Trike for person with minor cerebral palsy?

[Quicksilver89]

If your legs have strength to stand up and walk around then it's reasonable to assume you'd be quicker using them. 'Bent bikes are much more difficult because of the starting and stopping issues of balancing and getting underway. More difficult than uprights I'd say.

Come to think of it the main thing that stops me getting on an upright is the height of the seat, as long as I can get on the seat it should be fine. Maybe a recumbent with 2 wheels with a very low down seat could work, not sure how many of them there are around though.

[Tigerbiten]

Come to think of it the main thing that stops me getting on an upright is the height of the seat, as long as I can get on the seat it should be fine. Maybe a recumbent with 2 wheels with a very low down seat could work, not sure how many of them there are around though.

A general rule of thumb with 2 wheeled recumbents is the lower and/or more reclined the seat is, the harder it is to balance.
You may be better aiming more towards the crank forward side of the recumbent envelope if it's been a few years since you last rode a bike.

Have a word with Kevin at D-tek.
He's probably the person with the most information on the in's and out's of various recumbents and what's around on the second hand market.

Ps. My average speed on my Sprint is only around 13 mph in rolling terrain.
I recon on just sub 4 hours for 50 miles around Northampton when fit.
But I'm not that strong a rider due to bad knees so others are faster.

[squeaker]

Maybe a recumbent with 2 wheels with a very low down seat could work, not sure how many of them there are around though.

From your OP (my bold)

However the handcycle was useful because I had a high level of muscle stiffness in my legs and I lack balance so it was ideal.

On 2 wheels, the lower the centre of gravity, the faster they fall over when stationary... So unless you want a serious challenge, I'd stick to 3 wheels (Speaking as one who has owned both a Raptobike - 'interesting' to get off until you get the hang of putting your feet down before you stop - and a Nazca Fuego.)

[[XAP]Bob]

I've also noticed that some of the two wheel recumbents also have low ground clearance (such as a raptorbike), perhaps I could use one of these. It would be a question of being able to swing my legs around to fit into the bike when I am sat on my seat though.

For a rapto you have to stand astride it and then slide down the seat - the frame won't allow you to swing sideways when sat in the seat...

The KMX vs ICE question...
Not dissing KMX (I have one sat in the garage), but the price difference does reflect the design quality of the different vehicles.

[OldBloke]

I have a cycling acquaintance who has CP and rides recumbent trikes, a Greenspeed and a fat-trike. If you're on Facebook search for Jason Forbes of Gosford, NSW, Aus.

If you have reduced flexibility in your legs you may benefit from shorter cranks, for example, 155mm instead of the 170mm that is usually installed. Talk to your physio/OT.

My wife and I have Performers. They are good value for money.

Whatever you get I suspect that you will enjoy recumbent tadpole triking.

[Cunobelin]

There are aids


My wife has "stand aids"on her trike

[Quicksilver89]

Come to think of it the main thing that stops me getting on an upright is the height of the seat, as long as I can get on the seat it should be fine. Maybe a recumbent with 2 wheels with a very low down seat could work, not sure how many of them there are around though.

A general rule of thumb with 2 wheeled recumbents is the lower and/or more reclined the seat is, the harder it is to balance.
You may be better aiming more towards the crank forward side of the recumbent envelope if it's been a few years since you last rode a bike.

Have a word with Kevin at D-tek.
He's probably the person with the most information on the in's and out's of various recumbents and what's around on the second hand market.

Ps. My average speed on my Sprint is only around 13 mph in rolling terrain.
I recon on just sub 4 hours for 50 miles around Northampton when fit.
But I'm not that strong a rider due to bad knees so others are faster.

Just wanted to say to everyone thanks for the great advise. I used to love handcycling but with this new found flexibility in my legs it would be very interesting to see what they are capable of. Moving away from handcycling means it would be missed but I enjoy testing my body to the limit and maybe this new challenge would make me an even keener cyclist. I'm only 28 so I think I can still develop my muscles a lot further and keep my legs in good shape.

13mph is still faster then my handbike which is rode in the relatively flat and quiet New Forest. Given I will also be using this bike for commuting it will get a lot of miles.

15km each day followed by two turbo sessions during the week and a long 70-90km ride at the weekend (2 if the weather is great) that's what I did at the peak of my handcycling fitness and the best average speed I could possibly manage in the Summer was 21.5km/h.

Shame the rapto may be a bit too difficultbut a tadpole trike would still be more fun and convenient. It may be worth trying those kinda bikes though so it may be worth speaking to Kevin to see whether he can tell me any further info.

[[XAP]Bob]

If you can then a morning/day with Kevin is going to be worth more than all the text you can imagine.

I'd go for three wheels, if you go second hand then you aren't risking a huge amount (because you can resell for relatively low loss).

Most of the 'bent manufacturers have the ability to do hand cycle conversions, you can always add some electric drive if you want/need it...

We're much less restrictive than the UCI

[squeaker]

Shame the rapto may be a bit too difficultbut a tadpole trike would still be more fun and convenient. It may be worth trying those kinda bikes though so it may be worth speaking to Kevin to see whether he can tell me any further info.

Sadly the Raptotrikenever made it into production (PS: for me the biggest downside to FWD was noticeable wheelspin on wet, bumpy, steep hills.)

[[XAP]Bob]

Neither the raptotrike nor the velotilt (which I really like the look of)

[skelo]

Hi Jonny
i am hemiplegic following a stroke in 2014 and have very limited use of my left leg and no use of my left arm. stuck in the house I was going crazy and went to try a few trikes. i decided on a recumbent Hase Kettweisel which has been bloody brilliant for me, started out small increasing distance every week, but found it hard to climb hills so got a hub motor assist so i could get out of town and do some touring. for me, it has literally been a lifesaver and has improved my mobility greatly.there are a few options out there but if, like me, you have balance problems a recumbent is probably the way to go.
cheers

John

[Quicksilver89]

Hello

Tried a few things this week. As I suspected two wheel recumbents are not possible for me. The trikes however felt great especially the ICE ones. The next step is to directly compare my handcycling with the leg pedalling to decide whether to make that transition. Any trike users in the Southampton area?

Then I can sell the handbike and get myself a good amount of money to fund a leg trike. I think its best to go down the second hand route so hopefully I can find something if I decide to make the transition.

[UpWrong]

Have you contacted KMX Karts in Fareham? You can't get much closer than that to Soton?

[Quicksilver89]

Have you contacted KMX Karts in Fareham? You can't get much closer than that to Soton?

Yeah I think I'll do that this week if there isn't anyone in Soton. Then I may be able to compare them directly

[Tigerbiten]

As you're really after a secondhand "speed" machine, have you contacted Kein at D-Tek.
He's the person to talk to for the pro's and con's of each and every model and if you're lucky he'll find you one .........