A Thousand Miles...

A thousand years, a thousand more,
A thousand times a million doors to eternity
I may have lived a thousand lives, a thousand times
An endless turning stairway climbs
To a tower of souls
If it takes another thousand years, a thousand wars,
The towers rise to numberless floors in space
I could shed another million tears, a million breaths,
A million names but only one truth to face
(Sting)

Yup.. since picking up this recent prototype two and a half months ago, I've travelled over a thousand miles... and I felt it might be a good time for a report (and thanks AA for reminding me of the lyrical piece that so pervades my mind during Trikke rides along the waterfront).

Here's my bullet-point evaluation:

• The Trikke 12 Roadster is a very well-built machine. at least 5 times a week I take it on a 12+ mile trek here in Vancouver, Washington (aka Vantucky, aka Portland, Oregon), and on one section I hammer the sucker at in excess of 35mph over 4 sets of train tracks, catching air on every track, and the sucker does just fine. No rattles aside from the brake pads bouncing off the disks.

• Any give in the actual Trikke components is provided by the flex in the central cambering mechanism (made of a cured rubber and delrin bushings). It's a good give, and provides enough flexibility that you don't stress you or the welds past the breaking point.

• I've pumped-up the HP tires to 72psi rear and 65 PSI front on my Trikke, and it rides tight, fast and as effortless as a Trikke can get. I've gone as high as 80psi on the rear, with no problem on the bead losing the tire. At 1,200 miles my front tire finally looks completely bald, but I'm a hard-core rider, and weigh in at 200lbs, so I'm pretty tough on these things.

Swapping the rear tires back and forth has kept them lasting way past their anticipated lifetime. Gildo did especially good on this one. (You have no idea how many tires we tried from 2002-2004 to find something that would ride fast, smooth, work on any surface, and hold enough pressure that you could reduce rolling friction without killing yourself on slick spots. Not an easy process).

• The front handlbar height adjustment works great for helping me refine muscle groups on my Trikke 12 Roadster. I can crank it up high and get more lat work in, or down and crank on shoulders and lower abs (the legs are a given).

• The paint and decals are holding up great. From the Rosarito-Ensenada run in Mexico (in the blazing August heat) to Portland's cold and rain... really impressive.

• My brakes "ring" when I hit bumps, but otherwise my Trikke is nearly silent. I'm often riding up on runners and bicyclists on the Columbia River waterfront, and surprising them with how quiet it is. Very cool for those all-important stealth maneuvers that we all like to do once in a great while.

To unsuspecting older folks.

Or cute gals. Either ones.

• More later... I smell turkey cooking... and sense dishes in my future.

AYS
ME

Comments

[mnjoe]

Someone please talk me off the ledge. My first day with my new T12 has been incredibly frustrating. This is my first time on a Trikke and I cannot maintain any speed. I'm an avid biker and decent athlete, why am I struggling with this? Can I truly take this vehicle for a 10 mile ride?