Winter fat trike question

[Andy987]

Hi, I'm looking for a winter trike fat bike to do small commutes between home and work (3km to go, 3km to get back), I'm based in Montreal, we can have a lot of snow and cold weather (minus 10C on average in winter, sometimes colder but I think I will go for cabs subway and car when it gets to minus 15 or minus 20) It needs to meet the max power allowed on bike paths in Canada: the bike can't be more than 500w, 32km top speed. Needs to be heavily weather resistant. I did read that a huge advantage in snow and ice patches is front wheel traction.

Did anyone here or try the cargo trike from etrikes Canada?
Link: https://etrikescanada.com/collections/frontpage/products/etc-cargo-etrike

It seems to have all the winter requirements, front motor which apparently makes a huge difference, and I do find the 24 inch front wheel makes it look better. It's quite heavy though, around 100pounds but I don't know if it's with or without battery.

Any thoughts? Thank you very much for your input!

Andy987

 

[Andy987]

Hi Timpo! Thank you for all new options, the Rungu seems like it rocks, I will definitely look into that one, I like that it's narrow enough never to be a problem on city bike lanes. All the best

 

[rich c]

I have that fat tad and have been on my head once and side twice. On my side once in the middle of a parking lot on my first snow ride. Sliding and doing donuts in the snow when a front tire hit a small mismatch in the concrete sliding sideways. Instantly I was on my side as I came to a stop. On the rail trail a tree had blown over. I crawled along the edge of the ditch. Front tire stalled as I clipped a branch. At a complete stop I put more torque on the pedal and found myself on my head, still clipped in, with the trike on top of me. Third time I was turning around on an off camber grade at about 2mph. Instantly on my side. Just because it has 3 wheels doesn’t make it inherently stable.

 

[rich c]

Hi Timpo! Thank you for all new options, the Rungu seems like it rocks, I will definitely look into that one, I like that it's narrow enough never to be a problem on city bike lanes. All the best

That Rungu ranges from 87 to 103 pounds!

 

[J.R.]

Hi, I'm looking for a winter trike fat bike to do small commutes between home and work (3km to go, 3km to get back), I'm based in Montreal, we can have a lot of snow and cold weather (minus 10C on average in winter, sometimes colder but I think I will go for cabs subway and car when it gets to minus 15 or minus 20) It needs to meet the max power allowed on bike paths in Canada: the bike can't be more than 500w, 32km top speed. Needs to be heavily weather resistant. I did read that a huge advantage in snow and ice patches is front wheel traction.

Did anyone here or try the cargo trike from etrikes Canada?
Link: https://etrikescanada.com/collections/frontpage/products/etc-cargo-etrikeView attachment 67244

It seems to have all the winter requirements, front motor which apparently makes a huge difference, and I do find the 24 inch front wheel makes it look better. It's quite heavy though, around 100pounds but I don't know if it's with or without battery.

Any thoughts? Thank you very much for your input!

Andy987

Hi Andy. If you are planning on riding on ice and snow you will need studded tires. Of course a trike should help with stability, but it won't really help accelerating and stopping. If your bike paths are anything like the rail trails and paths here in PA they aren't a priority for clearing. Snow gets compacted, turns to ice and are full of ice ruts from bike tires, cross country skiers and walkers/hikers. A regular tire just doesn't want to pull out of the ice ruts.


If I were shopping for a trike for winter riding, I would buy one with standard size tires (fat or not) like 26, 29, 700c. Make sure you can get the winter tires you need before buying the bike.

Fresh powder isn't bad to ride on, but in my area powder doesn't last long. If memory serves, pic#2 was first day of spring 2015, on my old bike. On a front wheel drive trike you might only need the front tire studded. Width of the tire isn't nearly as important on ice, its studs that allow you to pull out of ice ruts and stop.

Good luck!

 

[Andy987]

Thank you everyone for all your comments, and Rich C I hope you came out okay from the accident! The top flip most have been scary. Ouch.

Duly noted for the studded tires and wheel size, J.R., thank you very much, up to now the Rungu Trike (despite its weight...) rigged with studded tires seems like the best choice (Thank you Timpo!), I will share a picture or two if I decide to take a chance at winter cycling! Last thing I need to check is if studded tires are legal for bikes, as they are illegal for cars here in Montreal (they wreck the asphalt).

Have a good weekend all

 

[ki11a]

Saw a recent reddit post about snow riding, with the Ariel rider D class 2WD (I was interested when I first saw it, now more longer milage reviews have come out with good talk about the D class...SUPER interested now)....

Id say it can handle snow pretttty well.