Hee Hee Hee Haw Haw - Three Men on a Trishaw

 W. G. Ross and G. T. Bishop were chatting at the Shaika Café when A. T. Lane rolled up with the Sociable for the next training session in operating the trishaw as the Montreal Bicycle Club members develop the pilotage skills and learn how to handle the trishaw. 

After a checkout of the condition of the trishaw, a brief demonstration of the menu choices on the display unit on the handlebar and trying to figure out how the 'walk assist' works, A. T. announced that the goal for today would be to go on to the Champlain bridge.

A. T. showed off the new magic foam cushion he had acquired to make the ride more comfortable for the passenger and then elected to be the first passenger with G. T. manning the pedals and W. G. riding shotgun on his own bike.

We headed to the de Maisonneuve bike path and then south on Decarie to pick up the St. Jacques path. This time we tried going on the sidewalk to pass under the rail line instead of the narrow, raised bike lane though G. T. found it just as narrow in some spots as the bike lane but at least the trishaw was not at risk of having a wheel go off the curb.

At the St. Jacques bike path, A. T. and W. G. switched places as we headed towards the Lachine Canal.

Passengers can be drafted to participate in rides by having them push the button at intersections. 

This would be a practical choice, as well, since the location of the buttons is not always designed for cyclists so the trishaw operator might have trouble manoeuvring the trishaw close enough to reach the button without getting off the trishaw or would be putting the front of the trishaw to close to or into the road in order to reach it. Something to consider, especially at intersections where the pedestrian/cyclist signal does not activate unless the button is pushed. Plus, the trishaw operator has to think about the movement of the trishaw from the sidewalk/path onto the road where there is a substantial bump to traverse, which is best achieved with both front wheels at the same time rather than one and then the other causing an unpleasant rocking of the passenger seat.

The everyday occurrence of a vehicle stopped in the bike lane requires extra vigilance as the trishaw takes up more space when going into the road.

 Once on to the Lachine Canal, we followed the normal route to Nun's Island without any issue, the trishaw practically riding itself.

Crossing the road at the start of the bridge, required a gentle, slow effort due to the sharp drop between the path and the road but then we were rolling up on to the bridge.

We stopped at the Seaway lookout and W. G. took over for the return journey.

Back in Montreal, we experienced one of the limitations of the trishaw as the long weekend traffic was in full ramp up.

The great advantage of the bicycle being able to move around obstacles is sometimes not possible with the trishaw when there is not enough room or you have to go over the curb because a truck has completely blocked the bike path. Then, you just have to wait until it moves out of the way.

Back at the canal, G. T. took over and A. T. jumped back in the passenger seat for the ride back to the Shaika.

G. T. got the pleasure of taking the trishaw, once again, up the de Courcelle hill, this time with the addition of a detour into the road due to construction blocking the bike lane.

W. G. left us at the de Maisonneuve bike path at Marcil et A. T. took back the trishaw at the Shaika to return it to its parking spot.

Total distance riding the trishaw with a passenger onboard was about 20 kilometers. The battery had gone down about 40%, which makes the range on a charge about 50 kilometers depending on the amount of climbing involved.

Lessons learned

• Make sure you hold on to the trishaw when a passenger is embarking/disembarking to avoid it tipping forward.
• A cyclist as passenger is comfortable when the trishaw is going up to 15 kph but when the passenger is not use to riding, the trishaw operator should keep the speed below 12 kph including when descending.
• You might be able to extend the battery life by turning the electric assist off when going down a hill but you have to remember to turn it back on again each time.
• When stopping at an intersection, try to orient the trishaw so it is ready to proceed to cross the road with both front wheels coming over the edge at the same time. Also, gear down so it is easy to get started again without having to force on the pedals.
• When pedaling and you want to increase speed or to start a climb, it is better to adjust the power assist to give more assistance while maintaining a comfortable pedaling cadence. Don't try to gear down if you are forcing on the pedals as this will grind the gears. Once you have selected the appropriate assistance level, you can then ease pedaling briefly to change gears.
• Forcing too much on the pedals tends to make the trishaw operator rock their shoulders, which transfers to the handlebars causing a zig-zagging motion to the passenger seat and the passenger.
• If in doubt, slow down! When turning, slow down before you start the turn rather than trying to slow down as you begin turning. If it turns out you are going too fast, you will end up not making the turn, for fear of tipping the trishaw and end up going straight or making a too wide turn going into the opposite bike lane or even off the path.
• A. T. has found that the battery sometimes pops out of the holder under the seat. It appears that this happens when riding the trishaw empty and the passenger seat bounces around more than when loaded. Perhaps filling the storage compartment with gear will reduce the chance of this occurring. For now, if the operator finds that the electric assist is not working, check to make sure the battery is still in the holder and secure.
• The extra cushion made the ride much more comfortable for the passenger. 
• It took about twenty minutes to go from the Shaika to the Lachine Canal. It looks like a trip to the Atwater Market from the Westmount Park area would be an excellent excursion lasting over an hour but with a nice stopover at the Market in the middle.

To Do List

• Figure out the Walk Assist function.
• Do a ride with a passenger with the canopy up.
• Canvas for some 'test' passengers for future trishaw rides.
• Create a leaflet that can be handed out by the passenger to people who show an interest during a ride.
• Do a demonstration ride at Westmount Manor and other Seniors Residences.
• Write to specific municipalities to identify problem areas such as lane posts that are mounted in such a way that it constricts the bike lane. e.g. de Courcelle from Ste. Catherine to St. Jacques.

G. T. Bishop