A very close friend of mine suffered a severe stroke nearly two years ago. He led an extremely active lifestyle and has fought hard to regain every bit of it that he can. Shortly after the stroke, his wife bought them a side-by-side recumbent tandem to ride together (not sure of the brand). They're looking now to get him a solo recumbent trike and asked for my advice. I ride lots of miles on my roadie, but don't know enough about 'bents to give them good advice. I do know enough to know where to get some though, so here I am.
She has had the Hase Lepus (http://www.hase-bikes.com/ens/lepus/index.php) recommended to her by another fellow out in San Diego county. She's been told it can be fitted with a single hand control, OEM. This is currently her number one choice.
Her second choice right now is the Trice-T from ICE (http://www.ice.hpv.co.uk/standard_trikes/t.htm).
Ease of transport is an issue for her. Both of these bikes fold, though by looking I can't tell how easily. Componentry and durability should be top of the line to ensure plenty of maintenance free, long riding hours. Any info you can offer up on either of those bikes (componentry information is scarce for both of them) or suggestions on other bikes are welcome.
Thanks for the help in advance,
VW
The BikeForums Team
-adv-
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Man I gotta tell ya, I love these posts/threads. I appreciate both someone who wants to help and someone who wants to help themself.
I'm afraid I can't give too much advice. One thing that I can relate is a loved one who was born handicaped with a nonfunctioning arm and one weak leg. One thing that we found out in experimenting with trikes (this was before todays high-tech trikes) was the size of the rear wheels were critical in allowing the trike to function in the real world (ie sidewalks, streets etc). Larger tires=more success. The loss of leg power was really evident when small wheels met resistance.
I sincerely hope others can give more substantial recommendations.
BlazingPedals
The trike guys here on the list can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but I think most trikes can be steered one-handed because the two hand grips are tied together one way or another and balance obviously isn't an issue. So the big problem becomes shifting and braking, both of which can be put on a single side. I think the SRAM dual-drive hub puts shifting for both the hub and derailleur on the right grip by default, and brakes can be tied together with a coupler. I recommend going to bentrideronline and checking out their buyer's guide here (http://www.recumbents.com/brol_buyers_guide.asp). You might get some other ideas.
jeff-o
I think that WizWheelz can fit a single-hand control on their trikes, too.
N_C
A good resource for recumbent trike info is: http://www.hostelshoppe.com/
Their toll free number is on the web site.
Ask to speak with Rolf, the owner.
buckstoy
Check into Greenspeed (http://www.greenspeed.com.au/x5.html) they also make folding trikes, and they are the tadpole style which, in my opinion, are more fun. If your freind has trouble bending down though, the Hase may be a better choice.
cfblue
There are so many differnt things that could influence the decision. First that comes to my mind because I know two people who ride with parkinsons is Mobility
Simply, can your friend get up after sitting so low to the ground? 8" off the ground (fairly normal tadpole seat height) is not an easy place to get one's center of gravity/balance, then being able to stand up with the machine all around. So the delta trike as you posted it a better choice. I have ridden one Lepus just a bit more than around the parking lot and thought it was a gas. I've only tried one other delta, the one Sun/Easy Racer put out for about $800 and it was not near so fun.
i've heard lots of good things about Penninger, but never even seen one
http://www.penningerrecumbents.com/index.html
heard little about the lightfoot but what I have heard has been favorable
http://www.lightfootcycles.com/.
Getting into and out of the trike may well be the most important part of the decision process
NomadVW
They're definitely looking at delta trike and apparently one is in the works for GS. I've certainly learned a lot over the last couple days here, and all over the 'bent riding sites. Like, I didn't know you could get a "kick" clicked shifting for the front end chain rings. Course, I didn't even know there was a bent style named after a baby frog either :P
They're heading out to San Diego this weekend to do some test riding of a few delta's there. I should have an update in a couple days for which one they go to and maybe some of the issues they are experiencing.
Thanks for the help folks!
izgod
It's always amazing what a person can do if they set their minds to it.
I saw a man riding a DF in central park. He had one leg, no prosthesis.
I've seen others on trikes with hand cranks, no legs. People are very adaptable creatures.