Recumbent - Poor balance, looking for a reliable trike

In my teens, I rode everywhere on a Schwinn Continental, often just for fun. Then, twenty-nine years ago, I lost half of my left cerebellum, dramatically reducing my coordination, timing, and balance; I haven't been able to ride since, but now I really want to. Attempting a Trek in a parking lot recently was an exercise in futility. But, I am determined to ride again. From the surfing and reading I've done, I believe I should be able to handle a recumbent trike. I'd like some help choosing one. I live near Knoxville, and the LBS I visited doesn't have any, but they can order Suns. I've also been on vendor web sites, and a Terratrike Tour looks nice too, and the company apparently has great customer service.
There are a lot of hills in East Tennessee, so I suspect that a simple 3-speed, though a lot less expensive, would almost immediately prove inadequate. I expect to have to spend at least $2K, but hope to keep it under $3K. I'm not so eager that I'd order something without trying it first, and I will stretch my budget enough to include an overnight trip to Atlanta, or some other place to ride one; any of them really, just to see that I can. Then I'd be prepared to order. The LBS I visited was very patient with me, and deserves serious consideration. The EZ-Tad SX looks reasonable, but has direct steering; could it "get away from me" on a steep downhill? Though I'd start slowly, I'd like something I can ride a lot and won't outgrow in a few months.
Thank you for reading this long [1st] post. I'd appreciate any pointers you can give to review sites, or other information that can help me with my selection. I've Googled a lot, but most of the information seems to be dated.

The best advice I could give is to test ride as many trikes as possible. Take as long of a test ride as they'll allow. The heavier the trike the harder it will be to climb hills. The major trike lines besides the one you're considering would be Greenspeed, Wizwheels and Catrike. There are a lot more brands out there. Also check out www.bentrideronline.com

Wizwheels = TerraTrike; I am considering those too, probably a Tour. There may be a Catrike dealer not too far from here; I will call them this week.
www.bentrideronline seems like it would be great, but many of the articles are really old, and the buyers' guide is missing, but says it is coming for Spring 2008!

I switched over from a short wheelbase recumbent to a Catrike Trail a little over a year ago, and doubt that I'll ever go back to two wheels! I am NOT balance challenged, but still really love the Catrike. I looked at at Terratrike at the same dealer and decided the Catrike just looked better engineered and stronger. Give them a chance, you won't be sorry.

Tractor Tom in Okeechobee, FL

I have just bought my 2nd Sun trike, the X-3 AX, after test driving 2 tadpole designs, and the underseat steering X-3 USX, as well as the X-3 SX. My other trike was a EZ-3 SX, and I liked the advancements for the newer models from Sun. Very reasonable price from the local Bike shop (40 miles away). Rode it last night for a few miles but plan on 30 - 50 miles tomorrow.
Though I liked the ride of the USX, I liked having the handlebars up front so I could attach my light, mirror, and water bottle holder up front.

The thing with trikes and I suppose most every bike is that if you ask which one's best you'll get as many different answers as there are bikes. I love mine. It's an 05 Catrike Road. I can climb any hill there is without much problem if I have traction. It's very stable even at 40+ mph going down hills. I don't have enough strength to spin out on the top end on the level for very long. It's also been very durable for the 8500+ miles I've had it. Catrike's response and service has been superb.

I'm a fan of tadpole trikes because of the lower center of gravity and better handling at a higher speed than a delta. That of course is just my opinion, and YMMV.

Very insightful, thank you.
I think there's a Catrike dealer about 2 hours away I'm going to call and/or visit tomorrow. There are also a couple of LBS that are listed as having some Sun products, so I'll at least call them too.

Call the Catrike dealer before you go, to make sure they have something on hand to ride. Even though I went to the Hostel Shoppe to test ride one and wizwheelz and greenspeed, they were selling so many that their inventory varied everyday.

And be sure to take as long of a test ride as they will allow, preferably at least a half hour.

Thank you all who answered, and provided suggestions. My wife and I went out to Easy Chair Bikes today:
http://www.chattbike.com/club/easy.htm
423/886-1499 easychairbikes (at-sign) att dot net
We got there a little after 1:00p, and didn't leave until 8:00p. We each rode every model of Catrike except the Villager (he doesn't stock those; considers them to not have a place in the line). We had a grand time, and came home with a pair of red Roads. We got a good deal, including all kinds of goodies. In addition to the standard mirrors, he added computers, flags, wind socks, racks, fenders, a tool kit, and chain lube; under MSRP for the pair. Both were thoroughly tuned before we loaded them up.
I was really pleased to have had no difficulty with anything, and I expect my wife and I will get really good use out of these.
We surprised Art (the owner) by fitting both of them in my '02 Hyundai Elantra GT. We still need helmets and a pump, but should be on the road shortly.

There are some really brave posters n this thread after reading a Sun trike buyers "Bad Bike" thread. That made me take a magnifying glass to my 5 year old Sun to check closely for bad welds or cracks.

We had a grand time, and came home with a pair of red Roads. We got a good deal, including all kinds of goodies. In addition to the standard mirrors, he added computers, flags, wind socks, racks, fenders, a tool kit, and chain lube; under MSRP for the pair. Both were thoroughly tuned before we loaded them up.
I was really pleased to have had no difficulty with anything, and I expect my wife and I will get really good use out of these.
We surprised Art (the owner) by fitting both of them in my '02 Hyundai Elantra GT. We still need helmets and a pump, but should be on the road shortly.

Good for you. :thumb: I suspect you'll have a grand time on your rides. Something else too. Check out www.catrike.com Introduce your self on the message board. We love to hear for new riders. Post your pics on the appropriate thread too.

Don't give up on Bentrider.com, it's probably the most active 'Bent forum out there.

The Catrike Road is a really good choice, I tested one last weekend, nice and light (for a Trike), good for hills. You're lucky, you have hills, we also have hills. And potholes, frostheaves, dirt (northern New England).
The Road I tried had great steering, rode OK for such a rigid trike, good components (excellent for the price). Great reputation for reliability, and good value for money, and the gearing seemed about right for me (not very strong rider).

I've gone for a Trice Q, on order now. A bit heavier than the Road (5lb), but has suspension, folds, adjustable seat. And a really wide gear range, plus I got a good deal on it I think.

I did a lot of checking around, and the brands that had got most recommendations from high mileage riders were Greenspeed, Trice, Catrike, and usually HP Velotechnik.

I looked at used HP Velotechnik Scorpion (expensive, didn't fold, and more expensive for the one that did...), the Greenspeed GTO folds, no suspension, even more expensive), and the affordable GTR I found oviously has neither suspension nor a folding capability.
I'm a bit too big for the Greenspeed GT1/3/5, and have doubts about the 16"wheels especially if I need to run studs in winter.

Very nearly went for the Catrike though.

Got helmets, pump, and one pair of shoes today (they didn't have my wife's size), and did a little riding. The hills right around my house are really steep, but I got up all of them ok. Without the shoes, my wife couldn't get up some of them, but I probably wouldn't have been able to either. Even so, it was as fun as brief, and is only the beginning.
I will try to get on at least one or two more forums. Catrike will be one of them.
No pics yet, but I'll get some soon I hope.

counterstrike,
I'm VERY happy with both of my Sun Trikes, have only put about 50 miles on my new X-3 AX (which is a different model than the ONE Sun Trike that had an issue mentioned on the forum). I was happy only spending $400 on the EZ-3 SX, and I think I got my '09 X-3 AX for $1500+ with many LBS's asking $1800 up here in MN.
We'll never know why that ONE trike had a failure, and I think it's significant that the same owner had multiple failures, when the rider weighed 100+ lbs less than I do. If they were "All" that weak, my frames would have broke already. I tend to ride on several local bike trails at 15 to 20 mph and many of them have very bumpy planked bridges, potholes, and broken pavement, (seems I hit every pothole on the trail).

What did concern me about the badbike post, was that the shop they bought it from wasn't standing behind the warranty and effort to fix the bike. I then went and carefully read my warranty on both bikes (Lifetime on the steel frame, 5 yrs on the Aluminum). I'm still satisfied my shop will stand by any (if needed) repairs, but the EZ-3 has never needed repairs (except replacing tires).

And, I have two perfectly fine (for 50+ year old geezers (like myself)) recumbent trikes (combined price less than the base price of one of the better Catrikes) that have allowed me to ride more miles this season than I did my last year of riding my fully suspended Cypress DS. My hands don't go numb, my posterior doesn't go numb.....<g> and I ENJOY riding again..... (Tomorrow is a planned 40 mile ride, just getting back in the long haul range again....)

Brave no, happy yes...., Each rider SHOULD have their own preferences, I like handlebars up front, mirrors on handle bar, water bottle holder up front, and ... all that probably puts me at the back of the pack... but I'm still a happy biker since going bent, even with my Sun's.....;)

how did you hook them up to your Elantra - I have the same make/model of car & am always looking for a way?

We put the back seats down, of course, and moved my wife's seat forward (she's only 5'2"). The first one went in chainring-first, and the second one went in backwards. They were held in by hooked elastic cords attached to various tie points (like the seat latches) and wrapped around frame members. The hatch didn't quite close, but was held down by another cord. We used some bubble-wrap between the second one's chainring and the back of the hatch; a towel or blanket would have been better, but that's what we had. The trip home took 2hr20min, not too bad.

Here's a brief clip of me churning up my ridiculously steep driveway after a ride:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3RGO8LhVho

counterstrike,
I'm VERY happy with both of my Sun Trikes

I was being pretty tongue-in-cheek actually! My Sun has 5 hard years on it; many many miles with a fully enclosed fairing, tows a trailer, stereo (best front row recliner) has 3 batteries and a motor, weighs 110 pounds (210 + with me riding)- and is currently my pallet for about 200 stickers..

I was joking about the magnifying glass. That frame is so heavy it carries all the extra weight and almost never tips at all. The disk brakes work fine, but the only problem is unusual noise from the brakes (overuse I think).

Here's a brief clip of me churning up my ridiculously steep driveway after a ride


Your driveway didn't look that steep until you got to the top. I can see why you were breathing hard.:recum: