Trike and a big guy with Parkinsonism

[Danschutz]

No, Im not the big guy however my business partner is and he has been in and out of the hospital for nearly two years now and to keep things relevant but short he has dealt with being in a coma, removal of parts of his large intestine and small intestine and because of a oversight at the hospital he had a stroke while in his coma that left him with Parkinsonism which of course is a nasty case of the shakes.

He went into the hospital as a one handicap golfer and now he cant even drive a car. We spent a lot of time driving SCCA events and doing things like shooting, fishing and riding dirt bikes but he has to be careful just walking backwards now.

Ive done some reading about Parkinson and Parkinsonism patients and found that riding a bicycle is something that they can do without tremors Im just worried with all the operations he has endured that putting him on a two wheeler might be asking for trouble. Ive seen some trikes pop up in my area and they all look spindly. I realize most are used to haul stuff but he is about 6' 3" weighs about 285 right now but once he is able to exercise I think he may hit 260.

I know the best thing would be to fit him on something but I want to surprise him with it and if you can imagine having an active lifestyle then bed ridden for a year and a half I want to use it as motivation to get him past all these issues that he has had to endure and if I wait till he can actually go out and sit on some trikes it will be a long while yet.

My best guess is a trike is best suited for a front hub? It will be powered by a 48v 15ah lifepo4 battery. Thoughts?

Thank-you
Dan L.

 

[dogman dan]

There is a special kit just for front wheels of trikes, but at close to 300 pounds, plus the typical adult trike with motor and battery weighing close to 100, it's getting real close to the limit those things can pull, and still climb a very long hill.

Is this for flat riding, or journeys into hills that would be steep as 5%?

I just loaded my cargo bike to 450 pounds last night, and fried a motor, so if you do have hills it's a bit of a problem at that weight. Two motors is the classic solution, but a trike makes it more complicated to do a rear motor.

One option might be a second motor on the bottom bracket, if hills must be tackled. then, you need a battery capable of dishing out 2000w to run two motors.

my cargo bike has taught me that when me, bike, and cargo weigh 400+ pounds, it takes a big motor and 2000w to get up hills with just one motor. But on the flat, much less will suffice.

 

[Danschutz]

Thanks again for some excellent advice and more things to research. We have some hills in the area but its possible to avoid most and in reality Im not sure where we will be riding, I just want him to enjoy driving something again.

Dan L.

 

[dogman dan]

Keep it on the flat ground, and a good low rpm hubmotor should work for you then. Just don't try to climb hills steeper than you can climb at 10 mph. If it balks below 10 mph, find another route. Or, make sure the hill is only a half mile or less.

Main thing, is don't climb hills too steep for more than 2-3 min or so. Pedaling would help a lot up the hills, but it is what it is.

I can't link you to where I sell the kit here. I could if it was another vendor I don't work for, but I can't sell on this section of the forum. So PM me for it if you really need it to find where I work.

 

[docnjoj]

Check out Sun trikes for the USX trike. It can hold 400 lbs, and work with that front motor dogman is telling you about. My wife is light at 160 lbs and rides a similar system with a standard EBIKEKIT front motor, but the one dogman is talking about would have much more torque at low RPM's. Even thought the trike is steel, I would still use 2 front torque arms. This is a simple, easy solution.
otherDoc

 

[tomjasz]

How fast is the maximum safe speed on this trike? Certainly seems it would be far more capable than an upright delta?

Thanks,

Tom

 

[dogman dan]

It should be able to go faster than the usual adult trike. Interesting trike, with a rear shock acting like a front shock.

It's just become possible to run the trike kit motor on 48v again. for 20 mph with a 26" wheel trike. With a tiny wheel, just use the regular motor kit.

 

[docnjoj]

I just saw this. The front wheel on the USX is 20". My wife's trike with 36 volts can do 20-21 mph.
otherDoc

 

[Danschutz]

Guys, sorry I haven't responded until now. My friends been back in the hospital for almost 60 days now and between my long shop hours and visiting I've hardly even seen my wife and have had to cut back on even seeing my granddaughter. Thank goodness I have a very patient family unit.

I'll be anxiously running through the advice given as soon as I get a chance. As always thanks you fellows for your input!

Dan L.

 

[dogman dan]

Hope he can get a bit better. Getting out to ride again, even if very seldom, will be worth every penny spent.

When I was at my worst, I was too weak to ride more than 4 miles at a time, and that with no pedaling. But those short rides to the flea market on the weekend made my day big time. I was getting so depressed, trying to keep working was killing me at that point. I would work 2 hours, then hit the bed to feel like shit for 22 hours. Sex? forget it. Ebike was all that was left for more than a year.

 

[tomjasz]

Exactly what the EBike has done for me. Given me some joy back with being able to ride with my wife and pals. EBikes and trike open up a world not available before. Pain free riding.