Greenspeed GTR too heavy?

[Dante221]

:o Greetings!
I am in the process of re-entering cycling. 10 years ago I lost
my left leg below the knee (motorcycle not bicycle accident).
Two wheelin is no longer an option.
Now with a prosthetic leg I am concerned re the hills on a 40lb
trike like the GTR. I was very impressed with the build quality
of the GTR & I am tempted by the Wizwheelz carbon fiber frame
Edge which is 10 lbs lighter. I am hoping the gearing on the GTR
will be low enough to get me up the hills . Any suggestions will be
appreciated!
Many thanks!
Dante

[sch]

Catrike also makes a lighter weight trike that is well thought of. There are some reviews on www.bentrideronline.com and it is cheaper to boot.
Steve

[Ric]

:o Greetings!
I am in the process of re-entering cycling. 10 years ago I lost
my left leg below the knee (motorcycle not bicycle accident).
Two wheelin is no longer an option.
Now with a prosthetic leg I am concerned re the hills on a 40lb
trike like the GTR. I was very impressed with the build quality
of the GTR & I am tempted by the Wizwheelz carbon fiber frame
Edge which is 10 lbs lighter. I am hoping the gearing on the GTR
will be low enough to get me up the hills . Any suggestions will be
appreciated!
Many thanks!
Dante

I'm sure that Ian Simms would provide any gearing you would
need and I beleive you would have the best Trike available today
in your GTR.
I own a GTT and I wouldn't trade it for anything, however if you know
of anyone that would like to trade I have a new 05 speed I would trade.

[jeff-o]

Yup, Catrike makes a 29 lb trike, which seems to be about as light as it gets. And, it's a lot less expensive than anything Greenspeed makes! If you're still worried about hills and strain on your leg(s?) then you could also consider motorizing it... That would certainly take care of the hills, but some people would declare you a sellout. Meh, it's better than being caged the rest of your life!

[ppc]

:o Greetings!
I am in the process of re-entering cycling. 10 years ago I lost
my left leg below the knee (motorcycle not bicycle accident).
Two wheelin is no longer an option.

Hmm, I'm not an expert, but it seems to me that you dismiss regular bikes a bit quickly here: Firstly, since you still have a knee, unless your residual limb is very short, or you're prone to pressure-induced phantom pains, there's no technical reason why you couldn't balance your bike with either leg when stopped. Secondly, there was a famous NY bike messenger, Dexter Benjamin, who was an AK amputee and rode a regular DF with one crank and a clipless pedal just fine (his story is here: http://www.jrn.columbia.edu/studentwork/cns/2002-04-17/500.asp).

Now, I'm not saying it's gonna be easy to ride again after your accident, but I reckon you should give two-wheelers a second thought. I think you should get the opinion of your prosthesist before deciding, at any rate.

[Dante221]

:rolleyes: Greetings!
Thanks for the suggestions... yes my residual limb below the knee is very short &
I would not wish the phantom pains on my worst enemy. But after trying a brief test
ride on a Greenspeed and a Catrike I knew I would not hastle with a DF again... just the
task of releasing a clip pedal is almost impossible with an immovable ankle while trying to
balance .... A trike it will be . I hope to let you know of my decision soon.
The build quality of the Greenspeed GTR is very hard to resist!
Thank you friends!!!
Dante

[Ric]

:rolleyes: Greetings!
Thanks for the suggestions... yes my residual limb below the knee is very short &
I would not wish the phantom pains on my worst enemy. But after trying a brief test
ride on a Greenspeed and a Catrike I knew I would not hastle with a DF again... just the
task of releasing a clip pedal is almost impossible with an immovable ankle while trying to
balance .... A trike it will be . I hope to let you know of my decision soon.
The build quality of the Greenspeed GTR is very hard to resist!
Thank you friends!!!
Dante

Dante,
Another trike that might interest you is the Hotmover. ( www.hotmover.com )
My wife rides one and she really likes hers and it is a little cheaper than the Greenspeed,
around $2800 I believe. It's built a lot like the Greenspeed, real good construction and
good paint job, only down fall is its weight,like the Greenspeed comes in at around 40lbs.
The biggest draw back to my Catrike is the issue of pedal steer. My advice is ride as many
as you can before you buy.

[beowoulfe]

A GTR is really laid back! You wanna go that far back? Did you ride a GTO?

You can get the 3 speed hub in the rear to kick the gearing to 9 gear inches with 81 gears. Way too many perhaps, but I REALLY like the 3 speed hub on mine!!

[Dante221]

;) Hey Beowoulfe!
I think the seat angle on the GTR and the GTO are both 40 degrees

[funbun]

Greensspeed are custom built. You can get whatever seat angle you want.

Gear range is 13-125 inches. So, yes, greenspeeds have plenty of low gear to get uphill. Most mountain bikes only have 19-96inches. Remember thr GTR is designed for long cross country treks. They planned for everything.

[DJB14]

I'm a disabled person who purchased a GT3 last year. They're wonderful.

You may want to check out this otherwise conventional looking 24 speed tadpole trike with a unique peddling mechanism--two independent levers/pedals, which are called "torque levers," driving a multi-cogged chaining with cables--that appears to allow peddling with one leg when the load is light so that the more vulnerable limb could be saved for climbing. The mechanism would appeal to anyone with a weaker leg. I found the link on 'Bent Rider Online.
http://www.shererusa.com/

[funbun]

That's that Tom Teesdale fellow. He's a custom frame builder. That's a GTR frame with the new leverage thing. That looks like a good idea.