Night Tow Test On An Incline

 

Song:  Amazing Journey

Group:  The Who

It was around 7:15 PM on New Year's Eve.

As there was no rain...

I thought it a perfect time to run a night test of the lights 

and the towing capability of my trike as I towed my younger sister up 

an incline from down the street and back up to the top of the hill.

As my 750 Watt Bafang gave me much power on a straight away...

I had to see not only the power it still had when under heavy load...

but of how much of a power drain it would be.

As my younger sister's trike is the only one of ours which has no e drive...

when we go places where there is a steep incline for distance...

she won't be able to pedal up it for long.

And so...

why I always include my shock absorbing tow rope on my trike.

But...

before we actually hit the trails...

I had to know the handling capabilities of my trike under load...

as well as the effects towing would have on my sister on her trike 

as she was being towed.

As this was our first night operation...

we also had to see the throw of our lights...

and the visibility of our trikes from the rear.

There should be no problem.

As I headed down the hill first...

when I glanced in my side view mirror...

I had at first thought my sister's trike was a car behind me.

We stopped near the bottom of the hill...

and I linked up her trike to mine with the tow rope.

I have five separate drive assist modes...

and I could have towed her in the first level assist...

although I would have had to have remained in the lower gears.

The pedaling became easier with each level of assist up I went...

until in the uppermost assist level...

I was in a high gear and going almost too fast for my sister.

We are at the top here.

As my sister did no pedaling the whole way up...

and the incline is steeper than on most trails we plan to go on...

I could have towed her for several miles up this incline...at least.

However, we won't know for sure until our next tow test at Lake Tahoe.

They have a three mile incline on one of the trails.

I will tow her the whole way...

while paying particular attention to the battery drain.

I plan to do this before towing my mother behind me on the same trail to ensure

there will be no problems.

It took me but a few moments to unhook her trike from the tow rope.

This particular tow rope stretches to twice its length under load

so as to absorb the shock of speed change ups.

Everything worked perfectly...

with the exception of my hands.

I had not thought it was cold enough for gloves.

I was so wrong.

My hands are still defrosting as I write this.

A Trike Ride At The Sparks Marina

 

Breathe (Cover)

Original: Pink Floyd

Cover:  Cicero Moura - Flute

Tomaz Mota - Guitar

We had many days of cold and rainy weather...

but today the temperature was in the 50s and it was sunny...

so, my younger sister, my mother, and I went to a local lake just 15 minutes away...

and we rode our trikes around it...and I towed my mother's Wheeled Palanquin.

As it was such a nice day...

I took the sides and top down so my mother could fully enjoy the fresh air and sun...

as well as the views.

I also recorded the whole ride on my Insta 360 video camera...

and I will be posting it on a new YouTube Channel...

of which I will later provide a link to in this article.

Addendum:  My memory card was corrupted.  I ordered new ones.

Hopefully, I won't have any issues with them.

We are on the dedicated bike / walkway around the lake.

It was an easy pedal around for the most part...

but what few inclines they did have...

just a quick switch to pedal assist made the ride up...

a breeze.

I kept an eye on my mother as I towed her.

The PediCruiser is very securely attached to a special metal quick connect...

 with a redundant strap to prevent any accidental detachment.

On the straight and level...

I didn't notice any extra drag...

but on any substantial incline...

I used the first of five levels of e drive assist.

At just over the halfway point...

I stopped to take some more photos.

My mother enjoyed getting some sun and fresh air.

The pathway was a pleasure to ride on.

The builders and designers of this bike and pedestrian path did a very good job.

We took it at a leisurely pace as we all enjoyed the ride.

A final stop before arriving back at the starting point.

I pulled off the path to grab a few photos.

My mother very much liked the ride around the lake.

She smiled and even started clapping in the car before we left.

I take apart the trike carrier and place it inside the car to prevent theft.

It takes but a few moments to put it back together.

I fold up the top rack while I load my trike on the bottom...

and I then fold it down and load my younger sister's trike.

I have to remove my seat and fold down my handle bars for my trike to fit below

the top rack, as it is a beast of a trike...

but it is also but a few minute operation.

The wheels are also secured to the carrier.

It was a very good first time experience towing my mother.

We are planning to ride the Truckee River bike path...

at Lake Tahoe when we have another beautiful day such as this one.

Everything worked perfectly...

and my mother had a smooth ride the whole way...

even when we went off the path to a gravel area.

My mother can now enjoy the rides with us.

At Lake Tahoe...

as it is another 2,000 feet in elevation...

I will put the top sunshade up to keep the sun off my mother...

but, so long as it is a warm day...

I will keep the sides down so she may enjoy full views.

Rigged For Night Running

 

Song:  Moonlight Sonata

Original Composer:  Ludwig Beethoven

Rendition:  Brin Addison

First...

my younger sister and I decided to catch another sunrise from just down the street.

Sunrises and sunsets are just one of the many great simple pleasures in life...

and they are free.

Now on to my trike.

Although I got my trike back from the shop...

I still must learn how to operate the trike motor settings on the motor computer.

I have my Insta 360 camera mounted on the bike mount stick.

It doesn't matter the angle it is at...

as it is a 360 degree video that it produces.

The light green rope is a tow rope that I would try by towing my younger sister on her trike...

however, even through the rope worked well...

my motor settings weren't set correctly on the computer.

As I towed her up an incline...

I had become so bogged down that I had to stop often to rest.

I was just testing the feasibility of towing up an incline...

but, without motor assist...

I wouldn't want to attempt that.

On a gentle incline or even ground...

it is no problem towing without power assist.

I installed a light bar and light just above the motor...and facing forward.

My control panels for riding trails.

The trike computer is on the left...

and my iPhone is on the right.

I have some off line usable maps loaded into an app...

and the phone has GPS function as well...

so even when I am away from usable cell service...

I can still use it for wilderness navigation.

I got a small bell for riding on bike trails.

My view of my computer from the seat of my trike...

and of my navigation unit (iPhone).

Just to demonstrate my night lights...

and as I was working on the trike...

my extra wide concave side mirrors came in...

so, I installed them.

The rear tail light emits a lazed pattern on the ground...

 besides having red leds which indicate a rider at night while on the streets.

The laser painted pattern is especially good as it indicates the width of the trike.

Now I may safely navigate streets at night...

if I so wish.