Category: inclement weather

TIPS & TRICKS FOR SURVIVING WINTER ON A TADPOLE TRIKE

Do you have winter to deal with where you are at? I know lots of people go into hibernation and put their trikes up for the duration. Depending upon how severe winter gets one can continue to ride their trikes thru the winter. I try to, but I admit I am not as brave in doing so as I was when I was younger. I still get out but I don’t deal with the cold as well as I did years ago and therefore I don’t venture out if it is worse weather than I care for.

Anyway, here is a Utah Trikes video with tips and tricks on surviving winter on a tadpole trike.

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A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

Why wish upon a star when you can talk to the  One (Jesus) Who created them?

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

POP UP SHOWERS

It seems that you just can’t count on anything except not being able to count on much of anything. The ten day weather forecast has rain nearly everyday. Because of that I had planned on going riding this afternoon to take advantage of no rain in the forecast. Now there was rain forecasted for today, but they took it out of the forecast. I just looked and now they are showing rain starting at 3 pm. A person just can’t seem to win for losing. 2:15 pm – And now they have taken rain out of the forecast for 3 pm saying it will start at 8 pm, but the radar shows rain is right now on the west edge of Fort Wayne. And these people get paid for this. Oh well, my right foot is hurting bad since I started typing this so I am staying home.

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You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

Why wish upon a star when you can talk to the  One (Jesus) Who created them?

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

March (Spring) … in like a lamb, out like a lion

I love the picture of the lion laying peacefully with a lamb … not attacking it and devouring it. There is coming a time when this will be a reality. I love cats and I am looking forward to the time when I can play and interact with big cats just like I can with our domestic cats we have as pets. All of that has nothing to do with this post. I am writing about riding and the weather. March came in like a lamb, but went out like a lion. And now that we have moved into April it is still rather nasty weather so far … not pleasant weather for riding. Hopefully this will change soon. However, we have another weather related saying … April showers bring May flowers. We are seeing a fair amount of rain so far and all of our local rivers are flooded and the trails alongside of them are closed because of flooding. All of that brings up yet another saying … “Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day.” Yep, if it would just stop raining and warm up so that we have nice riding weather. Actually it has stopped raining for today. Tomorrow rain is back in the forecast as are some other days. Rain is predicted for 7 of the next 10 days. Oh well, it is what it is and we get what we get. Meanwhile I think I will just wait until God changes the animal kingdom (Isaiah 11:6 and other scriptures) and I can play with those big cats. A very few are able to do so now …

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

Why wish upon a star when you can talk to the  One (Jesus) Who created them?

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

RIDING INDOORS

Riding indoors is not for everybody. I am among those who can’t stand “stationary exercise” of any kind, especially indoors. Many years ago I tried mall walking on winter days. I found that I hated walking inside breathing air which I found uncomfortable/unpleasant. I continued to go to the mall thru the winter but instead of walking around inside where it was warm and dry I walked around outside of the mall breathing fresh air. I much preferred that. Many years later I tried mall walking again and quickly found nothing had changed.

I have had various stationary exercise equipment (treadmill, regular and recumbent bicycles, and HealthRider).  I got rid of all of them as they weren’t for me.

I have brought my tadpole trike inside of the house during part of the winter months and set it up on an indoor trainer. Although I had it set up in front of a large screen TV set hooked up to the internet so I could watch videos of trail riding or a good movie the novelty wore off quick and I returned to riding outdoors even though it was winter.

I have posted articles about indoor trainers and riding previously. HERE is one of them. And HERE is another one.

And now here is a video about riding indoors using a SportCrafters roller which is definitely the best trainer to use for a tadpole trike.

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You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

Why wish upon a star when you can talk to the  One (Jesus) Who created them?

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

BRRRRR! WINTER HAS ARRIVED!

See the blue in the image above? That’s snow folks! Yep, winter has arrived. (BTW, it is Sunday, November 26 as I compose this article.) Along with the snow is cold air. It had to happen sooner or later, but I am never ready for it. Funny looking back … as a kid growing up I didn’t mind winter and snow. I made the best of it. I even had fun thru the winter. Even into my adulthood I did for several years. But as I grew older I despise  everything about winter with maybe two exceptions. I like the cold water out of the faucet and I like the fact that winter kills off most of the insects. It sure messes up trike riding for me, especially as I have aged. I used to go out in the cold and even ride in snow. I don’t do that anymore. At nearly 77 years old some things have changed. Now I don’t care to go out riding unless it is above 40 degrees and even then I get chilled while I am out. I admit that I no longer have adequate winter clothing, especially for my waist on down. I can bundle up enough from the waist up although I struggle with cold fingers and it is quite challenging to keep my hands warm.

And standard tadpole trikes don’t do all that well riding in/on snow. It only takes about 3 inches or even less of depth to prevent the tires from rolling thru the snow, especially if it is a wet heavy snow. As far as traction a change in the rear tire can make a big difference.

We have our family Thanksgiving gathering today so “let is snow”. I will be inside eating a royal feast and not giving thought to being out riding.

Anyway there is light at the end of the tunnel. I just looked at the 10 day weather forecast and this cold is only suppose to last for about 3 days before it warms back up into the 40s. The winter forecast for my area is for a warmer and drier winter than usual. I hope so. I would love to be able to …

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

You are invited to come join the Tadpole Rider Facebook Group. Please note that in order to join you must first answer the three membership vetting questions.

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

Why wish upon a star when you can talk to the  One (Jesus) Who created them?

TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU’VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU’LL EVER BE SO – ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS FOR THIS IS A DAY THE LORD HAS MADE! REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT!

“NORMAL” is not coming back … JESUS IS!

84 YESTERDAY, 44 TODAY

It does not do any good to complain about it … the weather, that is. But come on … stop with the teasing. I mean yesterday was 84 degrees and lots of blue sky and sunshine. Today was only 44 with a totally overcast sky. That is hard on a guy (or gal). The ten day forecast shows nearly everyday below normal temperature-wise. Of course, this is typical Indiana weather at this time of year. Truthfully we never know what we will get as I have seen it in the 90s & 100s early on and come August when it normally is in the 90s it only was in the 60s. Strange things are happening I tell ya.

It is hard to go from wearing shorts and a short sleeve shirt back to clothing I wear thru the winter, but it is necessary if I want to stay warm enough.

 

And failing to dress warm enough makes for a miserable ride. It feels so good to stop and go inside of a restaurant or restroom where it is much warmer. I find myself staying longer than I normally would as my body warms back up. But all good things must come to an end as I have miles to go before I am finished. Hot cocoa time as it really helps when chilled. No need of sunburn protection for awhile.

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A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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HOORAY! SPRING HAS SPRUNG!

I am very much a fan of nice weather. Finally the 10 day forecast looks great with much warmer temperatures and lots of sunshine and very little rain. I can handle that. I just hope it allows the mud on the trails to dry up so they can remove it from the trailS and get the trails open which have been closed for several weeks. We keep getting rain so the mud has not dried up.

I can’t really complain. We were blessed with a mild winter and I was able to ride most of it. Of course, I had to bundle up in several layers of clothing. I am definitely looking forward to going riding in a short sleeve shirt and shorts. Spring has arrived and the 70s and even low 80s are in the forecast.

Yes, flowers are in bloom welcoming nice weather.

Changing the subject just a little …

And we have a new puppy not yet introduced to triking. The nicer weather will make the introduction more enjoyable and pleasant for him as well. He is so small I dare not try to walk him alongside of me. I will have him in a pouch slung over the front of me.

Of course, he will add a lot of weight to my trike … all 2.2 pounds of him. We don’t expect him to get any more than 4 pounds.  I think the pouch weighs more than he does. Now I have two dogs to take along with me. What did I get myself into?

Yep. sprung has spring … er … spring has sprung a leak … oh you know what I mean. We can rejoice together as winter is pretty much over with. I sure hope I am not made a liar. I have seen snow in June here in northern Indiana. Of course, it was only scattered snow flakes and melted as it touched the ground. Well, let’s ride!

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RAIN NEARLY EVERYDAY

Looking ahead at the ten day weather forecast 7 out of 10 days shows rain or snow for Fort Wayne, Indiana. (For what it is worth,  I also checked out the ten day forecast for Floral City, Florida and there was no rain in the forecast.)  It is that time of year … Spring … when rain is all too common. Of course, with rain comes river flooding and closed trails. Some of our trails are still closed from rain a few weeks ago. And we keep getting more rain so the river silt (mud) on the trails can’t dry out so it can be removed off of the trails. So the trails stay closed with no hope of opening back up anytime soon. Winter brings quite a bit of precipitation  causing all of this and then Spring comes along . I sure wish the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana never would have built so much of our trails along the rivers. What trails we have which were not built along rivers don’t have this flooding problem. At least I have those to ride on when the other trails are closed. Even some of them get flooded over by nearby creeks and ditches but they don’t flood nearly as often and when they do they don’t stay flooded very long compared to the trails along the rivers.

If ever any of you are considering riding the Fort Wayne Trails it would be advisable to check on the status of trail closures by going to THIS webpage. It is usually kept up to date. You are also welcome to CONTACT ME as I usually know what is going on with our trails.

tadpolerider2 at gmail dot com      (@gmail.com)

Today (as I compose this) has been a warm rainy day so I took advantage of it and spent several hours working on my trike. Tomorrow is not suppose to rain so hopefully I will be able to ride and test out all that I did to my trike today. The following day some nasty weather is forecast so I won’t be venturing out. But whenever I can my plan is to …

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MIXED BAG OF WEATHER

I reckon it’s that time of year. I am talking about when one day it is 60 degrees and the next day it is 30 degrees with a feels like temperature of 20. Strong winds are also common which, of course, cause the “feels like” temperature. Along with that it goes from bright sunshine with cloud free skies to totally overcast and that can happen all in one day. Usually however when it goes from 60 to 30 it is a much slower process to get back to warmer temperatures. Rarely does it go from 30 to 60 in one day. It usually takes a few days of slowly warming to get back to 60 and oftentimes the weather forecast is inaccurate. They may show 60 for a high but it may never get past 57 or so. And just when it gets back up to 60 or so another cold spell hits repeating the cycle. I tell ya it would not be like this if I was in charge. As I compose this I think it is 3 more days until Spring starts. Of course, that is only a date on the calendar. It doesn’t really mean much. Some of the worst winter weatherI have lived thru occurred in late March. Hopefully that won’t happen again anytime soon.

Anyway, this change in the weather plays havoc with my riding my trike. I can handle riding in 40 mph winds but not when the temperature is already too low for comfort. No, I stay home remembering that “this too shall pass”.

There are those who say that there is  no such thing as “chem-trails” … that all we see in the skies are con-trails. I say hog wash! If they are all con-trails why do lots of them look a lot different and have a different effect up in the sky? I believe that man is manipulating the weather by releasing chemicals from high flying aircraft, but it doesn’t stop with the weather. I believe some very evil things are going on high up into our atmosphere. The people behind this have let it be known that their goal and agenda is to eliminate 90 % of the world population. They want to greatly decrease the number of people to a “manageaable” number as they strive to gain total control thus fulfilling end time bible prophecy.

 

If airplanes are not spraying chemicals in the sky then will somebody please explain all the pictures and videos that are available showing it.

Recently “they” used a so-called vaccine containing harmful ingredients which do great damage to those foolish enough to allow it to be injected into their bodies. Already tens of thousands of those who received the injection have died. Of course, the corrupt Fake News media is keeping pretty much silent about this. Even if the recipients of these injections have not yet died many of them are dealing with lots of sickness in their bodies that they never had before.  Some do not believe man is capable of such evil but I remind you of what God has said to us … “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?” Jeremiah  17:9 NASB

If the future of mankind was not foretold in God’s Word then I would not so readily believe what many call conspiracy theories. But hey, that is exactly what is going on.  By the very definition of the word conspiracy … “conspiracy — a secret plan or agreement to carry out an illegal or harmful act, esp with political motivation; plot the act of making such plans in secret.” For a very long time these evil hearted people tried their best to keep what they were up to unknown as much as possible. But after some time had passed they had become so powerful and so much in control that they no longer concerned themselves with hiding what is going on. Then United States President George H. Bush openly declared that they are working to establish  a “New World Order” in which the super rich and powerful players will control all of the world. They had come a long way toward accomplishing their agenda when something happened they did not expect. Someone other than one of their own was elected President of the U.S. and right away started to reverse everything they had worked so hard to put into place. They had counted on Hillary Clinton to win the election and continue on with their plan but that did not happen. Donald Trump knows what is going on and unlike these evil hearted people he loves this country and does not want to see it destroyed. He truly made America great again. The elitists need to get rid of him. They cheated big time in the 2020 election in order to keep him out of the White House and put their people back in power. They have tried numerous ways to attack him and deal with him … mostly making all kinds of false charges against him but nothing has worked. Now they plan on arresting him on false charges to take him out of the picture. I don’t think they will succeed as Trump and many patriotic people have out smarted and out manuevered these elitists every step of the way. The Deep State people are desperate as they know they are being exposed and defeated. Time is quickly running out for them.

The truth is slowly coming out and people will know just how evil their fellowman has been. It will be a real eye opener for the majority of the people.

Well, a mixed bag of weather is what we have regardless of how we are getting it. I learned long ago just to take one day at a time. Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow will have it’s own problems and concerns. Today is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. And if I get to go for a trike ride … well, that is just icing on the cake.

BTW, as I type this the actual temperature is 21 degrees F. with a 19 mph wind resulting in a feels like temperature of 5 degrees.   BRRRRRRRRR! I am thankful for a warm home to take shelter in. Tomorrow will be a little warmer … but come next week when this gets published “happy days are here again” with temps back into the 50s and maybe even 60. That is all good news, but the bad news is many days in the 10 day forecast show rain.  BOOOOOO  WHOOOO!!!

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SURF’S UP AGAIN meaning TRAILS ARE FLOODED

Flooded over trails is something that happens all too often. All it takes is one day of rain and some of our local trails close for weeks sometimes. This is something I have written about several times before so I won’t repeat myself here. I will simply provide a link to a past article I wrote about it.

SURF’S UP! = CLOSED TRAILS

 

I am amazed that one of our local rivers rarely ever rises up under a major highway flooding over the trail which goes under the highway. Looking at the river here one would think it would readily flood over. Yet I have only seen it flooded over a couple of times. And this river has flooded over elsewhere at other locations and doesn’t even rise any here oftentimes.

 

It is a mystery to me, but I am glad about it as I can still ride this trail when others are closed due to flooding. I may have to take alternate detours elsewhere but most of the trail is rideable when others are not.

Dealing with all too frequent flooding and trail closures gets old quick. Never the less, I am thankful I still have other trails to ride that usually don’t flood. And if worse comes to worse there are always streets and roads to ride … as hellacious as they are. I am talking about pot holes. I don’t know how many thousands of dollars I have spent repairing my trike from damage Fort Wayne streets have caused. The heavier duty BMX wheels I have now are holding up much better than the stock Catrike wheels did. Still I hate hitting pot holes and there are lots of them and I can’t usually avoid them. With the Catrike wheels I was constantly breaking spokes … I mean dozens of them. I think I have had only one broken spoke since I got the BMX wheels. I have put a lot of money into my trike over the years, but it is serving me well and holding up well with the components I now have on it. I just wish I had made the changes sooner rather than keeping it stock for so long.

In addition to the trail closures due to flooding there are also several utility, construction, tree removal, and bridge closures all going on at the same time in many different locations. As they say “when it rains it pours”. And as they say … “you’ll have that!” And I can vouch for it … we got it.

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A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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ANOTHER MILD WINTER

Forty Six degrees in mid February and it has been as high as the low 60s. I can handle that. All in all the last few winters have been pretty decent allowing for riding much of the winter months. Yep, I can handle that.

I just got back home from a nice ride. I came upon another tadpole trike rider out there taking advantage of the nice winter weather. I met him a few weeks ago and we talked together for awhile. He asked me about my e-motor. Today as I talked to him again he had one on his trike. He said he was so thankful as he is really enjoying it.

Are we experiencing “global warming” and climate change as we are being told? I can’t deny I don’t remember winters like this when I was younger. “They” say it is man made inferring it is we the people causing it. I don’t buy into that. We hear about and can see the “chemical trails” up in the sky. They are different than “condensation trails” we see from commercial jet aircraft.

https://www.chemtrailprotection.org/about/chemtrails-vs-contrails

I have learned that there is not much that would surprise me when it comes to the evil man is up to and capable of. Man seems to be determined to destroy this earth and God has said in His Word that He will shorten the days to prevent man from destroying himself (Matthew 24:22, Mark 13:20).

There is not much I can do to change what is going on but as long as I can and thanks to better winter weather I will do my best to …

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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WHY YOU SHOULD TRY A RECUMBENT TRIKE

Recumbent trikes have become quite popular and for good reason. They are super comfortable. They are far safer than bicycles. And they are a lot of fun to ride. Like most of us I rode bicycles all my life until I got into recumbents. And initially I rode a 2 wheel recumbent bike … not a trike. I loved riding the recumbent bike until I tried riding a recumbent trike. That is all it took. I was hooked on trikes. I totally lost interest in my recumbent bike so I sold it. I found the recumbent bike comfortable but the recumbent trike was even more comfortable … noticebly more comfortable. Don’t get me wrong. In my earlier years I found riding a bicycle lots of fun. And there are definitely things you can do on a diamond frame bike that you can’t do on a recumbent bike or trike. Some of those things I miss. But as the years rolled along I found that riding a diamond frame bicycle was taking its toll on me.  My body was letting me know that a bicycle is not friendly toward me. I had aches and pains and discomfort that really started to get my attention and no matter what I tried to do … changing the seat, the handlebars, my position … it didn’t help much. I knew of recumbent bikes so being a weldor and metal fabricator I decided to build myself a recumbent bike. WOW, what a difference! I no longer had any discomfort. I rode my recumbent bike thru the year until November when knowing that winter would soon be upon me I made the decision to build my first tadpole trike. I wanted to keep riding thru the winter and I knew 2 wheels on slippery surfaces was unsafe. And I had learned already that a recumbent bike goes down easier than a diamond frame bike. They just are not as stable. Once I got my first tadpole trike built there was no turning back. I was hooked. It was more comfortable than a recumbent bike. It was safer and it was a lot more fun to ride than a bicycle. I rode it thru the winter and come Spring I attempted to go back to my recumbent bike. I rode it for a couple of weeks but discovered that I much preferred riding the trike so I went back to the trike and never looked back. I sold my recumbent bike since I no longer rode it nor cared to ride it. I bought a new 2009 Catrike Trail and sold my homemade trike. I have been riding a tadpole trike now for 16 years and absolutely love it. Well, that is my personal testimony concerning how I got into tadpole trikes.

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A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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RAIN PROTECTION

It feels like rain drops … so many rain drops … it feels like rain drops falling on my head. So go the words to a popular song from my teen years. Personally I try not to ride in the rain but I know some cyclists choose to go and ride boldly ride in inclement weather.

I used to carry rain gear with me on my trike but I have not now for several years. I don’t even know if I still have any. I never have had any “quality rain gear”. I know it is expensive. The one above is $450 and that is just for the jacket.  I think that is an outrageous price … about 4 1/2 times more than it should cost. I find that the rider’s seat position on a tadpole trike makes it difficult to get proper effective protection compared to what the rider of a bicycle has. This is mostly the lower part of the body I am talking about. If I were a rich man I would have quality rain gear and the means of carrying it along with me on my trike. Maybe someday, but I am not going to hold my breath waiting for it to happen.

Here is a pair of $190 rainproof pants …

Being a big person (I am talking about FAT) it is quite challenging and difficult to get in and out of rain gear, especially the pants. It is hard enough to put them on at home but when I am already out riding it is extremely difficult to do.

What about canopies, you ask? They are great for  providing shade but they don’t help much when it comes to rain, especially when the rain is coming down on an angle and wind is blowing it about. At best they might keep the face, head and neck dry. But if the wind is blowing the rain  much … huh uh! I speak from experience. And most canopies offer no protection for the feet and lower legs.

There are canopies which offer more protection … on the sides and the front. Of course, they cost more.

And then there are velomobiles which offer great protection. The one shown above even has a windshield wiper.

I know I don’t like riding in the rain. I have done so many times out of necessity … I got caught out in it … and I got quite soaked just like I had been in swimming with my clothes on.

Lastly, there is always the concern of getting electronics wet. Water and electricity still don’t mix. Cell phones, GPS devices, etc. must be protected. Many of us have electic motors on our trikes.  The motors themselves are water resistant but wiring, batteries, switches, connections, and display consoles can be a concern. I have had moisture get inside of my computer and my display console. Both took days to dry back out. I had a perfectly good battery get destroyed by getting wet inside. That was a costly mistake.

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A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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PODBIKE FRIKAR VELOCAR

Norway is working on bringing this velocar to market. They call it a velomobile which, of course, it is. I call it a velocar as technically that is what it is. It has some neat features. It has pedals but there is no mechanical connection of any sort to use them to propel this quadmobile along. What it does have is wires as pedaling turns an e-motor acting as a generator to supply power to charge a battery. BTW, pedaling backwards will reverse the direction the vehicle is going. They have designed this velocar so that the top speed going downhill is limited to 60 kph or about 37 mph. The motors will brake the speed automatically. It is capable of regenerating braking where it can put some charge back into the motors. Being a quadcycle it has a total of 3 motors … one of each rear wheel and one used as a generator to charge the battery when pedaling.

There is a stainless steel roll bar designed into this velocar to provide some degree of safety in case of a rollover. There is also  built in means of emergency escape if the normal exit mode is not able to be used.

With that huge clear canopy vision certainly should not be a problem. You might be wondering how the rider gets into and out of it. The canopy raises up out of the way but so does the body. I am not sure what the reason is for the body raising up. It seems to me that would make it more difficult, especially for a short person. I guess I would have to see it and try it to make a fair judgement.

Being made in Norway their main market is in Europe, of course. That also means that this vehicle is limited to only 250 watts. The idea of getting out of the weather is appealing. They say that this vehicle is about the width of a typical bicycle trailer. That means is would easily fit on bicycle trails.

It has special lighting along the sides to help it to be seen. Of course, it has LED headlights and taillights and turn signals. It has cargo space behind the seat. They offer a child seat option.

I am a little confused by their claimed turning radius as they show 138 inches which is about 11.5 feet but their video shows a circle which is the diameter not the radius. I would hope it is 138 inch diameter as 138 inch radius is quite a large turning diameter.

One nice feature they have incorporated into the design is the ability to park/store this vehicle in a smaller space than what it would normally require.

WEBSITE

FACEBOOK

VIDEOS

One battery comes with the purchase of this quad. An extra battery can be purchased and this vehicle is designed to accommodate two batteries.

They made changing the wheels easy enough … just one bolt to remove and off it comes. I like the spokeless wheels. Extra wheels can be purchased to use for winter tires.

Now if your appetite is wetted and you live in the United States I am aftraid I have some bad news for you. So sorry Charlie! Due to stupid laws in place motorized quads are not legal here. So you can not buy one of these and have it shipped here. To satifsfy your curiosity the price tag for the premium model is about $7351. That even includes carpeting on the floor. Shipping charges are extra.

THE STANDARD FRIKAR E-BIKE WILL INCLUDE:
One external mirror
Easily removable canopy
Dual front lights
Dual rear lights
Sidelights *not in Germany
Direction indicator lights
Daylight running lamp
Reverse light *not in Germany
Hazzard warning light
Internal speaker for warnings
Adjustable seat
Adjustable pedal generator
Pedals with toe cap
Summer tires
Battery (reach up to 80 km)
Standard battery charger
USB charge port
Mobile phone mount
Bike bell
Ready for user-installed keyless entry kit (user-installable)
Bluetooth interface for free dashboard app

Initially they are only selling their Plus model which I called their premium model. It has a few features their Standard model does not have.

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A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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RIDING IN/ON/THRU SNOW

It’s that time of the year again … SNOW, that is. So if you are like me and try to keep riding thru the winter months … and you live in the north where you have winter with snow …  you have a choice. You can stay home or get out there and ride in the snow. I do what I can but I readily admit I am not the winter rider I used to be when I was younger. I learned quickly that there is a difference between riding ON SNOW as compared to riding IN or THRU SNOW. I learned that a standard tadpole trike is about worthless when it comes to riding thru much snow. 2 or 3 inches is about all standard tires will roll thru and that is only if it is a light dry snow. A heavy wet snow is quite a challenge.

Snow is not as slippery as ice but it can be fairly slippery. Traction can be a problem. The resistance of the tires rolling thru the snow determines the traction. Some riders like studded tires for riding on snow. I am fine with them on ice, but to me they are not practical on snow. I don’t think they provide much traction on snow. All these studded tires shown above are knobby tires and it is the knowbby tire tread pattern which provides most of the traction … not the studs. The studs are for riding on ice.

I much prefer an aggressive knobby tire. I have one (pictured above) but haven’t used it for several years now as I have not been riding in snow deep enough to need it. I get by with my normal tires just fine. When I did use it it provided amazing traction.

That is me plowing snow with my trike in the picture above. Now if you believed that I would like to talk to you about some prime property in southern Florida. Actually that v-plow is being pushed along by a diesel powered train locomotive. At least it was until I got ahold of it.

Here where I live and ride the city is suppose to plow the snow off of the trails when there is a minimum of 3 inches depth. That helps immensely, of course. I used to remove leaves off of one of our local trails. I made up an “angled plow” to do it and it worked great. I did it for about 3 years before it broke and I never repaired it so that ended my leaf removal efforts. I thought about making up a snow plow to pull behind my trike but I never did. I don’t really want to get involved in snow removal. BTW, I could never do it or the leaf removal without having a powerful e-motor to use.

I suppose if I was really serious about winter riding I would use tire chains. However most winters anymore we don’t have the kind of weather that requires them. I would no more than install them when I would have to remove them.

I am not a fan of using plastic cable ties as they break and “litter” the earth as they fall off.

Yes, riding in the winter on snow can be fun. There is no reason to wimp out and stay home … not unless you have some really serious winter weather which is just too nasty to get out in..

This was our driveway in 2012. Needless to say, I did not go out riding at that time. I did go out riding when I took the picture below.

And I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I was able to ride thru this snow as it was not deep enough to offer too much resistence to where I lost traction. Most people who talk about going out riding in winter with snow on the ground are riding “ON the SNOW” and not “IN IT” or “THRU IT”. There is a lot of difference. It is easy to ride on the snow but it can be hard to ride in it or thru it.

The velomobile video below demonstrates this. Riding on snow was not at all challenging but when he got to virgin snow and was riding in it he had to give up as he could not make any progress. He totally lost traction.

 

Here is a video I made back in 2008 when I had my homemade trike. I apologize for the poor quality of the video. Unfortunately it is a copy of a copy of a copy several times over and with each copy it lost quality and became blurred.

If you can do so I encourage you to make the effort to get out there and ride thru the winter. Even if you have to make it a shorter ride than you usually do. 

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– 38 DEGREES FAREINHEIT … I’M STAYING HOME

– 38 degrees … Hey, that will wake you up … or if exposed to it too long might put you to sleep … permanently. It is Dec. 24th as I sit here in comfort typing this. It is warmer today than it was yesterday but the wind is still blowing hard resulting in blizzard conditions (white out). It is nasty out there! And it is not just here in the northern states. Atlanta, GA has nearly identical weather. It is below freezing in Floral City, Florida. I need to explain — the – 38 was the “feels like” temperature yeasterday morning … not the actual temperature. The actual temperature was about -8 degrees.

The wind was blowing hard all night Thursday, all day Friday, all night again Friday … and still blowing hard this morning (Saturday). It is my understanding that much of the United States is experiencing this same weather. It is amazing to me how this can happen. We went from temperatures in the 40s and 50s to this frigid weather.

Next Thursday the temperature is forecasted to be back up into the low 50s for 3 days. Crazy man, crazy! I will take it though. Of course, it is also suppose to rain or snow nearly everyday for more than a week. So it doesn’t look like I will be going out riding when it warms back up. It seems it almost always happens this way in northern Indiana.

This has long been one of my favorite trike videos …

I can remember as a kid growing up I would be sitting in the classroom at school looking out the window at the great weather we were having and really looking forward to the weekend so I could enjoy the nice weather. And almost every weekend it would rain. Such is life! But I still want to …

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KEEPING THOSE HANDS WARM … WHAT WORKS BEST FOR ME

This is a subject I have written about several times in the past. Keeping my hands warm is probably the most difficult thing I deal with when it comes to cold weather riding. I have tried numerous things over the years and it seems that what has worked previously no longer works now. That means I have to come up with something else which will work for me. In the past (last year) I was using “HotHands” mittens made of Thinsalate. I have not been a big fan of Thinsalate over the years as I have tried various products made of it and none of them kept me warm. It has been about 9 days since I last went out for a ride as it has been colder than I care to venture out. Finally it has warmed up a little … into the low 40s (F) so I went for a ride today. I just got back home. I started off wearing the HotHands mittens but only got a couple of blocks from home before my hands started getting cold so I put my  “Hotfingers” mittens on over the HotHands mittens. I rode about 60 % of my 17 mile ride wearing that combination. My hands got cold and they were somewhat uncomfortable as the mittens were too snug on my hands. I stopped for lunch and before leaving the restaurant I changed my glove (mitten) attire. I separated the two pair of mittens and put the HotHands mittens away in my pockets. I replaced them with a pair of 100 % wool hand knit mittens made in Siberia with the Hotfingers mittens over them. I am pleased to report my hands stayed warm with that combination. And now my hands were not cramped inside of tight fitting mittens which made for much more comfort. And with all the room I have inside there is plenty of room to put the packets of chemical hand warmers if and when I need them.

HotHands Thinsalate mittens…

Hotfingers mittens …

Hand knit wool mittens…

Hopefully this combination will work for me thruout the coming winter months as I want to …

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and …

ENJOY THE RIDE!

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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BICYCLE CAMPERS

Every once in awhile I find myself looking online at bicycle campers. I don’t know, maybe I have some nomad in me. I ponder over pulling a “small home” behind my trike and living out of it as I travel along in my final days of life on planet earth. In time past I have written about bicycle campers. In fact, I have featured Paul Elkins before including this very camper featured in the video below, but unfortunately the post no longer exists. I only have two posts from the past which are about a bicycle camper. Click HERE to view the first one and HERE to view the second one.

You can buy the complete set of plans of this camper from Paul for $20. Paul has invented and constructed many different things and has videos covering many of them. Click HERE to check out his other mobile shelters.

One of them he calls Conestoga.

Another one he calls Bug Out.

There are factory manufactured campers available to buy. Of course, they cost a lot more than these DIY campers. Unfortunately all of them I have seen are made in Europe. It would cost quite a bit to have one shipped here to the U.S. One of them I really like is the Wide Path which reduces to half it’s expanded size when pulling it. Here it is fully expanded …

And here it is at half size being towed along …

It is almost hard to believe that this is the same trailer unit. One thing that all of these campers lack is a toilet and shower although Paul Elkins did make an outdoor shower on one of his campers.

There have been a few different campers people tried to bring to market but failed in doing so.

Here is one which is a little different … tow, float, sleep …

I would not want to get the wheel hubs submerged when weight is added to the boat.

Foldavan makes a rather simple offering good for sleeping only I would say. Of course, I guess one could simply take shelter inside of it.

Dealing with wind could be interesting. A strong wind or wind gust could cause the trailer and trike to tip over. That could really mess up one’s day. And it could cause considerable damage and possible injury.

Hey, I just found a manufacturer here in the U.S. In fact, they are located in nearby South Bend, Indiana. BikeStream-RV sells their camper for $2395. They have a Facebook page as well.

As you can see it is only big enough to sleep in. The video below does a pretty good job of illustrating it.

There is not much extra room inside most of these but at least they would get you out of foul weather if you had no where else to go.

One last option which may be appealing to some as it is small, light and inexpensive. A bicycle tent camper can be had for under $400 on Amazon and Ebay. It is made in China so I don’t know the quality of it. It has 16 inch wheels which I would not care much for. Maybe 20 inch wheels could be installed in their place, but that would mess up the frame work support legs which sit on the ground with the 16 inch wheels. It sets up and tears down quickly so that is a plus. One can also carry up to 50 pounds of extra gear on it when it is all folded up. I would think having a tarp along to place over it might be a good idea … in case of rain or snow. It shows that it comes with a rain cover. I would still want the extra tarp anyway.

I just ordered one of these tent campers so I will let you know what I think of it.

Update: I received the main frame and tent part of it. I have not received the wheels and tongue yet. It is shipped in two different boxes. Anyway I set up the tent in the living room and crawled inside of it. There is lots of room and lots of ventilation available. I don’t think I would have any trouble sleeping in it. I did have trouble setting it up however. The roof poles were difficult to bow and get into place. I got three of them, but could not get the 4th one into place. I hope that changes with use. It comes with tent stakes and rope which I don’t have a clue what they are for since this sits on it’s own frame up off of the ground. It sure took a lot longer to set up than the video made it look. I wore myself out trying to get the roof poles in place. If I had to go thru that at the end of a day’s ride I would be ready to climb in and go to sleep. Anyway, so far I am fairly impressed. Everything seems to be made pretty well and I am hopeful it holds up. Now if I can just get the second box with the wheels and tongue.

UPDATE:  I received the second box with the trailer’s running gear and assembled it. The running gear is cheaply made and poor quality compared to the tent and its frame. I fully expect it to fail me as I am riding along.  Definitely this trailer with the wheels on it is way too wide to fit thru most bollards. That is going to be a problem. Oh, BTW, this does not come with assembly instructions. Howerver, there is a video available to watch. However, if one is mechanically inclined they probably can figure it out on their own as it is fairly simple. I recommend putting the tongue on before putting the wheel on that side as it will allow you to get a straight run at the screw head. With the wheel on you don’t have a straight run.

 

Here is a homemade tent camper. It is far more elaborate but has some good features. Definitely it is not one which you set up and take down as quickly as the other one.

Well, that’s about it for this topic. Who knows what the future may hold? I may someday own one such camper and be seen pulling it along … at least until I am done for the day and can find someplace to park it to crawl in it. I readily admit that I would be concerned about two things … 1) finding a place where I could park it and use it … and 2) my personal safety. I may want to get a German Shepher or Rottweiller dog for both companionship and helping with my safety.

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

A FREE GIFT AWAITS YOU!

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EFFECTS OF COLD WEATHER

Above is a picture showing my bell (yellow arrow pointing to it). BTW, did you notice the snow on my wheel?

One thing that I notice every year when the temperature plays games cooling down somedays and warming back up other days I am not the only one complaining. Both my bell and my squeeze bulb horn are greatly effected by it too. Below is a picture of my horn mounted  on my right side handlebar below the wrist rest. The red arrow is pointing at the wrist rest.

 

Yep, they don’t like the cold weather any more than I do. If fact, they refuse to work like they normally do in warmer weather. Neither are very loud. It is amazing how they change when cold weather comes along. I bet if I were in Florida I would not experience this. But I would probably find something else to complain about. Fortunately I don’t have that much use of my bell or horn in nice weather so cooler weather is not any big concern as there is even less need of either as there are fewer trail users out once the weather changes. In fact, many times when I go out I am the only person out there on the trails.

Hey, speaking of the effect of cold weather I haven’t mentioned e-batteries. They don’t like cold weather either and will let us know it. They do so by not performing the same as they do in warmer weather. The distance we can go on a full charge will be less than normal. And that’s normal! Fortunately it is not all that much of a concern as most of us don’t care to stay out there as long when the weather is cold. I am starting to shiver just sitting here thinking about it. Who likes bundling up in cold weather anyway. I know I don’t.

Well, it is time to put and end to this before my body temperature starts dropping. It is 35 degrees F. outdoors as I type this. It has not warmed up any at all in the 3.5 hours since I got up. That is discouraging. At this rate if I do go out riding I will need to bundle up like I was in the picture above. When you live in the north this is what we deal with if we want to …

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NOT READY FOR THIS!

I looked out the window into our back yard early this morning and what did I see? It was not anything I wanted to see. It was that nasty four letter word … SNOW! And it is only mid October as I type this. I tell ya … I AM NOT READY FOR THIS! Yesterday was cold, windy and light rain off and on. It was not a pleasant day for riding … and it is still early Autumn. Oh woe is me … whatever will I do? I’d give a lot of dough, if only I could know … the answer to my question … is it yes or is it no? Does your chewing gum lose its flavor on the bedpost overnight? When your mother says don’t chew it, do you swallow it in spite? Can you catch it on your tonsils and heave it left and right? Now I ask ya … does your chewing gum lose its flavor on the bedpost over night? Old timers will know where that came from, but younger folks won’t have a clue. It doe not have anything to do with anything. It just sort of fit and flowed off of my pen … and I am not even using a pen. (See the video at the bottom of this article.)

By now you have probably figured out that I don’t have anything in mind to write about and am just rambling on here. But the weather outside is frightful and so I think I will remain inside today. I had enough of nasty riding weather yesteday. And we have only just begun. At least 6 more months can be expected. It is probably more like 8 more months before decent weather returns. Why do people choose to live in the north and deal with nasty weather? Well, at least I have something to look forward to today. I will be going to an eye doctor to get my monthly injection in my eyeball. Doesn’t that sound like fun? It is not really as bad as it sounds. When I first heard about it it made me shudder, but after experiencing it I discovered it was no big deal … a piece of cake … at least when the doctor is skilled. I have a great eye doctor I deal with. Sure I would much rather not have to get the monthly injection but it is helping to preserve what eyesight I have left in my one eye. The other eye is already totally blind. Thank God for two eyes as I still have vision in one and it enables me to …

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

and most every other thing … even compose a nonsensical article for this blog. Hopefully we will both live thru it.

BTW, the snow had all melted away by afternoon. I understand that we here in northern Indiana were fortunate as some states got 12 to 18 inches of snow and more is forecasted for them.

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Now for a bit of nostalgia …

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