During my recovery, I had lots of time on my hands between my physical therapy, doctor, and prosthetist appointments to heal, read, research, and learn more then I ever wanted to know about the Euro Cup, which was in full swing during that time period; I am now a big soccer fan as a result of watching so much of it.

It was also during this time that I discovered recumbent trikes. I was trying to figure out how to get active again once I was up and moving. Understanding that my physical health would be paramount to my success going forward, I needed to find something that I could do to help me stay fit. I was never a big runner, nor was I ever a gym rat. I love being outdoors so cycling seemed like the perfect activity. Just one problem, given the length of my residual limb and the bulk of my suspension sleeve behind my knee, it makes it darn near impossible to bend my knee past 90 degrees. Riding a traditional diamond frame bicycle requires a full revolution of the crank and having the ability to bend past 90 degrees is a must. You can experiment with shorter cranks and other things to overcome these issues but I decided to give recumbent trikes a try. My occupational therapist had one and she encouraged me to give them a shot.

I found a bicycle shop, Gator Cycle in Gainesville, FL, that stocked recumbent trikes and I stopped by to test ride a few. From the moment I took off down the bike trail, I was hooked. The feeling I had of screaming down the trail, pushing the pedals, turning the cranks, was indescribable. It was like a new-found sense of freedom that I had not felt in quite a few months and honestly thought I would not feel again for some time. The folks at the bike shop were great in adjusting each trike to my specifications so that I could get the full experience of running through the gears. It was also during this test ride session that I learned that trikes, much like their diamond frame bicycle counterparts, are built for specific task. Want to go fast, there’s a trike for that. Want to tour, there’s a trike for that too. Want to cruise around the neighborhood, go off road, or hit the rail trials, there are trikes for that as well.

Outside of just plan being fun to ride, trikes have other tangible benefits as well.

• Seating position: The relaxed seating position places your body in a more natural position with your shoulders, back, and posterior being supported. It also takes the strain off of your neck and allows your head to be in a more natural, upright position. For those with back, shoulder, or neck issues, this is a huge advantage. It also takes the strain off of your wrists as well given that your arms are in a more relaxed position.

• Balance: For those that have issues with balance, the trike eliminates the need for balance because being on three wheels, once you are seated and ready to ride, that’s it. It takes the stress of stopping and starting and obstacle avoidance out of the equation as well, as it relates to the balance needed to perform those basic tasks of riding.

• Hills: Tikes are notoriously slow hill climbers. Given that you can’t stand on the pedals to give yourself that extra push, trikes can have a turtle-like pace on hills. However, the great advantage to trikes on hills is that you can start and stop relatively easy on the hills without getting off the trike. Ever tried stopping on a hill on a traditional bicycle and start again? It can be an extremely difficult task. In addition, there are countless gearing combinations that are available to ensure hill climbs can be done with ease. The pay off for a big hill climb is the decent on the other side. Screening down a hill on a trike at 25-30 mph is super exhilarating and just down right fun.

• Adaptability: Just like an avid or professional cyclist can be fitted for their bicycles, trikes are extremely customizable and can be fitted to your exact specifications and needs. The length of the boom can be adjusted for your height, the seating position and headrest both can be adjusted to your comfort as well. If you have issues or weakness in one arm, the controls can be altered so that you can shift gears and brake on one side. Gearing can be adjusted based on the type of riding you do. Certain trike models can be folded for easier transport and storage. Trikes come in different heights off the ground and have assisted devices to help you get on and off the trike. If there is a need, trikes can be built for your specific adaptable needs.

• Safety: This can be a source of debate as to how safe it is to ride a trike on roadways. If you only intend to ride your trike on trails, this is not an issue. However, for many trike riders, riding on the road is something that is done regularly. The initial reaction, and I believed this to be true when I first got my trike, is that because you sit so low to the ground, people in cars simply won’t see you. In my experience of riding on the road and after hundreds of miles of trike riding, this has simply not been the case. First, trikes look different. If someone has never seen a trike, it stands out on the road. People aren’t really sure what it is and I even had someone ask me if it was a wheelchair. In my experience, cars give as much room passing a trike as they do for as upright cyclist. Trikes do have a wider footprint but I have yet to encounter a bike lane that my trike does not fully fit inside of. Also, trikes can be outfitted with flags and safety lights that make them even more visible. In addition, riding when the traffic isn’t the heaviest, avoiding peek rush hour times or extremely busy roads is a good safety practice for any cyclist. The bottom line is that if a motorist isn’t paying attention, there is nothing anyone can do to be noticed by a distracted motorist, whether you are on a trike, upright bicycle, walking, motorcycle, etc., if the motorist isn’t looking, they won’t see you regardless. Legally, cyclist have as much right to be on our roadways as cars do, unfortunately a good number of motorists don’t recognize or respect that fact.

Recumbent trikes are not for everyone, rather a great alternative to those who have issues riding an upright bicycle and want to either continue cycling or find a new way to stay fit and moving. Given my personal circumstance, trikes have given me the ability to get back out to enjoy the outdoors, help me stay fit, challenges me to increase my endurance and enjoy some of God’s glories when I am outdoors riding. My biggest benefit however, is being able to take bike rides with my wife and daughter again and for that reason alone, recumbent trikes have gained a loyal follower. Give one a try, you might be surprised how much you will enjoy it. To check out the Catrike that I chose, check out their website at www.catrike.com