Utah Trikes Pimp My Trike - Brent's Tricked-Out Trike

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When initially looking at getting a Recumbent Trike, I seriously considered the WizWheelz brand of trike. Mainly because of price but also because of the adjustable seat. The WizWheelz trikes let me adjust the seat angle and distance to the pedals. I really wanted to get an aluminum frame like that of the Race, but the Cruiser was more in line with my budget. With a little bit of saving, I could have enough money for the Race in a few months. But really, who wants to wait a few months for something as cool as a Trike? The Cruiser is considered entry-level, but it's a great trike. Still, I certainly wanted to make some modifications.

The first thing I did was add faster and more reliable tires. The stock tires are fine, but after two flats, I was done. I switched to the Schwalbe Marathon tires. I’ve had them for over a month now with no problems. The next thing I wanted to add was a back fender. Sure, I wasn’t planning on riding through mud or extreme rainy weather, but its summer and that means everyone is watering their lawns and washing their cars. And that typically means that water makes its way into the street. I was sick of avoiding puddles or getting streaks up the back of my head. So I bought a Planet Bike Freddy Fenders set. I mostly just wanted the rear fender, but was curious and wanted to try the side fenders. Also, I had seen a convenient way to mount an inexpensive bike computer to the front fender bars. So getting the whole set would mean no more water streaks, and the ability to mount a bike computer.

Once I got the fenders on, I was really digging the black motif, so I got a set of wheel covers that were all black. I wasn’t sure if that made me look “punk rock” or more like a pirate. Either way, I was having fun. At first, I had a sort of negative feeling towards the wheel covers. People would ask if they made me faster and my common response was “No, they just look cool. I think they might even make me a little slower.” But one thing I did notice with having them on is I could take turns a bit faster and even though they did weigh me down a little, my top speed increased. So I think that while they certainly were cosmetically motivating for me, if wind is hitting your tires at an angle or you’re going faster than about 15 mph, they do seem to make a difference. And, as Krysti (writer of the hydration article) pointed out, as I zoom by I sound more like a single arrow shooting through the wind rather than a hundred little darts. That certainly seemed like a good reason to keep the wheel covers.

With my cool black themed Cruiser, I begged my wife to make a black safety flag for me. The irony of a black safety flag cracked me up. Although, scientifically, they do say that the cones in your eyes that register color are in the center of your eye and the rods than register contrast (light and dark) are on the corner of your eye. Which is why they say to see best in the dark, you shouldn’t look directly at an object to best see it. You should look slightly to the side of that object. Using that logic, flags are to be seen by those who aren’t looking directly at you or who haven’t noticed you yet. So I, with my black flag, should be more visible to those who haven’t looked directly at me yet than a colored flag would be. And really, once they’ve seen you, who needs a flag? So, that’s my scientifically based reasoning for those who criticize my intelligence for sporting a black flag. And to those who “get it” they just yell “Rock On!”

Every Trike purchased from Utah Trikes comes with a Mirrycle rear-view safety mirror, so I already had one of those. But I really wanted to add another mirror on my right side. Not just because it helped my trike look more balanced, but because I really like the increased safety of also being able to see behind me on my right side. Also, when riding through suburbia with other Trikers, it’s nice to use the left mirror for cars, and the right mirror for finding out if your buddy’s ditched you or not.

I also added a Utah Trikes Commuter Bag so I had a place to put all my stuff. (Thanks again Krysti!) And, because I hate when my trike rolls away, I added a Promax Locking Brake Lever. Ditch the Velcro. Get a Parking Brake. Honestly, the parking brake is one of the simplest and least expensive upgrades and one of the best things I’ve ever added. Sure, most upgrades are to go faster. But sometimes, you don’t want to go at all. This helps. And, I love my Shimano 520 Pedals. Not that I enjoy sharing my trike (Get yer own!!) but its nice having pedals that have shoe clips on one side, and standard pedals on the other. Or, if you don't want the standard pedals on the one side, you can remove them. They're simply clipped into one side just like shoe.

I really want to add lights to my Trike and black flames. If I add lights, I want two spot lights similar to that on a car, rather than just one bright “Cyclops” light. This means I’ll need two low profile red rear lights. I want lights that look like they’re part of the frame. Nothing that screams “Hey, that’s a bike light!” So I’m thinking of mounting two head-strap utility lights to the T-bar of my trike, kind of low between the tires. And as far as black flames go, I’m thinking of having a guy who does detailing for cars make some high end stickers for my trike frame. It all depends on the cost though. The next best steps for me would probably be to get a better rear derailleur. Not that it’s horrible, but with the few times I’ve ridden Ashley’s Race, I really notice a difference in the quality of components. Having better components essentially means that more of the power you put into pedaling gets transferred to the wheels. With lower end components, you get lower-end energy transfer. This means more work on your end to get the trike moving. I’ll probably keep tricking out my trike until I save up enough for a higher end speed machine like the Race. But for now, it’s a great starting point to really test all sorts of different components, cuz lets face it. If I spent all my money getting the Race now, I wouldn’t be able to afford fun upgrades.

Honestly though, it's tough to want to change anything when you look as cool as I do riding a Trike. Perhaps I'll just need to keep buying more and more so I have a different Trike depending on my mood. Or, just keep an extra one around for friends who are too cheap to jump into commitment. That's why I have two Vespas. I just wish I could decide between the Race or the Commuter. Both are fast and look amazing without touching a thing.

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Share your comments below:
How did you mount the front fenders? I have a cruise and have a freddy fender on the rear, but can't figure out how to mount two front fenders.
Posted by oleviking
07/03/2008 10:33:35 AM

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