip (500 miles) from charleston to florida (my parents new house) Keeping in mind that I will be "stealth camping" most of the way. I will be leaving Charleston in Feb of 2009 for a 3 week vacation 1-2 weeks on bike.
I plan on also going on a cross country and possibly back (northern route over to the pacific and southern route back) in 2010 or 2011.
So what I need from you is help in selecting a bike because I have never owned a recumbent before. I have been looking into them for months now and with a budget of about $2000 Im kinda leaning towards a Lightning phantom. But Im still not sure. (I think I like the SWB short wheel base the best)
a few questions...
Can you tour on a trike? Much more rolling resistance? how safe? (I only ask because I feel they are kinda wide) How to people in cars treat you on the road ie. when they pass?
Trike vs SWB 2 wheeler? any opinions for cross country?
Loaded Rack and Panniers VS. Trailer/BOB?
What upgrades should I look at for the bike... I know the basics clipless pedals, computer, lights
thanks for your help
Joshua "Saturday"
also anyone in the Charleston area?
Joshua,
If I were going Touring the way you're talking about, it would definitely be on a Tadpole trike and not a delta or bike. The delta is a good trike but they tend to be slow and very heavy and weight would be an issue IMO. I'd look to something in the Trice, Greenspeed or Catrike line, Catrike being the cheapest of the three. If you check the Catrike Board
http://catrike.yuku.com/ you can find a used Catrike, that's virtually a brand new trike in your budget range. My personal choice was the Catrike Speed at 29lbs with the Burley Nomad Trailer. Something you may also want to keep in mind with your Trike vs SWB 2 wheeler? is that most people don't realize you extend or use a lot more energy using a bike than a trike and IMO a bike and a trailer is even worse and when Touring that's something you want too avoid. Good Luck in your Quest.