Recumbent - Greenspeed GT1--Series II

Well, it has been ordered and the man from the LBS called to say it was on its way. I had asked for a Schlumf, but apparently the US dealer no longer carrys them, so he'll have to send to Switzerland for it.

He wants to know if I want the Mountain, the Speed, or the High Speed drive.

I'm leaning towards Mountain, but I could use some advice.

I am no expert Elkhound, but I'm just about to place an order for a Greenspeed trike.

The real question is what gearing do you want to have?

What does your existing bike/trike use? Do you find it adequate?

Sheldon Brown's site has a good calculator at: www.sheldonbrown.com/gears

I'm personally thinkign Schlumpg High-Speed Drive with 27t (then 67.5t when in 'overdrive') with a Capreo 9-26t on the rear and 16" wheels. This should give me about 18-130 gear inches which will cover the steep hills and the fast descents!

What's the terrain where you are like? Will you be carrying much of a load? Planning to go slow and steady or keep up with those road racers?

I'll jump in on this question, too. I'm starting to plan out an order for a GTE which I'll use for hauling my heavy self, a heavy load on the rack, and to tow trailers with heavy loads. All in all, I might move 500 lb (225 kg) at a time. And all of this in the foothills of the Appalachians (Metro Atlanta). I also plan on future tours across Scotland, New Zealand, Appalachian Virginia, and other very hilly places.

Based on all of that, I'm looking at gearing that will go really low but I'll also want a wide spread in the gearing so I can enjoy the aerodynamic bonus of riding a 'bent.

The Rohloff sound nice but it sure does have a premium price (with potential torque input limits). I might look at an SRAM Dual Drive or a standard cassette setup.

What I'm thinking is that the Mountain Drive will be the right Schlumpf for me since I will normally need mid-range gearing; I will occasionally need super low gearing where I will gear down enough that the inefficiencies introduced with the Mountain Drive engaged will be masked by the amount of spinning I'll have to do.

Any feedback would be welcome.

Why wouldn't the GTE's standard SRAM Dual Drive 11-34 with 52/42/30t be enough for you? 13-125inches should be plenty?

AdrianB, I take it you have never been to West Virginia. It is called "the Mountain State" for good reason.

-blink blink-

Yeah, you're right. That should be plenty. I've been reading so much about the options on the GTE (just because my curiosity took me there) that I was thinking that the GTE came with the Rohloff. My bad (and thanks).

@Elkhound: But if I WERE setting it up with the Rohloff+Schlumpf, I'd probably still go with the Mountain Drive.