Using the Trikke Trike to Get Fit

I discovered the Trikke through a friend, a woman the same age as me. (That's middle age, thank you very much. I'd rather not talk about it right now.) I'll call her TK.

TK and I went to college together in a beautiful area of the country with plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities. Running, mountain biking, backpacking, kayaking, cross-country skiing--we did it all. After college we kept doing it. We were fit, healthy, happy, and if I do say so myself, we looked pretty good.

Fast forward to age 50. TK gave up running about eight years ago. She says her knees can't take it. I still run, but not aggressively. I also lift weights at a gym three times a week, but it's tough to spend an hour indoors when it's nice outside. I love bicycling, but it hurts my back. We've both put on about 15 pounds since college. Etc. etc. etc. Whine whine whine.

A few months ago, TK calls me, all fired up. "I just saw a really cool infomercial on this new trike thingie. It's called 'Tricky' or something like that. T-r-i-k-k-e." She went on to say how this could be the answer--a fun, painless aerobic workout. It would have to be more fun than using fitness machines at a gym.

So I did a little bit of research. Trikke is actually pronounced "trike"--not "tricky." The generic name for it is "carving vehicle." (This seems like a misnomer to me--it sounds like you're buying a knife set with wheels. I prefer "cambering scooter.") Picture two scooters bolted together at the front, one for each of your feet. The front has one wheel, and there's a rear wheel under each foot. You make the Trikke go by pushing off to the outside with each leg and leaning into the arc, very similar to the motion for inline skating. Because you're rotating your body and the handlebars with each push, your upper body gets a good workout along with your legs. There's no impact, and you're not hunched over, so back pain shouldn't be a problem.

TK decided to take the plunge and buy a Trikke with her tax refund money. For the past two years she's been involved in a community project to build a Rail-to-Trail in her small town. The asphalt was laid last fall, and she wanted a snazzy new toy to ride on the snazzy new trail.

After some debate, she decided to buy from a retail store instead of online. She's not a big internet user, and she also wanted to spend her money locally. So off we went to the nearest Trikke dealer, which was a 100 mile drive from her home. It was a fun road trip and reminded us of our college days.

In the process of buying, we learned some pros and cons for buying from a store versus buying online, which I'd like to share here in case it will help others.

• The base price will be the same whether you buy online or retail. I've shopped around a lot and I've never seen a Trikke discounted below the standard pricing that the manufacturer offers on its own website.
• If you buy retail, you'll pay your state sales tax on it. If you buy online, you'll pay sales tax if you live in the same state as the online merchant you order from.
• If you buy retail, you can pay the store owner an extra fee to assemble the trike. For TK that was about $30. If you decide to buy online, call up your local bike shop and find out what they'll charge you to assemble it. You can do your own assembly, but TK pointed out that the Trikke shop assembles these units every day and can do it a lot faster and with less aggravation than her husband could.
• If you buy retail and the store isn't in your neighborhood, call them before you go and ask them point blank if they have all models and colors in stock and can assemble yours while you wait. The store we went to didn't tell us there was a wait until after we were there, so we had to go back two weeks later--another 100 mile trip.
• Probably the biggest advantage of buying retail is the free riding lesson.  Unless you're a 20-year-old skateboard jock like the kid in the video, there's a bit of a learning curve for these things, especially riding them uphill.  Getting a lesson can help reduce frustration and get you out there on your Trikke faster.

Right now, Trikke sells six different models in its human-powered wheeled vehicle category. (They also sell motorized Trikkes, and the Skii, which is a ski trike.) Two of the six models are kid size. The four adult models are described here.

The two main differences between the models is type of frame and type of wheels. The steel frame models are heavier than aluminum and cost less. The models with pneumatic air tires are more expensive than the solid plastic wheel models but give you a smoother, easier ride. All of the models fold down flat for easy transport and storage.

• T78 Convertible: $249.99. Steel frame, pneumatic tire on front, plastic wheels on rear, pad caliper brakes. Colors: black or gray.
  
• T78 Deluxe: $369.99. Steel frame, pneumatic tires all the way around, pad caliper brakes. Basically a steel frame version of the T8. Colors: green or pink.
• T8 Sport: $499.99. Aluminum frame, pneumatic tires. Their bestselling model. Colors: black, green, or blue.
• T12 Roadster: $599.99. Heavy-duty aluminum frame, pneumatic tires, disc brakes. Colors: currently metallic green or matte black. If you buy retail, try to find one of last year's gorgeous metallic copper color models still in stock.

TK tried all the models and ended up choosing a green T8 Sport. The T8 is their most popular for a reason--the ride quality is miles better than the cheaper models, but for her purposes (recreational riding), the T12 seemed like overkill. The green color comes with red, white and black lettering, so she picked out a red, black and white helmet to match the trike. Wearing a helmet at all times when you ride is a must, because these vehicles can reach speeds of up to 15 mph.