getting on and off

[headheaded]

left aka and having a hell of a time trying to get on and off of the bike. how are you guys doing it ? no matter how hard i try i can't do it. right side or left side ? starting to think that maybe i'm done for. how about stepping up on the floorboard first and then swinging the leg over? i know it may be easier to do on a three wheeler, but only have a two wheeler now. still pretty early for me as i only received my leg a week ago, but couldn't wait to try it out. starting to think i may have to throw in the towel on riding. god, i hope not.

 

[Bikerbozo]

Try backing on to kickstand side, then you can hoist yourself onto passenger seat, swing right leg, with help from hands, over and then slide forward.

 

[Condor]

On a two wheeler I stand on the left side of the bike and grab the right pant leg and hoist the leg on over. I used to stand on the right side and swing my leg forward over the seat but one day my right knee buckled and I ended up elbows and assholes flat on my back in the gutter. 'Nuff of that crap.... I do the pant leg thing on my trike as well.

 

[jaxbobg]

You may need to seriously consider moving to a trike, either convert your 2 wheeler or sell it and get a trike.

I have back and leg problems and many times have to mount the trike by standing on the left peg with left foot, sit on the saddle, then pull the right foot over. Dismount is about the same but in reverse.

You can do it with perseverance and practice. Good luck.

 

[headheaded]

i've already made my mind up that i'm going with a trike, hate to spend the money only to find out i can't ride the thing. going to use the pingel electric shifter,but need to figure how to get on and off. any thoughts on any of this,how to shift, get on and off or ways to keep fake foot on the footboard will greatly help in my quest. i going to do my damnest to ride again. no matter how long or how hard it is, it's just that a person just feels like giving up after awhile. never thought i would ever say that after riding for 47 years.

 

[Ozarkryder]

On the General Discussion forum in the thread "Poll: Making The Switch - Bike to Trike - Great Info!" (Which is a must-read thread for new riders.) there is a discussion about mounting a trike. Click below and scroll to post 34 -
http://www.triketalk.com/forum/threads/242-Making-The-Switch-Bike-to-Trike-Great-Info!/page4

And a few posts down John Luciano has a most excellent instructional video -

My wife had problems swinging her leg over while standing on the passenger peg as in the video, so she gets up and sits down on the passenger seat sidesaddle, lifts her leg over the rider seat and tank, then slides forward onto the riders seat. Obviously this doesn't work with a rider's backrest.

 

[jaxbobg]

Here's a thought - send a PM to "Wheels" on this board and ask for his advice. Jim is a double amputee and regularly trikes to various events, carries his wheelchair on board and gets around as good as everyone else in the crowd. He may have some ideas for you.

 

[roadking2]

i've already made my mind up that i'm going with a trike, hate to spend the money only to find out i can't ride the thing. going to use the pingel electric shifter,but need to figure how to get on and off. any thoughts on any of this,how to shift, get on and off or ways to keep fake foot on the footboard will greatly help in my quest. i going to do my damnest to ride again. no matter how long or how hard it is, it's just that a person just feels like giving up after awhile. never thought i would ever say that after riding for 47 years.

Once you go to 3, mounting is actually easier. Left foot on the floorboard and swing your right over. The other option is to mount from the right side. Right foot on the right floorboard and swing your left over. The biggest problem I had was getting a wide enough swing with my leg because if you are swinging it over the rear, it's wide back there. If you don't swing wide enough, you hit the back end of your trike with your foot.

I tried a million ways to get on and off, and that's what works best for me anyway.

The right side mount is better for me because there is no shifter in the way and more room for my big foot. On the left, I've got a heel and toe shifter that I have to maneuver my foot around and the right side is just a clearer footing for me. Get off in reverse order. It helps to turn the bars full lock to whichever side your getting on or off of. I'm a left BKA and need the heel and toe shifter. I drop my foot on either the heel portion to up shift and drop it on the toe portion to downshift and I have no problem at all keeping my foot on the floorboards, but as I said, I'm a BKA not a AKA

 

[Trike Mid Step]

i've already made my mind up that i'm going with a trike, hate to spend the money only to find out i can't ride the thing. going to use the pingel electric shifter,but need to figure how to get on and off. any thoughts on any of this,how to shift, get on and off or ways to keep fake foot on the footboard will greatly help in my quest. i going to do my damnest to ride again. no matter how long or how hard it is, it's just that a person just feels like giving up after awhile. never thought i would ever say that after riding for 47 years.

Hi, We are a sponsor here with the Trike Mid Step. Check out our new to industry page. We have a video to watch. The rest of our ads will be here soon. Any questions, Feel free to call me at our shop. 920-863-1699 Thanks Tom

 

[pcombe]

Here's a thought - send a PM to "Wheels" on this board and ask for his advice. Jim is a double amputee and regularly trikes to various events, carries his wheelchair on board and gets around as good as everyone else in the crowd. He may have some ideas for you.

I was about to suggest the same thing! ThumbUp

 

[pcombe]

i've already made my mind up that i'm going with a trike, hate to spend the money only to find out i can't ride the thing. going to use the pingel electric shifter,but need to figure how to get on and off. any thoughts on any of this,how to shift, get on and off or ways to keep fake foot on the footboard will greatly help in my quest. i going to do my damnest to ride again. no matter how long or how hard it is, it's just that a person just feels like giving up after awhile. never thought i would ever say that after riding for 47 years.

You may not understand this just yet but you are a part of a site of dedicated riders who have overcome so many obstacles that would have stopped normal people from doing what they love to do.

Go to the forums page and scroll down to the ( trike shopper) thread, This will give you a direct line to Bazooka (forum owner). this man can help set you up with a trike and accessories to meet your needs and he can be trusted not to burn you.

My physical problems not only should have put an end to my riding but with the help of bazooka and tech advice/encouragement from forum members I was able to do the complete conversion on my old Harley myself.

:Coffee: You can get what you need to continue life with quality!
All you need is something to do and something to look forward to.

To see pictures of my conversion Google- pcombe/library/photobucket

 

[Texan]

You may not understand this just yet but you are a part of a site of dedicated riders who have overcome so many obstacles that would have stopped normal people from doing what they love to do......

:clapping:

Been riding since I was 7 (63 years on 2) and the trike, as you say, has given me the opportunity to keep riding. Developed Parkinsons and the loss of balance coordination keeps me from riding on 2 anymore.....so jumped up to 3 two years ago and still riding with the big boys...

8~\o

 

[roadking2]

On the General Discussion forum in the thread "Poll: Making The Switch - Bike to Trike - Great Info!" (Which is a must-read thread for new riders.) there is a discussion about mounting a trike. Click below and scroll to post 34 -
http://www.triketalk.com/forum/threads/242-Making-The-Switch-Bike-to-Trike-Great-Info!/page4

And a few posts down John Luciano has a most excellent instructional video -

My wife had problems swinging her leg over while standing on the passenger peg as in the video, so she gets up and sits down on the passenger seat sidesaddle, lifts her leg over the rider seat and tank, then slides forward onto the riders seat. Obviously this doesn't work with a rider's backrest.

For me with a artificial left leg, the video technique is very difficult. It is much easier for me to mount from the right side by placing my right foot on the peg/floorboard and swinging my left leg over the rear of the trike. I have no tour pack but I have mounted trikes that have one using this method. With a tour pack I just have to insure my leg is bent enough to clear it.

 

[pcombe]

Hi, We are a sponsor here with the Trike Mid Step. Check out our new to industry page. We have a video to watch. The rest of our ads will be here soon. Any questions, Feel free to call me at our shop. 920-863-1699 Thanks TomView attachment 25080View attachment 25081

Welcome it's always good to have another sponsor in our corner.

 

[cavie]

PM Wheels and ask him how he does it.

 

[GARYD]

i've already made my mind up that i'm going with a trike, hate to spend the money only to find out i can't ride the thing. going to use the pingel electric shifter,but need to figure how to get on and off. any thoughts on any of this,how to shift, get on and off or ways to keep fake foot on the footboard will greatly help in my quest. i going to do my damnest to ride again. no matter how long or how hard it is, it's just that a person just feels like giving up after awhile. never thought i would ever say that after riding for 47 years.

Test ride one first ThumbUp

 

[bikerbillone]

I've seen Wheels in action, very smooth. Remember this guy has to disengage the chair, slide off and into it, with the reverse operation to mount. As I said, very smooth. Arms like bricks.

 

[wheels]

I've been around folks with disabilities for over 48 years now, while "living the dream myself," but what do I know. LOL

It appears I missed this thread and am a little late in responding, but if I can be of any help to the OP, I would be happy to offer up what I know about wearing/moving artificial legs around and how one might accomplish their goal.

 

[headheaded]

HI Wheels, been dealing with this missing leg thing since sept 14. want to ride again, just can't get my mind off of how to. while i'm really not ready to try just yet it's driving me crazy. looks like the pingel is in my future along with a new trike. any advice is very welcome.

 

[wheels]

I know of many riders that are riding two wheels as a single leg AKA. I would suggest you check out a Facebook page that has just started called “We Ride Challenged.” There are several riders who are AKA that are still on two wheels and this will be a great resource. Once you get comfortable with a more “permanent” fit for the prosthetic, my guess would be that you could handle it (it’s a gotta "want it bad" sort of thing, thus up to you.). I do think that the length of the stump my play a part in this as in if you are just above the knee that will be a factor as compared to trying to control a prosthetic as a hip disarticulation, like I am on my right side. The higher you are, the more of the challenge on two wheels, in my humble opinion. Gets harder to control the knee.

The Pingel or Klictronic would help with shifting and stopping would be a matter of relying on your right, thus “cheating” a bit to the right side till you could plan the left. Practice would be the name of the game. Getting on and off would be easy, in my humble opinion. Couple choices as I see it. As you approach the bike while holding on to the right handle bar, you could raise your left leg up and over the seat and then “hop” over closet till the left leg goes down the side of the bike (hard to say it, but I am sure we could get someone to “demo it” for you.

Or, taking a look at a double leg amp friend of mine, you could sit on the seat, “break the knee” and flip the leg up, slid into the correct seated position, and then twist the leg back into place. You can see what I mean by looking at his picture.



Accessories are not that big a deal as far as floor board modifications and the like. You could even look into having the shift lever brought over to the right side and use that foot, like a single left AKA friend of mine does. I have pictures, and would be happy to share if need be.

As for a Trike, well, that is cake. NO problem and again, would suggest a look at the picture I included as “dropping the bike” all goes away.

First, in my opinion, you need to be sure that you are medically cleared to take this one. Then you need to decide Two or Three Wheels. Once you do that, “we” can join in to help you in any way we can.

Let me know if I can be of further assistance.