What a beautiful night...

I love Night Trikking. I was out for an hour and a half this morning, but by 12:30 pm it was getting hot outside. I went out again from 10 to 11 pm this evening and it was absolutely beautiful. It was much cooler and I could stargaze if I wanted to. There were a few white clouds passing overhead which were very pretty to look at in the moonlight. As usual, there were very few moving cars to think about and the couple I did share the road with had their headlights on so were very easy to spot and accomodate for long before they were anywhere near me.

Trikking with the air wheels on the rear is quite different than the poly wheels. With the polys, I always could hear a swoosh swoosh and rattle rattle as I went down the street. With the air wheels on, it is so quiet. It's like having a stealth Trikke. The air wheels of course go right over the surface imperfections like rocks and sticks and cracks that caused the poly wheels trouble. That is very nice. I can also get more momentum going so that I can go uphill easier. I think that I was just being cheap by running the poly wheels down to the nub. In retrospect, I think the front wheel should be replaced as soon as there is cord showing and the poly wheels should be replaced when they are about half worn (you could rotate them to get a little extra usage). Of course you might do what Pete did and just replace the poly wheels when you realize that the terrain you are rolling over is too rough to not have the air wheels. One thing about riding on the road in Trikke Heaven, it is pretty flat and has few significant imperfections in it's surface. Now the new path in the park (which will probably be finished this week) is smooth and wide and much nicer to ride on so I ride less on the road (except for Night Trikking because of the street lights on the road).

Brake issue...

It turned out that while adjusting the brake cable after I moved the brake mechanism to accomodate the 8 " wheels, two of the wire strands in the cable broke which was followed by more breaking. This resulted in wires rubbing on the tire (which I couldn't have) so I had to remove the brake assembly on that side. What a pain. I don't feel that I did anything wrong when I was adjusting the cable tension and the cable was lying in the channel like it was supposed to. Two of the strands just broke which started the breakdown of the cable. I've only had my Trikke for about 5 months so I am unhappy with this. I wonder if it's under warrenty. I'll have to check. Anyway, perhaps this is another reason to go for the T-8 rather than the T-78cs as you wouldn't have to change the brake setup and risk a cable breaking.

Be that as it may, I am back on my Trikke and having a great time. I met another Trikker named Pete. Hi Pete. He got his Trikke last Thanksgiving and apparently has a number of regular paths that he likes to go to (including my neighborhood). It's nice to see another Trikker out there.

Changing from 7" poly wheels to air tires...

The tires finally came today and I switched the new wheels onto my Trikke. When I was putting the new 8 1/2 " wheels on, I thought the hardest part was moving the brake setup. Before you start, you should loosen the brake cable to take the tension off of the brake. You have to move the springs to the last little hole and then thread the bolt through the springs and through the last big holes in the frame. The bolt goes through the big hole and the end of the spring goes through the little hole next to it. After I got the wheels on, I went out and had them inflated to 80 psi as recommended. I then came home and went Trikking. By this time I had gone into Trikke withdrawal. After checking out the new path in the park, I have to report that I am very happy with the new paved path. It is about 60% finished to Duke St. I imagine that the work will be finished soon and then I'll have more than 1/2 mile to ride on with a lot of ups and downs which I have to say makes it a little more interesting and challenging.

I am having trouble with the brake adjustment though. I get it set and the wheels are spinning freely but if I apply the brakes a couple of times, it isn't adjusted properly anymore and the brakes drag. I'll readjust it in the morning and tighten them down really well. The brake cable must be slipping a little.

The waiting is killing me...

After my last post I went out Trikking and soon felt a bump bump under my right foot. I stopped and looked and found that the right rear tire had worn completely out and separated. I haven't been able to get on my Trikke since monday morning and it is driving me crazy! The new air wheels are supposed to come tomorrow. In the meantime, they are continuing to make a new, wide path across the street in the park that I am just itching to try out.

As far as the T-78cs and how it has worked out for me, I am very happy. I wonder if Trikke recommends the T-78 as the model to learn on just as a marketing strategy to keep the price at $250 rather than $300. It probably worked with me. Once you are hooked on Trikking to the point that you miss being on the Trikke, you are very willing to pony up the additional $50. After you have upgraded to the air wheels, replacing those wheels is less than $9 each. I'll probably go through a set of wheels several times a year. What fun I'll have in the process! And I will have gotten the Trikke body I want to create.

Changing a tire...

I said in an earlier post that it would be like changing a bike tire, but that wasn't really true. Because of the smaller size, the 8 1/2 " Trikke tire is thicker and less flexible than a bike tire. Consequently, it is harder to get over the rim of the wheel. Trikke sells plastic paddles for helping change tires. While I was able to make do with other implements I think I will order a set of these (less than $10) when I order my next tire.

I overestimated how long I could make the T-78cs hard rubber tires last. I'm beginning to think that I won't have the few weeks more of usage that I thought I had. I also am curious what the air tires on the back will be like. Once the new tire was on the front, I wanted to have new air tires on the back. Once I have upgraded to the air tires I will only have to replace tires as needed (less than $9 per tire). I still don't know how many miles one can expect to get from a Trikke tire.

I think I will order the air tires for the back wheels tonight. I'll probably get delivery by Friday.

Finally...

Finally, the new tire came for the front wheel. I ordered it on a Thursday and it arrived on the next Friday. Even then I rode the Trikke on Friday and then again this morning (keeping a watch on the amount of cord I could see). Finally, I am going to change the tire before I go out again. I've already lubricated the bolts to remove the wheel. From there on, it's just like changing a bike tire, only smaller. When you do this yourself, don't forget to keep track of the spacers holding the tire in place. Also, there is a correct direction to have the tread facing. Look for the word DRIVE and the arrow indicating the correct direction of spin.

Finally, I am beginning to see the Trikke body that I'm sculpting. There is greater definition and less fat covering the musculature. I've always had at least a six pack but it was obscured by an ever-thickening layer of fat. I'm now doing a different kind of "carving" that is somewhat akin to the carving that you might do on a Thanksgiving turkey or when whittling wood. (Too much alliteration?) :)

Only in heaven...

You expect things to be great in heaven. But in heaven things can get even better.

I've been wondering what was going on in the park for the last week or so. They seemed to be digging along the length of the jogging/bike path. While Trikking this morning, I stopped and asked the workers if they were widening the path. Indeed they are. The path in the park is now going to be 10 ft. wide and it will run from the west end of the park (where I usually turn around and head back towards my house) all the way to Duke St. This will be a newly-surfaced path 10 ft. wide by 1/2 of a mile or more long. And right outside my front door. Only in Trikke Heaven.