matrosov

So here's a good question. Have a wife she was always a skittish and not very sure of herself rider and unfortunately it caught up to her where she drove herself off of a 15 foot rail trail embankment at pedestrian speed. Overnight at a hospital full body CT scans, pre-heart attack condition concussion, bruised lung and cracked ribs later, she is not getting on a two wheeler ever again.
So now I'm up for round two of fun of dragging her out to the trails and am looking for a trike that could possibly handle some gravel and has gears to handle some easyish hills. Where should I begin my search?

veganbikes

Look for a recumbent tadpole trike, it is easy to ride, very comfortable and stable. Upright trikes are not super stable and easy to get on two wheels if not careful.

Icetrike, CatTrike, HP Velotechnik, Terra Trike are all good options and you might even look at something with electric assist to help her out.

If she was going that slow that is bad and that is the easiest time to be unstable. You might have her join up with an adult learning class. Keep in mind I meant that seriously and not as a joke or an insult, learning to ride a bicycle as an adult is harder and if you aren't sure of yourself having a good course of fellow adults going through the process is helpful even if you know how to do it relearning in a less stressful open environment can make a big difference, seeing other people in a similar position takes the stress and scare out of it. If you feel like you are the only one it is frustrating and sometimes humiliating so other people around who also have those feelings makes it more fun and less challenging.

It can also be quite hard to get back on after a big crash like that. I know I am a little skittish a little in certain conditions after some crashes but you power through things and you get back to normal.

jaxgtr

I bought my Mother In Law a 3 speed 3 wheeler by Sun, she is not a speed demon, so I did not worry about her tipping the bike on to 2 wheels. Worked perfect for her until some other heath conditions came up which forced to off the bike. I think if she is just looking to roll around, get some exercise, and not looking to do massive distances, this would be a good option. I have used it for some store runs as it has a nice size basket on the back.

If she is looking for longer distances, then Veganbikes has some nice recommendations.

Camilo

I agree with the suggestion of a tadpole (two wheels in front) recumbent trike. Compared to the cheap upright trikes and wheel-in-front recumbent trikes, they are much more stable, efficient, and fun to ride. They come relatively inexpensive to very expensive just like bikes. E trikes are becoming very popular and might be a great option if you like to ride together and she's normally not able to keep up. I found my medium-quality recumbent to be a lot slower than my two wheelers, especially up hill. So think of that. The design can be very near horizonal, low strung, racy-recumbent to much more upright and easier to get in and out of. Just like two wheelers, a you can change gearing and other features either DIY or any bike shop can do it even if they aren't a recumbent shop. The shifting, cranks, etc. are generally the same parts and adjustments as any bike. I changed my crank and cassette to get lower gears to get up the very steep hills near where I live.

I very strongly recommend you look at and get info from the recumbent sub forum here. Lots of expertise and practical knowledge and connections to sources for new and used trikes

I rode a recumbent trike for several months when I was off my two wheelers due to shoulder surgery. It was a great experience and all the info I needed to get one and get started I got from the recumbent subforum.

Herzlos

Upright trikes are fine on flat paths, but since they lean with the camber of the road they can be pretty disconcerting and take some getting used to. They'll be a nightmare on anything particularly rough because of the lean and the relatively high center of gravity.

The recumbent trike would mentioned would be a lot more stable.

PhilFo 

Does your wife want to get back on a bike (trike) at all?

matrosov

Two wheeler definitely not. Her crash was pure flight fight response she went into option three of total freeze. She rode from left side of the trail down the right side embankment totally forgetting that she has brakes that she can just plain lean the bike and stop with her foot,(speed was minimal) White knucle ride holding on to the handlebars trying to maintain balance as I watched and prepared your mom just got killed speech for the kids. Three wheeler she is not intimidated by it since it sits low to the ground no issue with maintaining balance and trails I take her to ride on a level crushed gravel with very shallow inclines. So she is ok with a trike but I know next to nothing about them.

canalligators

Is she ok with walking? That is, no balance or skeletal problems? It’s great exercise, better than cycling for many, because it uses more muscles and is load bearing. Personally I like walking almost as much as cycling.

Another option might be a tandem. Though if you’re looking for a tandem trike, be sure to bring all of your money to the shop.

matrosov

We have different ideas of walking . I have allergy to it from my military days but don't mind it too much if I have a twenty pound backpack fishing gear or a rifle and I'm moving towards a fishing or hunting spot usually involves some brush, mud, woods etc. On a paved surface I just fall into 15-17 minute mile pace in order to get to whatever destination I have in mind. Otherwise on a trail I just go bonkers mentally. She doesn't do mud plus kids like biking so it offers whole family activity I can veer off trail do some offroading with kids like creek crossing or rock dodging and catch up to her on the trail plus some trails go thru little towns for her to look at cute shops and for me and kids grab some ice cream. So I'm trying to keep that family activity going.

Calsun

I would wait for her to decide if she wants to continue riding a bike and not push her to getting any kind of new bike. Not everyone is able to handle a bicyle in other than flat terrain.

When I was doing scuba diving my girlfriends would want to dive as well as they wanted to be doing it with me. About half were not safe diving at depth and would be terrified on night dives. Safer to not do something that is outside ones comfort zone.

shelbyfv

Cycling doesn't suit everyone.

PhilFo 

Perhaps this is what needs to be worked on, rather than sublimating through "dragging her out to the trails."