Amlings at the Niles Senior Expo

Posted by Jim Strasma on April 20, 2013

 Yesterday, for the first time, Amlings Cycle participated in the Niles Senior Expo at Golf Mill Shopping Center, sending Julie, Jim and 3 recumbent trikes. It was great fun, with lots of unusual comments, such as "You mean you can use it outdoors too?" Attendees seemed particularly interested in our ability to add a BionX electric motor assist to any bicycle.

Here are some of the photos:


Anyone for a Dune trike?

Posted by Jim Strasma on March 21, 2013

 Much as we love our trikes, there are a few places we might fear to take them for lack of extra-wide low-pressure tires. If that's your problem, TerraTrike had a solution at their recent dealer training day - a Rambler 8 speed with tires 4 inches across. Dan and Jim got to ride it a bit in the snow and found it great fun, though it might benefit from more than 8 speeds if your goal is to climb a dune. Give us a call if you'd like wheels like these on your Terratrike too.

 

Latest News from Mark at Catrike

Posted by Joe Reichert on February 16, 2013

Another Leap of the Cat(trike)

 

Our vision dictates that we will be excellent at our core, focus 100% on development of our Catrikes and be the inspiration of the trike market. We have quietly spent hundreds of hours in R&D last year doing just that. We have added a lot of new great features to our 2013 line up that will be communicated to our dealers and public by our next Catrike Rally. We will have a small price increase to reflect the true value of our ethically made in the US products. In the mean time we have a few changes that are being implemented now in what we call the 2012.5:

 

2012.5 models (we are calling these 2012 and a half models, meaning that they have new updated 2013 frames but with 2012 components. These are the trikes we are shipping in January and until our 2013 models are ready)

-prices remain the same as 2012 for these 2012.5 configurations

 

-Pocket: New frame, 406 wheels front, 41 degree seat back (4 degrees less than 2012) and 9" Seat Height (1" higher then 2012) another great, perfectly scaled Catrike.

 

-700: New frame. We fit this trike with 406 (20”) front wheels and Ultremo ZX tires. As an accomplishment in engineering, we rotated the rider’s body position around the center of gravity, thus achieving a more streamlined position, raising the seat, transferring weight to the rear of the trike, without in effect, affecting the center of gravity. We have dropped its bottom bracket just enough for perfect tuning of the cockpit and the balance between rider comfort, output and aerodynamics. Finally we have added 1" to its wheel base, to a total of 46" for an optimum weight distribution, front wheel clearances and impressive straight line stability. The result is a slightly more reclined and better aerodynamic position, a higher seat bottom and ground clearance to create an improved relationship between the chain line and its main frame, thus stiffening the whole frame during pedaling while still maintaining its impressive cornering ability, handling and steering forces during turn. On top of that, because we have our own CNC milling machine, we have designed and sculpted a new flanged drop out that is lighter, stiffer and just plain gorgeous that screams quality and design with a purpose. This trike is simply the most beautiful, refined and fastest Catrike we ever produced. We have coined the term of a low flying carpet for trikes and nothing is more truthful when you ride the new 700.

 

-Trail and Villager: These Catrike are even more sophisticated with new seat adjustable system (like the Road). Frame is clean, light and strong and now has a 300 lbs weight capacity with one quick release to adjust the seat angle that is very friendly and intuitive. Not all steering systems are designed equal. Thanks to our over a decade in steering design and dedication and expertise in direct steering, we have yet again refined our steering geometry. Its handling rivals any trike in the World that cost thousands more, and still provides the great qualities of a well designed direct steering; light at low speed, solid at high speed with a great road feedback and a direct connection between rider and machine. A lovely and fun feeling with all the performance and stability desired.

 

- Our new 2013 Catrike standard group is unprecedented and establishes a new benchmark in the trike category. Thanks to our focus, volume and standardization we are able to give more.

 

-Colors: we have selected the 7 most appealing, popular and meaningful colors and will offer only these in 2013. They are mostly considered premium, double coats and they will come as a standard with no price increase on any Catrke model. This is a case that we figure we can do more offering premium colors in our established process so we can provide it as a standard cost, making the Catrikes even more appealing and greater value. This will allow our customer to decide with confidence among only great choices of our beautiful Catrikes. The new standard colors are: Liquid Black, Alpine White, Moon Rock Silver, Electric Blue, Lava Red, Saber Green and Shinny Mango.

 

 

 

 

You are looking at the most streamlined, most laid back, longest, stiffest, leanest, meanest and yes fastest Catrike ever made, the 2013 700

 

Mark Egeland

Catrike

 

 

 

 

 

TJ's Anura Lounging In The Park! In December!

Posted by Joe Reichert on December 17, 2012

 

Have a cool picture of your recumbent or trike?  Post it on our Facebook Page or email it to us!

TerraTrike's “Bag and Flag” Promotion is Back!

Posted by Bill Warnock on November 25, 2012


TerraTrike's annual “Bag and Flag” holiday promotion has begun once again. From now through January 1st, any customer who purchases a new TerraTrike from Amling's Cycle will receive a free TerraTrike seat bag and safety flag: a $70 retail value.

In order to participate in the promotion, customers must send in a copy of their registration card along with a receipt showing where the trike was purchased to the TerraTrike corporate office. Once verified, the accessories will be mailed to them free of charge.

To learn more about TerraTrike models, click here.

Recumbent Racing Tips

Posted by Joe Reichert on June 16, 2012

Reblogged from Ben Dickinson and the Ice Trikes official blog. Source.


We are all excited about racing at the moment, having just returned from the WHPVA world championships, so I thought a few race preparation or fast ride related tips would be topical.



Train for it.

If you are new to racing, you should start preparing your body as soon as possible, at least 12 weeks prior to your event is advisable. Get a map of the course so that you can determine what type of riding you'll be doing, and physical fitness you'll need.  See if you can determine how much of the course is uphill, how much is downhill and what the grades are.

Set a mileage goal for each week prior to the race. Increase your mileage gradually over a number of weeks. This helps to avoid injury, over-fatigue and burnout. Add in more hills to challenge your body and build endurance, or add some interval training where you increase your pace on flat roads for timed intervals. For example, pedal fast for two minutes, then recover with a comfortable pace for three minutes and then repeat. I have found this is a good way to push yourself harder in training than you otherwise would just through steady pedalling and it should improve your ability to perform longer at varying intensities.

In the last week before the race give yourself more time to rest to give your body a chance so to recover energy level fully. Eat the correct foods for your training and racing. During your muscle-building period, eat more lean protein. During your aerobic training, eat more complex carbohydrates.

 

Practice riding.

Ride with others. Get used to riding close to other riders at speed. Practice drafting, this is riding close behind another rider so as to take advantage of the slipstream. The key here, whether in front or behind is not to behave unpredictably. Do not make any sharp braking or steering movements. Practice cornering at speed, lean well into corners, as you lean tip your head backwards. This will help to move your centre of gravity backwards and reduce the sideways scrub on the wheels.

 

Prepare your trike.

The exact setup will of course depend on the route and conditions, but generally you will need your race machine to be both as light and aerodynamic as possible. Remove anything that is not absolutely necessary. In my case this meant mudguards/fenders, racks and various mounting brackets, lights and chain tubes. Set your trike up the way you will ride it during your race and give yourself time to get used to it in that configuration. Adjust the seat to the most reclined position you can stand and adjust the handlebars so that your arms hang close to your body and your forearms are fairly horizontal. Wind resistance makes a big difference. Check the rules to see if there are particular things you will need to do to be allowed to participate such as fitting a chain guard or providing places to display race numbers.

 

Final preparations.

Give yourself time to give your race machine a pre-race check over. Check that all bolts are tight, that your gears are indexing correctly, that your tires are clean and undamaged etc. A simple mechanical failure that prevents you from finishing or causes you to lose significant amount of time could mean that all your effort was for nothing.  Check your tire pressures. Generally harder tires will be faster, you may still need to adjust for road surface. Don’t forget to lubricate your chain.

Before you race eat a light meal. Include carbohydrate-rich foods such as fruit, bread and cereals to maintain your energy levels. Bike Radar suggests that you time your pre-race meal to occur about three hours before the race starts.

Warm up for 30 minutes (or 45 if you can) before the race. Pedal in a low gear for the first 15 minutes then start incorporating harder intervals. Stay loose after the warm-up by moving and walking around before the race starts.

Staying hydrated is essential the body needs enough liquid to cover what is being lost through sweat and the extra exertion of your ride., choose sports drinks or just plain water, take gels and energy bars to replace carbohydrates, as well as sodium, potassium and electrolytes.

 

And most importantly have fun!

Sinner Mango Velomobile Walkthrough

Posted by Joe Reichert on June 16, 2012

Pick up an Edge 200 for $119.99 (after mail-in rebate) until Aug 31, 2012

Posted by Joe Reichert on June 15, 2012
 
 
Purchase a new qualifying Edge 200 and receive $30USD via mail-in rebate. Offer is valid for purchases made from 06/01/12 through 08/31/12. Submissions must be postmarked by 09/15/12. Limit 2 rebates per customer.

Want to get a little more out of your ride? Now there’s a Garmin device that delivers. The easy-to-use Edge 200 is the lowest-priced bike computer that offers course navigation and more. You can explore new routes in Garmin's online community, Garmin ConnectTM, and then download to them the Edge 200 for navigation along the way. Plus, you’ll know how far and how fast you’ve gone on every ride and be able to relive it later on a map at Garmin Connect.

Three steps
  1. Buy an Edge 200
  2. Download the rebate
  3. Ride!

New Catrike Custom Color Option

Posted by Joe Reichert on March 29, 2012

 

Catrike is now offering Bubble Gum Pink as a custom color. This replaces their Neon Pink. It is a much softer color as you can see in the pictures.

There is already a Bubble Gum Pink Catrike 700 in the wild and Catrike has been receiving a lot of positive feedback. The upgrade color cost remains the same, $100 for this new color.

Introducing the all new 2012 Catrike Road

Posted by Joe Reichert on March 12, 2012

The 2012 Catrike Road has been designed, engineered and built with the utmost attention to detail. Our goal was to achieve solid performance and the ride-quality expected of a Catrike, but with a layer of comfort and shock absorption. The deadline was to achieve perfection, not an arbitrary date. The result is a fast and truly stunning looking trike, weighing 38 pounds with incredible handling and comfort.


The swing arm, with a high travel rate, pivots on an oversized hollow alloy axle, actuating the air shock in a progressive manner through a linkage system that pivots through the frame, unique to this trike, providing both a total shock absorption and a very high torsion stiffness. Thanks to applying the fundamentals of motorcycle suspension design, our anti-squat geometry (intersection of the swing arm and chain line is at a proper location in reference to the line between the contact patch of the rear tire and center of gravity at wheel base length) transfers all pedal power to the rear wheel with the frame perfectly rigid. "Basically when you ride the new Catrike Road, you can't tell that there is suspension because is so efficient, but if you hit a bump you won't feel it either".

Through bold design choices and careful structural and computer analysis, we were able to design a gorgeous architectural "see through" swing arm, that is 100% CNC machined, very light weight, strong, stiff and durable. The new Road has 15 new unique CNC machined parts and the assembly is done with a total of 12 teflon coated bearings to avoid any metal on metal contact at the joints. This results in zero stitcheon (static friction), providing the “silk like” feel or "hidden quality" we are always striving for. All of the pivot housing is designed and machined in the style of "fork" brackets for a perfect fit and zero play between the bearings and pivots, providing a maintenance free assembly.
On top of all that, we put a lot of focus on choosing the right shock, one with a custom spring rate specifically selected for our weight distribution and suspension kinematics for a controlled jounce and rebound of the suspension. The trike comes complete with high end 100% SRAM components, including a Monarch air shock that includes a special air pump for adjustment for different weight and equipped with rebound dampening control, perfect for taking the roughness out of high frequency uneven surfaces.

The new Catrike Road is a truly great trike, but we think it will speak for itself!

Specifications:

  • Lightweight aluminium frame with adjustable seat back
  • Rear Progressive Linkage Suspension (developed by Catrike R and D Team) Total Length Varies
  • Total Width 33′′ (838 mm)
  • Total Height 25′′ (635 mm)
  • Bracket Height 15′′ (381 mm)
  • Seat Angle 39° –47° (from horizontal)
  • Seat Height 9.25′′ (235 mm)
  • Seat Width 14′′ (355 mm)
  • Wheel Base 41.5′′ (1055 mm)
  • Wheel Track 29′′ (737 mm)
  • Turning Circle 16′ (4.88 m)
  • Turning Radius 8′ (2.44 m)
  • Ground Clearance 4′′ (100 mm)
  • Front Wheels 406 (20′′)
  • Rear Wheel 406 (20′′)
  • Weight 37 lbs (16.8 kg)
  • Rider Weight Limit 275 lbs (125 kg)
  • Components
  • Shock Rockshox Monarch R Brakes Avid BB7 Disc Brakes Brake Levers Avid Speed Dial Front Derailleur Microshift Rear Derailleur SRAM X7 Shifters SRAM SX7
  • Crankset Elita 165mm Triple
  • Bottom Bracket Truvativ GXP external Chainrings 30/39/52
  • Chainring Super Guard Catrike Logo Cassette SRAM PG 950 9-SPD 11-32 Chain KMC X9
  • Idler TerraCycle Sport
  • Headsets Cane Creek
  • Front Tires Schwalbe Marathon Racer Rear Tire Schwalbe Marathon Racer


Available May 2012.

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8140 N. Milwaukee Avenue
Niles, IL 60714

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