New to trikes and left BKA

Been riding 2 wheels forever and in 1999 I got hit by a driver going 60 that ran a stop sign. The Crown Vic that hit me crushed my lower leg totally and 2 hours after the wreck, I was a BKA. 8 months later after getting back to where I could walk, I continued on 2 wheels. All I needed was a heel and toe shifter and floorboards. Then a couple of years ago, I needed corrective surgery on my leg and I haven't been the same since. I now have difficulty holding the bike up when stopped and backing it up, so I made the decision to add a third wheel. My leg strength has gone out the window and the doctors tell me it's as good as it's going to get. I've ridden a trike or two previously so I had a fair idea what I was in for. Now I'm waiting and waiting. My Champion kit was ordered a few weeks ago and I figure I'll have it done sometime just before Christmas when the snow is starting to fly on a regular basis and it's cold as heck. It was either get a trike or give up riding all together and I chose the trike. Now I'll be looking forward to sometime in March when I can really start getting to know my new ride. I'm excited and looking forward to logging more miles and smiles. This time around it will be with a third wheel.

Welcome - good choice on going with a trike. Now the only hard part will be waiting for it to get completed. Our "red one" was just finished this time last year and it took until Mar to get a 1,000 miles on it due to the weather and temperatures. Now up to 9,000 and loving it.

Best wishes for the future and "keep those knees in the breeze". ThumbUp

Thank you. I'm really looking forward to finally start logging some miles again. The past couple of years have been really rough. I think I've come pretty close to driving my wife nuts. She was the final straw for me. She said "you need to either give it up, or do something so you can ride again and I don't care which one you do". I'd been thinking trike for a while, and that was the thing that finally pushed me over. I probably could have saved myself a ton of frustration if I had done it sooner.

Fantastic that you made the choice to go with 3 wheels. pepper

I gave up riding for 15 years when my back and legs gave out and finally had surgery after years of pain killers. Have been riding trikes for several years now (drug free) and loving every minute.

Ride almost every day, rain or shine. It's youth rediscovered. :)

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Trike Riding! I take it you had a Road King? So did I, to stay riding I traded it in September '12 for a '12 Tri Glide. I'll always miss my RK but love being able to ride again. Hopefully the pain won't out weigh the fun for a few more years.

Yes, I have a Roadking Classic that is the bones for the trike. A Champion with IRS. I also went with the raked tree and reverse. It's going to be a L-O-N-G winter for me, but I'm looking forward to getting the third wheel. I haven' told hardly anyone what I'm doing and it's going to be a real shock to a lot of people when I show up on a trike. I have a couple other mods I'll be doing besides turning it into a trike. I'm upgrading the clutch for one and I'd like to get the hydraulic chain tensioner and upgrade the oil pump.

I broke down and bought a 2013 tri-glide this past March after being off 2 wheels a
number of years. The salesman told me I was going to hate it for 200 miles and then absolutely love it. He was right, it just keeps getting better. I don't think I'd
ever go back to 2 wheels. I just love it! You will too RoadKing!!

Wheels, What's a few snow flakes? Where I live, we get about 3 times as much of that stuff as you do in Maryland! I usually manage to get out for a few short hops during the winter months when the roads are dry, but in addition to the snow, the cold just kills me. As the temp drops, the rides get shorter and shorter. Usually I can ride pretty comfortably from sometime in late March till sometime around Thanksgiving. Outside of that, I'm bundled up looking like the Michelin man and not really enjoying the ride all that much.

Smokey, I hope you're wrong about hating it, but I'll push through if I do. I have ridden a trike before, but not for any length of time. My most experience on 3 wheels really doesn't count much because the most miles I've logged on 3 wheels was on a old servicar and that was years ago. Just being able to get back out on the road again without struggling to ride will be enough for me until I get my bearings and get comfortable and confident riding the trike. I'm not the least bit worried about liking it.

Jaxbobg, I can't imagine giving it up for 15 years. I would have driven my myself and my wife crazy if I did that. I need the release I get from riding to keep my sanity. When I get irritable, my wife will say to me "why don't you go for a ride?"

[QUOTE=roadking2;200068]Yes, I have a Roadking Classic that is the bones for the trike. A Champion with IRS. I also went with the raked tree and reverse. It's going to be a L-O-N-G winter for me, but I'm looking forward to getting the third wheel. I haven' told hardly anyone what I'm doing and it's going to be a real shock to a lot of people when I show up on a trike. I have a couple other mods I'll be doing besides turning it into a trike. I'm upgrading the clutch for one and I'd like to get the hydraulic chain tensioner and upgrade the oil pump.[/QUOTE]

I ride a Champion / Wing, JMHO and also my dealers stay away from the Champion IRS go with the Solid axel. And welcome to the gang. Other kit have much better results from IRS but Champion was late in the game , might be better now but Sumter Honda just told me that two weeks ago.
Bill

[QUOTE=Bill Reber;200563]I ride a Champion / Wing, JMHO and also my dealers stay away from the Champion IRS go with the Solid axel. And welcome to the gang. Other kit have much better results from IRS but Champion was late in the game , might be better now but Sumter Honda just told me that two weeks ago.
Bill[/QUOTE]

To late, I already ordered the kit and I went with the IRS. Others may do a better job with IRS, but I think from all I've seen and heard, the Champion IRS is still better than most straight axels for overall comfort and that's what I'm after. I tested a solid axel or 2 and I liked the IRS on a Champion better. The 2 I tried were a Lehman and a Triglide. I liked the Champion. The best I tried was a CSC but I couldn't warm up to the length and look enough to get it. The rear wheels just looked to far behind the seat for my taste. That was my only issue with it, but the look I prefer is important to.