What a view! The full broadside, a clear field of vision from left to right on a bike; that's special. The world suddenly becomes huge. Roughly from the perspective of a three-year-old - or, for those without children: a Great Dane - the trike rider looks out at his surroundings. Other cyclists, pedestrians and motorists included.
You soon realise that the city is not the right place.
Narrow, winding country roads, good forest and meadow paths, cross-country cycle paths: it runs smoothly and riding a tricycle becomes a pleasure. Thanks to the low go-kart seating position between the wheels, the lateral acceleration forces take full effect in bends and the body involuntarily tensions itself more strongly between the pedals and the seat shell. At the right speed, you can see how the front wheel on the outside of the bend dives into the suspension and the inside wheel lifts off the road surface in extreme situations. Wild manoeuvres are possible, as the Scorpion is extremely planted on the road. Its long rear triangle and the elaborately built front axle make the steering and ride largely smooth. Exception: The riding position requires fast pedalling with a high cadence. The rider's shoulders and arms tend to sway in the opposite direction. If the hands are only loosely on the handlebars, this is transferred to the front wheels, which then turn slightly unsteadily.
In general, the trike requires the rider to familiarise themselves with it: you pedal forwards and not downwards as usual, your body weight is taken out of the movement. This feels extremely comfortable in the seat. However, pedalling with your legs raised places a different strain on your muscles and posture than usual: it takes around four to six weeks before your body should have fully adapted to the new strain. This type of pedalling should provide an intensive training stimulus, especially for the gluteal muscles, says press man Alex Kraft with a slight smile.
The handlebar grips are positioned vertically and come from below; this means that the twist shifters and brake levers of the two front wheels are ergonomically comfortable to hold. There is no need for a brake at the rear, as the thrust from the front wheels is fully and effectively absorbed by mechanical discs. Both levers are intuitively gripped with equal force. A parking brake to prevent rolling is also integrated here.
The shock absorbers at the front and the steel spring damper of the single-joint swingarm at the rear can be adjusted to the rider's weight via preload. The excellent suspension then reliably filters out all road bumps. The cruising speed feels faster than on the normal bike due to the changed perspective and centre of gravity, but should not be too much above the usual mark, as comparison rides have shown. The Scorpion's greatest potential therefore lies in car-free commuter routes or enjoyable long-distance tours, preferably with luggage. Two standard Ortlieb back rollers hang directly behind the bucket seat in the slipstream and have very little influence on the riding behaviour. Nowhere are the negative influences of high payloads as low as on this trike. In addition, the carrier is mounted in such a way that it is also sprung. During a blind test, a test rider only noticed the initial load of 22 kilos after it had been removed. However, if you own a trike, you need a flat surface: the Scorpion fs can be partially dismantled and the frame folded in a few simple steps, making car or train transport perfectly feasible. However, sufficient space is required for daily parking and retrieval. In practice, manoeuvring is relatively easy as long as it is done on level ground: You can usually push off a few centimetres backwards against a fixed object to turn in three moves in a confined space.
Conclusion:
Riding a trike is fun! The dynamics and cornering ability of the low-flying bike are overwhelming. After some time of physical familiarisation, long, traffic-free or low-traffic routes without many metres of elevation gain, but with luggage, make the most sense. The trike does not belong in the city: the speed and space requirements are too high and visibility in heavy traffic is too low.
The complete article was published in Trekkingbike issue 3/2017.
