Trike position in ride formation

minnleeboy · Aug 2, 2011

I went on my first sponsored cycle run a few weeks ago and would like to share my experience with you and ask for feed-back. The ride was made up of 20 members of our local Legion Riders club and 30 guest riders. I wanted to ride with some of my friends from our club so I was riding six bikes back from the lead bike. I was the only Trike on this ride. After we had our first rest stop and were getting ready to go on the next leg of our ride, a person came up to me and informed me that Trikes are to ride in the back of the line only. He also said it did not look good to have a big trike in the middle of the staggered line of bikes. I was hurt but did not want to start anything, so I finished the ride in the back by myself. I have talked to many Trike owners since that happened and no one has ever had that happen to them. Could this me a saftey problem with some riders or what. I have not taken part in a sponsored ride since but I have watched them start out and there were Trikes in all different positions in the line. I want to do the right thing and want to obey saftey rules ETC: Anyone have any feed-back or experience with this subject? I rode two wheel bikes for forty years until I broke my hip at age 67 and switched to a Trike, which I love to ride.

Thanks for any advice.

Lee

OlBandit · Aug 2, 2011

Well, it all depends on the group, our local HOG Chapter does not care were I ride, generally I am near the front. On Warriors Watch Rides they want trikes in the back, no big deal to me, as I wind up in the middle of the pack anyway. Most think that it is a sight issue not being able to see around trikes, but I try to prove them wrong every chance I get, lol. I ride my trike on the left side, so my rear left wheel is near the yellow line, gives those behind me on the right the ability to see in front of me. I have never heard a complaint and hey if they complain tough luck!!!

Triker68 · Aug 2, 2011

I have rode a few times with a group of 2 wheel bikes and no one had a problem with my trike. The man that spoke to you just has a problem with trikes or with seeing the road in front of him. Go back to group riding it is fun and just ask if any one has a problem with being behind you and if so just let all those bikes in front. A true friend will ride with you if you have 2 wheels or 3. Ken

hillycat · Aug 2, 2011

:wave4: I ride with a small group all the time. I am the only trike and the guy who leads most of the time asked me to be tailgunner so he can see me past all the other bikes. He says id he can't see me then he knows something may be wrong and he needs to find a safe pull-off! Sounds to me like that person had a case of the a** against trikes, just chalk it up to piss poor attitude and ride where you are comfortable and/or ask others in group where they would like for you to ride. I count my position as tailgunner as a preference and I am uncomfortable with someone behind me now!! :yes: :Flag:

Ironhorsepilot · Aug 2, 2011

I personally want to ride in the back, but on most of our rides with the Blue Knights, I have to fight people for that position. Sometimes they even want me to be road captain.

Yogisan · Aug 2, 2011

There are two reasons I prefer to ride behind the two-wheelers in a mixed group. One, trikes in front of two-wheelers create a safety problem for the two-wheelers. A two-wheeler can't stop as quickly and the wider trike cuts off part of their emergency escape options.

Two, trikes in the front create a 'profiling' problem for the two-wheelers behind them. Any bystanders usually stare at the trikes when they go by and don't pay much attention to the two-wheelers. :wtg:

champsman97045 · Aug 2, 2011

I have been leader , tail-gunner and someplace in the middle , only asked once to move to a different position when the leader asked so the less experienced rider could be closer for him to watch and lead accordingly , also my trike is much larger than m/c conversions.
most of my group riding is with our GWRRA chapter.

mpolissky · Aug 2, 2011

I ride in a group quite often and I was riding everywhere, since I like to film the rides and take lots of pictures. Then I was also approached by the group leader who asked me to ride in the back, so I don't block his view all the way down. I did not have a problem with it, but stopped filming and taking pictures, since just riding in the back of the pack and shooting the same scenes makes the final result pretty boring. After few rides without my media coverage, he came up to me and asked me to resume doing what I was doing before...I guess they like the memories I create...

‪South Florida Ride for Kids - April 3, 2011‬‏ - YouTube

Gorilla · Aug 2, 2011

I think that you should ride where you want to. If you are being a consideate rider you will remember you are wide and ride as close to the edge as safely possible in the staggered line up. This should make it easier for the 2 wheelers to see around you.

curley03 · Aug 2, 2011

This question has come up here before. I ride a vrod trike. I have no problem keeping up with any HD bike. Since I triked the vrod I,ve changed front pulley giving me 7% more low end torque. I,ve been told that I may not be able to keep up with the faster bikes. WHAT THE HELL? WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? I told the HEAD captain that I believed that I did not have a problem keeping up and that I thought everyone else would have a problem keeping up with me. It rapidly progressed into a pissing contest and I learned in the military that its impossible to get passed some officers so I've let the issue drop and ride in the back. Now I've been riding more than 50 years and have owned more than a dozen motorcycles. Since the over 100' days I've slowed down my riding when it gets back to 90s or less I'll be riding again. I ride mostly with one of the local HOG group and I think I like the back I just don't like being told where to ride. The bikes with side cars ride wherever, and a couple of the HD touring trikes also ride wherever. Maybe its a vrod thing. I've never had an accident, some of the two wheel bikes ahead of me have gone down or had close calls. I love my vrod trike and I get a lot of thumbs up and attention wherever we stop and I think some of the other drivers resent that. HA! HA! here is what I've done with my 03 vrod. curley

Ironhorsepilot · Aug 3, 2011

That's one beautiful trike, Curly! My only question, doesn't that chrome gas tank create a glare? It is nice, though.

curley03 · Aug 3, 2011

Not while riding. I guess it would if I looked down but I don't gotta keep eyes on the road. THANK YOU for the kind remarks. now if it only got cooler here its 107 today. curley

CCrider · Aug 3, 2011

When at our winter hideout in florida, I ride in a small group made up of everything from trikes to super scooters and large two wheelers. The group has a designated leader and tail gunner, who keep in contact via CBs. I ride somewhere in between the leader and tailgunner, but i do prefer the inside line closet to the center line. So far no one has ever had a problem with that. I did explain that my trike tracked better if i rode the crown of the road.

leo3wheel · Aug 3, 2011

Participated in a week-long ride-in a couple weeks ago. It was our first ride-in. Ride organizers picked routes with a lot of twisties, and we usually rode above the speed limit. Told our taillights in the twisties were bothersome to folks. They were also trying to keep a tight formation to make the lights in the towns. Suggested that we ride in the rear, and we rode behind the tailgunner. We communicated with our CB, and this worked fairly well. As a greenhorn, it was bothersome that we were constantly pressing to keep up and would sometimes get cut off by lights. Folks were getting a little impatient because it was 100* all week. Would have preferred a more leisurely pace.

Ozarkryder · Aug 3, 2011

I have always ridden in the back of the pack on group rides on the trike, and usually prefer that position even when on the Harley (2 wheeler). I like to see what everyone else is doing, I do think a trike stops quicker so I won't have folks riding up my rear end. Others have mentioned that trikes go in the rear of the pack because of vision issues, and they are slower than 2 wheelers. Mistaken notion, that. I have been able to put most other riders in my mirrors down the Pig Trail (Arkansas' shorter version of the Dragon) No lean issues or scraping pegs on sharp curves, so I can beat almost every touring bike or cruiser. Can keep up with a lot of sprotbikes, but I think that is more of a pilot skill issue, not a limitation of the bike. In the off chance there is one, a sidecar rig go right in front of the trikes as they are worse handling, and the stopping power depends on a lot of set-up factors.

And as far as the notion of taking the thunder from the 2 wheelers, what will folks remember? Isn't it best to save the best for last?

dirtdobber · Aug 5, 2011

Curly, that's hog wash them saying you can't stay with them.
Most 2 wheelers have a hard time staying with me when I decide to play.

Spur · Aug 6, 2011

I have always understood that the Trikes go in the rear on Club rides. It has been that way for years in most Clubs. We stop faster, take up the whole lane, and create a visibility problem for the Road Captain. By being in the back of the pack the RC can keep aware of any problem toward the rear by watching us, as the trike is easier to spot. It isn't a prejudice issue, just a safety matter.

Scrooge · Sep 2, 2011

I agree with Spur. In fact, I won't ride anywhere, but at the rear of the pack, simply because I can stop much faster than the two-wheelers and don't want to chance getting run over if an emergency stop is necessary. Truth of the matter is that it's a safety issue, although there are those that remain prejudiced.

Meastro319 · Sep 4, 2011

On two "group" (Patriot Guard Missions) I was toward the back but not the last one. On another CMA Run For The Son I was third behind the leader, but that was because I am very new to motorcycling and he wanted to keep an eye on me. My riding buddy (also a trike rider) usually rides right behind me so HE can keep an eye on me.
From my limited experience, on any PGR Mission, the Ride Captain usually sets the order of bikes. A lot of times the order depends on the size of the flags most bikes are displaying.
This is just one, very new, rider's experiences in group riding.

greyfang · Sep 5, 2011

I went on a 500 bike controlled ride yesterday (led by Michael Ballard) with my son. We ended up in the middle some place and because we have rode together for many miles, had no trouble riding a close staggard route. having said that, if I had been by myself, I would have stayed at the back of the pack. A trike and a two wheeler is a wide load for one lane.