Re: [CR] British racing trikes: our version of mules.

(Example: Racing)

From: "Rob Williams" <rwynw@comcast.net>
To: <hsachs@alumni.rice.edu>
References: <4AE24390.2060800@verizon.net>
Date: Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:03:17 -0700
Cc: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: Re: [CR] British racing trikes: our version of mules.


My '78 Rogers sits, fittingly, in the corner of the rumpus room. The roads round here are all 'crowned' and every venture is a challenge. But that's the thing..... riding a bike is a relative doddle: riding the trike demands an instant revisit to childhood with every (infrequent) ride. For perspective; surely those that rode to horse everyday probably considered the bicycle....... A Neat novelty..... a mutant w/o much grace. Robert Williams Musing in Wet Seattle USA


----- Original Message -----
From: Harvey Sachs
To: Classic Rendezvous


<marc.stmartin@earthlink.net> Sent: Friday, October 23, 2009 5:00 PM Subject: [CR] British racing trikes: our version of mules.


>I put a lot of miles on a Jack Taylor trike a couple of decades ago. A
>lovely build. In my not-so-humble opinion, a racing trike is a cross
>between a bike and and a really Bad Idea. Yeah, I got ok at riding it,
>could ride far as I wanted on two wheels, etc. Neat novelty, but for most
>folks I just consider it a mutant w/o much grace.
> First, there was the steering. Why do bikes have the front geometry they
> use? so they will steer in the direction of the lean. So, riding in a lane
> on a crowned road means that the trike continually wants to steer itself
> toward the edge of the road. The gutter. Neat, eh? And then there is the
> drive train. Marc has the rare bikes with differentials. The JT had
> one-wheel drive. Drove the left rear wheel through a live axle on which
> the FW was mounted. OK in Britain, but Bad Idea here in the colonies where
> we drive on the right, and weight transfers to the right on that same
> crowned road. Yup, sure was easy to get the drive wheel to spin. And then
> there is cornering. It is an unnatural act. Have you noticed that
> children's trikes have changed from the functional equivalent of a
> high-wheeler with two trailing wheels to low seat units that slide out in
> corners instead of tipping? Well, the vintage trikes still tip right good,
> eh? By comparison, I find high wheelers pretty easy to ride.
>
> So, as far as I'm concerned, the classic racing trike is just a triumph of
> craftsmanship over sound design. When I'm old enough for a trike, mine
> will be a "tadpole" recumbent: low center of gravity, single rear drive
> wheel, and automotive steering for the dual front wheels. Handling is
> super, and braking is vastly superior to the kludges of the old Brits:
> typically two brakes on the front wheel, nothing in back. If I want a
> vintage feel, I can always mount a Campgranola Gran Turismo on it, eh?
>
> end of rant. :-)
>
> Marc, you can send me any spare Abingdons, eh?
>
> harvey sachs, curmudgeonly at the end of a hard week.
> mcLean va.
> +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> >
> > Hi Dmitry,
> >
> > I have two fixed gear trikes; a Buckley and a Selbach. Both use the
> Abingdon differential. The Selbach is disassembled and at the shop of a
> well-known builder, the other I ride from time to time. People in
> Livermore, California do not know what to make of a racing tricycle. I've
> had folks ask if I was handicapped ;^) Yes, a fixed gear trike in a corner
> is a handfull. I suspect that the focus for these spindly old girls was
> out-and-back time trials; e.g., one corner taken slow.
> >
> > Marc St. Martin
> > Livermore, California
> > USA
> >
> >
> http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/stmartin/VintageRides/Livermore+Rides/Livermore+Vintage+Ride+001.jpg.html