Commute Report - The Trike

I rode the trike (Inspired Cycle Engineering Trice S) to work on my normal commute route, and home on the scenic route up the lovely 15% Gun Rd. This is a good comparison to see how the trike compares with my regular bike, a Cobrabike Royale carbon front-wheel-drive low racer.

I've got the trike all set the way I want it now.



I cannibalized the Rotor Crank and Candys off the T-Bone. The 63 tooth chain ring was from the Royale before I went to a Dual Drive to get the high gear. The chain is a new Wipperman Connex stainless steel deal, also taken off the T-Bone. The front derailleur is from the parts box, and the shifter is a new X.9 from the bike shop.



I've got 63/44/30 for the chainrings. According to Sheldon, this gives me 10 to 115 gear inches. If I don't use the small chain ring, I have 15-115. Part of the ride up Gun Rd. was to see if I really need the small chain ring. I don't. I had no problems staying in the middle ring. Also the chain drags on the bottom of the derailleur on the small ring, and furthermore, it voids the warranty on the Rohloff. It's too much bother to take it off, though. Maybe I can modify an old derailleur, and it will come in handy when pulling the baby trailer.



I put a new LED taillight on the trunk rack, which is not on the bike. Because of the wide spread of the chain rings, I replaced the Rohloff chain tensioner with my broken SRAM X.0 derailleur, which is held in the right position by three zip-ties. What kind of recumbent doesn't have zip-ties? I have my doubts about whether these ICE guys know what they are doing. There was only one or two zip-ties on the whole bike when I got it.

So how did it do comapared with the Cobrabike? The Cobrabike only weighs 23 lbs, with a DualDrive and a Ti Rotor crank (13-122 gear inches) . I'm afraid to weigh the trike.

So here is the ride to work. It's 10.1 miles and 620 feet of climb.


My last two rides on the Royale averaged 36:36 for a speed of 16.6 mph.
Today on the trike: 46:28 for 13.1 mph.

Here's the scenic route home. This is mostly so I can enjoy Gun Rd, which is the little hill at mile 13.5. This route is approximately 17 miles and 1300 feet of climb. I call it the scenic route because it goes up every available hill.



My last two rides on the Royale averaged 1:06:28 for a speed of 15.25 mph.
Today on the trike: 1:22:24 for 12.4 mph.

So I would say the trike is quite good for getting more workout per mile...