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6.0 Safety
Between all of us here at ICE, we’ve ridden
thousands of miles on trikes, and we’ve all
developed good road sense. The following
safety considerations are for your benefit; please
give them serious consideration:
•
We recommend always wearing an
approved cycling helmet. Get the best you
can afford. If you’ve got a cheap head, get
a cheap helmet!
•
Check your trike before each ride. In
particular, check the tyres and brakes to
ensure they are in good working order.
•
If you are riding at night, make sure
you have a legal white headlight and a
red taillight. We recommend using both
non-flashing and flashing LED taillights in
tandem. The flashing light is very noticeable
at a great distance, and the non-flashing
light enables other road users to judge their
distance from you.
•
Use your rear view mirror, but don’t rely on
it. You must also turn your head to check
behind you before turning or changing
lanes.
•
We highly recommend the use of ‘clipless’
pedals. Shimano’s SPD system is a
good choice, and there are many SPD
compatible shoes and pedals on the
market. Most cycling shoes will come
with the necessary fittings to allow cleats
to be fitted, and the only other thing that
you’ll need is a set of pedals. Pedals are
available with cleat bindings on one side
and a standard platform on the other
(allowing you to go for a quick spin without
having to change into your cycling shoes).
For those that have not experienced
clipless pedals, they have a small binding
mechanism built into the pedal, which locks
onto a cleat fastened to the bottom of the
shoe. It works in a similar fashion to a
ski boot binding. To lock your foot in, you
hook the cleat into the binding and push.
To remove your foot, you twist your heel
sideways and the binding releases the
cleat. Once you are clipped in, you will not
need to put your feet down until you want to
get off; being clipped in is comfortable, lets
your legs relax when you are not pedaling,
and allows power to be transferred more
effectively to the pedals.
•
Be careful of going too fast into corners.
The immense stability of the trike is not
absolute, and sharp high speed cornering
may cause you to lift the inside wheel, or
even roll over. As you ride more, you will
gradually learn what the limits of the trike
are.
•
Be careful of downhill speeds. It is very
easy to reach speeds in excess of 40 mph
(60kph) when going downhill. Although you
may feel in perfect control, be wary of and
allow for road hazards and other road users
doing stupid things.
•
The drum brake hubs and disc brakes
rotors can get hot after long descents. You
can burn yourself on the hot surfaces.
•
The usual practice is to brake evenly
using both hands. You can brake at the
maximum rate with the front brakes only.
The trike is designed not to brake-steer if
you brake only one side (a safety feature
necessary if you are braking and signaling
a turn at the same time), but violent, single-
sided braking can cause the trike to pull
slightly to the braked side.
