An aside while I figure out how to proceed on the Sprint Di2 project…
This post is not the “Pannier vs. Trailer” debate. In my opinion there is no debate. If you’re carrying more on a tour than you can fit directly on your trike, you need to get rid of something or do a better job packing. Continue reading
Now that I’ve seen belt drive in action on a couple of “city bikes” in town, I can’t seem to let this one go. On an upright bike, belt drive is smooth, reliable, light, and silent. On a recumbent it has the potential to solve what for many is their bane: a long, greasy, noisy, unwieldy chain. This post is my attempt at taking a closer look to see what might be preventing the adoption of belt drive for recumbents and, specifically, ‘bent trikes. I’ll discuss the issues I see, many unique to ‘bents. Then I’ll see if I can figure out what it would take to adapt my current trike to belt drive. Continue reading
Before I was obsessed with human powered propulsion, I was obsessed with solar powered propulsion. If I can divert some revenue from this to the trike project, maybe I can claim I have a solar powered trike. In any case, time to sell. Continue reading
It’s a fact that a typical ‘bent needs wider and lower gearing than a typical upright bike. Just how much wider and lower is a subjective, sometimes technical, and oft’ debated topic that can make large chunks of time vanish. I’ll try to keep this brief. I use Gear Inches in the following discussion because it is commonly used in trike specifications and it provides a good way to make relative comparisons between drivetrains. Consult a Gear Inch Calculator to see how Gear Inches translate into speed.
While I love the idea of Internally Geared Hubs, I’ve had my share of difficulties with them over the years.
Recently I took a trip down to Payson, UT to check out internally geared hubs (IGH). This was a pretty crazy trip, 900 miles and around 12 hours of driving for a couple hours with the folks at Utah Trikes. That says a lot about my expectations for the shop and they didn’t disappoint. Continue reading
A Seasonal Commute 