Recumbent Tricycle.

[Graham Harrison]

I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made me
want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.

I live is what is called in local government terms "South Somerset". It's
between Yeovil and Frome and I reckon it's more East Somerset but there you
go. If I set a circle bounded by Bridgewater, Weston, Bristol, Bath,
Swindon, Newbury, Basingstoke, Salisbury, Bournemouth, Exeter, Taunton and
back to Bridgewater does anyone know somewhere I could go to rent such a
machine? The circle is notional so somewhere just outside is equally
acceptable.

 

[Nigel Cliffe]

Graham Harrison wrote:
> I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
> extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It
> made me want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.
>
> I live is what is called in local government terms "South Somerset". It's
> between Yeovil and Frome and I reckon it's more East Somerset
> but there you go. If I set a circle bounded by Bridgewater, Weston,
> Bristol, Bath, Swindon, Newbury, Basingstoke, Salisbury, Bournemouth,
> Exeter, Taunton and back to Bridgewater does anyone know somewhere I
> could go to rent such a machine? The circle is notional so
> somewhere just outside is equally acceptable.




Nearest, and none are particularly near, options I can think of are:

ICE in Cornwall - makers of recumbent tricycles, may come to some terms for
a loan/rent/demo.

Future Cycles in East Sussex; think they have demo/rental machines.

London Recumbents in Dulwich, London.

D-Tek, near Ely, Cambridgeshire; probably largest dealer in s/hand
recumbents in country (as well new machines) and hires machines. No website,
usually answers email, probably best phoning. Might be a good option
combined with a couple of days holiday in Cambridgeshire/Norfolk/Suffolk ?



regards,

- Nigel


--
Nigel Cliffe,
Webmaster at http://www.2mm.org.uk/

 

[James Thomson]

"Graham Harrison" <[email protected]> a écrit:

>I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
>extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made
> me want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.

You could give Comfort Cycles in Mangotsfield a call:

0117 957 5736

http://www.recumbents.co.uk/

Their web presence is very limited, and it's been a long time since I lived
in the area, but the owner used to be very helpful.

James Thomson

 

[Carol Hague]

Graham Harrison <[email protected]> wrote:

> I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
> extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made me
> want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.
>
> I live is what is called in local government terms "South Somerset". It's
> between Yeovil and Frome and I reckon it's more East Somerset but there you
> go. If I set a circle bounded by Bridgewater, Weston, Bristol, Bath,
> Swindon, Newbury, Basingstoke, Salisbury, Bournemouth, Exeter, Taunton and
> back to Bridgewater does anyone know somewhere I could go to rent such a
> machine? The circle is notional so somewhere just outside is equally
> acceptable.

When Rob and I lived in Bishops Lydeard and ran Westcountry Recumbents
therefrom, we were the only recumbent trike company in the area, and I
don't know of any that have started since we left.

But we did sell a GTO to these folks a few years back :-
http://www.biketrail.co.uk/Biketrail_Home.htm

I don't know if they still have it. They're quite durable machines, so
it's possible. They do have KMX Karts, which aren't the world's best
trikes but should give you some idea.

Failing that, probably your best bet is a trundle down to Cornwall to
visit those nice chaps at ICE.

--
Carol (www.wrhpv.com)
"If you are allergic to a thing, it is best not to put
that thing in your mouth. Particularly if the thing is
cats." - Lemony Snicket _The Wide Window_

 

[Rod King]

Graham

Have a look at the Windcheetah from Advanced Vehicle Designs.
www.windcheetah.co.uk

Once you have stopped drooling, then speak to Bob Dixon and arrange to get
on a train to Manchester and try out a Windcheetah for a few hours.
That should do the trick nicely.

Best regards


Rod King


"Graham Harrison" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
> I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
> extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made me
> want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.
>
> I live is what is called in local government terms "South Somerset".
It's
> between Yeovil and Frome and I reckon it's more East Somerset but there
you
> go. If I set a circle bounded by Bridgewater, Weston, Bristol, Bath,
> Swindon, Newbury, Basingstoke, Salisbury, Bournemouth, Exeter, Taunton and
> back to Bridgewater does anyone know somewhere I could go to rent such a
> machine? The circle is notional so somewhere just outside is equally
> acceptable.
>
>

 

[Steve Watkin]

Give the guys at ICE http://www.ice.hpv.co.uk/ a call and see if they will
let you try one locally. I went there a few years ago and had a good ride
around and was "sold" very quickly. Their product really is top class and
performs well. My Trice is 8 years old and still pleases me every time I
ride it.
If none of the suggestions works for you I travel to your area once every 2
months and I would be happy to bring my trike for you to try one evening. PM
if interested.

SW



"Graham Harrison" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
>I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
>extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made me
>want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.
>
> I live is what is called in local government terms "South Somerset".
> It's between Yeovil and Frome and I reckon it's more East Somerset but
> there you go. If I set a circle bounded by Bridgewater, Weston, Bristol,
> Bath, Swindon, Newbury, Basingstoke, Salisbury, Bournemouth, Exeter,
> Taunton and back to Bridgewater does anyone know somewhere I could go to
> rent such a machine? The circle is notional so somewhere just outside is
> equally acceptable.
>

 

[squeaker]

On Oct 9, 3:04 pm, "Graham Harrison"
<[email protected]> wrote:
> I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
> extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made me
> want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.

I hope that you do realise that you are teetering on the top of a very
long, slippery slope
Have fun!

 

[Graham Harrison]

"squeaker" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Oct 9, 3:04 pm, "Graham Harrison"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>> I recently had a *very* short ride on a recumbent trike (literally an
>> extended figure of 8 - maybe a couple of hundred yards max). It made me
>> want a longer experience so I wondered about renting one.
>
> I hope that you do realise that you are teetering on the top of a very
> long, slippery slope
> Have fun!
>

Mmm I did think about that. Trouble is while I enjoyed the experience
to at least want to try it again I have two issues to overcome:

1) Use/Cost ratio. I use my current bike mainly for a daily trip into the
village to buy essentials (no more than a mile each way) justifying the cost
of a recumbent of any kind for that amount of use is difficult. Mind you,
who knows, I may be tempted into other uses.
2) Whenever I see a recumbent I am reminded how low off the ground they are.
People put flags and such like on them but I'm always worried about
visibility. Trikes seem even worse than bikes.

I think I might take a trip to Barnstaple where I can use the off road route
for my first experience and if that whets my appetite further then the idea
of a few days in East Anglia is a good one.

 

[Danny Colyer]

On 10/10/2007 21:17, Graham Harrison wrote:
> 2) Whenever I see a recumbent I am reminded how low off the ground they are.
> People put flags and such like on them but I'm always worried about
> visibility. Trikes seem even worse than bikes.

Recumbents benefit from WTF factor. They get that all-important second
glance that makes the recumbent rider more likely to be seen than an
upright rider.

One of the reasons I chose the Street Machine was its height, but it
wasn't long before I decided I'd be just as happy with something lower.

--
Danny Colyer <http://www.redpedals.co.uk>
Reply address is valid, but that on my website is checked more often
"The plural of anecdote is not data" - Frank Kotsonis

 

[Ian Smith]

On Wednesday, Graham Harrison <> wrote:
>
> 2) Whenever I see a recumbent I am reminded how low off the ground
> they are. People put flags and such like on them but I'm always
> worried about visibility. Trikes seem even worse than bikes.

Remember, it doesn't matter whether you are seen or not, what matters
is whether you are noticed or not. On a recumbent you get noticed.
On my (previous) Surrey commuter-belt commute on an upright bike I got
a serious near-miss that could be attributed to a motorist not
noticing me about once a month on an upright, and never in several
years on a Trice XL (ie, 'eXtra-Low' recumbent trike). My commute
took in a one-way system with feeder lanes and merges and whatnot -
prime location for a motorist to glance too quick and merge across
over the top of someone.

Having said which, on my current commute I don't ride it. Most of my
commute is past stationary traffic queues - the Trice does this less
well, because I can't see over low cars or through the windows of
higher cars, and it's wider.

regards, Ian SMith
--
|\ /| no .sig
|o o|
|/ \|

 

[Peter Clinch]

Graham Harrison wrote:

> 1) Use/Cost ratio. I use my current bike mainly for a daily trip into the
> village to buy essentials (no more than a mile each way) justifying the cost
> of a recumbent of any kind for that amount of use is difficult. Mind you,
> who knows, I may be tempted into other uses.

I'd wait until you've resolved to do something bigger, and open up the
shortlist for the job to 'bents. Though a day trying them out can be
fun in its own right and might be a good catalyst to resolve you to
something bigger, and you're not a 4-figure sum down by doing it!

> 2) Whenever I see a recumbent I am reminded how low off the ground they are.

Mine is about car seat height. But despite this, people in cars tell me
I must feel very vulnerable "down there"...

> People put flags and such like on them but I'm always worried about
> visibility. Trikes seem even worse than bikes.

It's primarily perception and the unfamiliar. You'll note how the
people that worry about it aren't the people that ride them, though I
think it's fair to say most of us /did/ worry about it before we
started. In practice not an issue.
A big pothole is a lot lower than even the lowest recumbent, but people
generally manage to see them. As with any other bike, the problem isn't
generally being overlooked because they are hard to see, but because the
person doing the looking did a half-job.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email protected] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

 

[Mike Sales]

"Peter Clinch" wrote
> A big pothole is a lot lower than even the lowest recumbent, but people
> generally manage to see them. As with any other bike, the problem isn't
> generally being overlooked because they are hard to see, but because the
> person doing the looking did a half-job.
>

Drivers are genearally expected to see white lines, cats' eyes, etc. and I
don't remember ever hearing a complaint that they are hard to see.

Mike Sales