Recumbent - New Catrike Expedition: Pedaling Wobble

I just rode my wife's new Catrike Expedition home (5 miles with hills) and have some questions.

When I ride it at higher cadence my pedaling makes the trike wobble. When I coast or pedal more slowly it is fine. I am assuming this is a pedaling form problem. I was using plain pedals and my running shoes.

She'll be using clipless pedals, but I was wondering what to do about that wobble.

Another question I have is, where do you mount the computer sensor? The sensor requires a pretty close pass from the magnet on the spoke, and these things have no forks . . .

Wiggling while riding can have a number of causes, but a lot of times it's feedback through your body into the steering. Try loosening your grip- it's natural to hold on tighter as you go faster. Try making an "OK" sign around the grips, and consciously relaxing your shoulders. It's actually tough to remember to do this, especially when your trying to pedal hard.

The flat pedals might be making this worse, since you have to apply pressure to them to keep from dropping a foot off. Look up "leg suck"- something you want to avoid.

The pedal wobble is something we all experience when we start riding trikes. as you log more miles, it will subside and be gone. Mel

Another question I have is, where do you mount the computer sensor? The sensor requires a pretty close pass from the magnet on the spoke, and these things have no forks . . .

You may need to buy the sensor mount offered by Catrike:

http://www.utahtrikes.com/PRODINFO-Catrike_Computer_Mount.html

or fab up a similar mount.

There's a name for this. It is called pedal steer. Some trikes are more susceptible to pedal steer than others. It will get better as you get used to the trike but may not go away completely. If you have run out of upper gears you may be pedaling too fast. All trikes have some point where you can no longer pedal faster. That's why some trikes are equipped with things like an internal hub or Schlumpf drives.

Thanks, guys.

We took a ride together last night, maybe miles 10 through 20 for her. She's already getting pretty fast, and hills aren't nearly the problem she was worried about.

The Expedition is suppose to come with a sensor mount. If it didn't contact your dealer. See picture of sensor mount by seat

I find that pedal steer is lessened in general on my trike when I use higher gearing.

Pedal steer and brake steer, that's not all your going to experiance. I've owned my Catrike Trail 3yrs. (25,000+K) , impresses and surprises me often, I love it.
I use the BOB trailer when I'm touring, with a 500w hub in the trailer wheel, the hills are easier....