High & Low Art

[sunnyjim]

My solution to the trike storage problem, and an excuse to show off n+1 - Raptobike in kermit green which now shares the lobby.

Only 40 km on the clock so far, not a yard of it on a dry road without ice, mud or wet leaves. The poor beast must be wondering what sort of country it's ended up in. Remarkably stable and easy to ride in a straight line, but corners a bit dodgy - usually ending up disentangling various legs from the handlebars while lying horizontally in a muddy puddle.

The trike winch is one of these http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/clarke-250kg-power-winch-ch2500

 

[arallsopp]

...little disappointed to realise that's the winch motor, and not an air raid siren you have permanently mounted to the trike.

I was eyeing up a Raptobike recently, but I don't think I'd manage the transition from USS to OSS without far too many tumbles. I know lots of people will say 'stick in there, you'll get it' or 'my friend learnt to ride it in 3 minutes' but I've tried, many times, and am decidedly useless at it.

Oh, and I'm afraid that in purchasing said beast, the Raptobike is now mis-labelled. Its not an 'n+1'. Its an 'n'.

 

[BentMikey]

You want to borrow my Hurricane to learn OSS?

 

[arallsopp]

Kind offer, but you like that bike. You don't want me to break it.

 

[BentMikey]

No, the Hurricane is now second fiddle to the Fujin. If I got my butt in gear and sorted it again, I'd leave off the tailbox. Then I don't mind if you drop it many times!

 

[arallsopp]

Poor Hurricane! Relegated to the reserve bench.

I thought my SMGTe would head the same way after the Furai, but find I use them both pretty equally. If anything, the SMGTe gets more miles, as its my commuter / hack / snow bike

 

[Scoosh]

...little disappointed to realise that's the winch motor, and not an air raid siren you have permanently mounted to the trike.

I was eyeing up a Raptobike recently, but I don't think I'd manage the transition from USS to OSS without far too many tumbles. I know lots of people will say 'stick in there, you'll get it' or 'my friend learnt to ride it in 3 minutes' but I've tried, many times, and am decidedly useless at it.

Oh, and I'm afraid that in purchasing said beast, the Raptobike is now mis-labelled. Its not an 'n+1'. Its an 'n'.

Interesting that - I have (only) ridden OSS (and even a Raptobike ) but wonder how I would cope with USS !

The Raptobike is very 'sporty' - like driving a sports car after a saloon (in this case a Seiran SL). It's also very close to the ground - just put your hand down when you stop - so, of course, it was the one I (first) fell off .

 

[sunnyjim]

Interesting that - I have (only) ridden OSS (and even a Raptobike ) but wonder how I would cope with USS !

The Raptobike is very 'sporty' - like driving a sports car after a saloon (in this case a Seiran SL). It's also very close to the ground - just put your hand down when you stop - so, of course, it was the one I (first) fell off .

This is my first 2 wheel recumbent, so can't really compare. My lust for one of these started after the BROL review last year, with similar reasoning to that which might persuade one to ignore an heiress and marry a pole dancer.

My trike is USS, but of course the steering techinque is entirely different. I was a bit worried about adapting to a tiller steer, but seems OK in practice with a *very * light touch at low speed. A bevel gear arrangement at the stem to make the bars more steering wheel than tiller might be fun to try.

Compared with a trike, it isn't particularly low - the seat's nearly twice as high as the QNT. (Raptobike spec says 10.6 ins, but with marathons and the seat moved forward about an inch it's nearer 13). The seating position and getting in and out manouvers are not unlike the old Jaguar XJS. View of the road immediately in front is similarly restricted.

Handstand-trackstand starts are way beyond my skill level so far. Anyway, further practice will have to wait until the snow melts. This is definitely triking weather.

 

[sunnyjim]

Interesting that - I have (only) ridden OSS (and even a Raptobike ) but wonder how I would cope with USS !

The Raptobike is very 'sporty' - like driving a sports car after a saloon (in this case a Seiran SL). It's also very close to the ground - just put your hand down when you stop - so, of course, it was the one I (first) fell off .

This is my first 2 wheel recumbent, so can't really compare. My lust for one of these started after the BROL review last year, with similar reasoning to that which might persuade one to ignore an heiress and marry a pole dancer.

My trike is USS, but of course the steering techinque is entirely different. I was a bit worried about adapting to a tiller steer, but seems OK in practice with a *very * light touch at low speed. A bevel gear arrangement at the stem to make the bars more steering wheel than tiller might be fun to try.

Compared with a trike, it isn't particularly low - the seat's nearly twice as high as the QNT. (Raptobike spec says 10.6 ins, but with marathons and the seat moved forward about an inch it's nearer 13). The seating position and getting in and out manouvers are not unlike the old Jaguar XJS. View of the road immediately in front is similarly restricted.

Handstand-trackstand starts are way beyond my skill level so far. Anyway, further practice will have to wait until the snow melts. This is definitely triking weather.