FAQ

One of the most common misconceptions about riding a Trikke cambering vehicle is that it requires a great deal of space to ride. Because you have to slalom to propel yourself, people seem to think that you will take up an entire bike path and disrupt traffic. Wrong.

Trikke is like a fish. It requires that you ride a slalom-like course to propel it --- much in the way a fish has to wiggle to swim. Like a fish, you can propel a Trikke at 7 mph by making 5 wide sweeping turns in the time span of ten seconds or by making 12 smaller turns in the same 10 seconds. You're going the same speed in both cases merely by changing the frequency and width of your turns. In essence, the Trikke takes up as much room as you want it to. You can take up the space of a typical bicycle or inline skater or you can own the road by making big wide sweeping turns which is great fun and a great deal like skiing or surfing. Like a race car that begs you to punch it, the Trikke begs you to carve deep turns. How great is that? You have to have fun to make a Trikke go. In our experience, we have found that Trikke 3CVs are more at home in a crowd than any other vehicle including a bike. The extraordinary amount of maneuverability of a cambering vehicle allows you to ride circles in and around a crowd in total control.

Trikke cambering vehicles are currently in their third design series for the T8s, and second series for the T5s and T6s. Though the version 1 Trikke models are an excellent product, Trikke Tech moved to a second generation of cambering vehicles in the fall of 2003 in order to further refine the design and performance of our products. The version 2, is a completely new machine from the ground up with significant changes to the frame strength and overall design. The primary differences are in the handlebars, folding mechanism and foot platforms. The version 2 handlebars can raise significantly higher than the version 1 and the foot platforms have been angled forward to be parallel with the ground. These modifications were done primarily to accommodate taller riders and to improve rider comfort. The folding mechanism on the version 2 is significantly different being a spring loaded bolt action locking mechanism that dramatically improves frame rigidity. More subtle changes include a new handlebar stem design, new wheel design, foam insulation around the brake cables to eliminate cable rattling within the frame, quieter brake pads, and new ergonomically designed handlebars to improve rider comfort.

Notable changes in specific models are as follows: the version 2 T6 has been scaled down from the version 1 Trikke 6 in order to be a more midsized vehicle for teen riders ages 10 through 15. The small version 2 T5 and T5ws are dramatically different from the original version 1 Trikke 5. The frame is lighter, and the foot platforms have been changed to a durable colored plastic. Along with a new colored plastic windscreen, the handlebar design is all new.

Despite the laundry list of design changes that were made during our transition from version 1 to the current version 2 models, the version 1 models are still an excellent ride and fast.

You can easily determine which version you own by shape of the handlebar stem (the hardware at the middle of the handlebars that holds the bars to the steering post). Version 1 Trikke 6 and Trikke 8 models have a rectangular shaped stem. The version 1 Trikke 5 models have a Razor scooter style collapsible straight handlebar with an elastic cord connecting the two removable hand grip ends.

The version 2 Trikke models T5, T5ws, T6, and T8 (referred to as Sport models) have a round stem with the Trikke logo etched into the stem top plate.