Last December, British adventurer Maria Leijerstam became the first person to cycle from the edge of the Antarctic continent to the South Pole. She did so on a custom-built recumbent fat-tired tricycle, made by UK-based Inspired Cycle Engineering (ICE). Well, although there probably aren't many other people who want to do what Maria did, there no doubt are quite a few who'd like a trike like hers. That's why ICE is now offering the ready-for-anything Full Fat.
Maria's trike was based on ICE's existing non-fat-tired Sprint model. The Full Fat is in turn based on her trike, retaining elements such as a heat-treated 4130 chromoly frame, oversized rims and tires, and a variety of off-road components.
The specific components will vary according to individual customers' wishes, as the Full Fat is currently only being made to order. A model displayed last weekend at a recumbent bike trade show in Chicago, however, featured things like ...
- Front and rear elastomer suspension with 4 inches (100 mm) of travel
- Rohloff XL 14-speed rear hub transmission
- Hope FatSno front hubs
- Tektro hydraulic and Avid BB7 disc brakes (front and rear, respectively)
- Parking brake
- Ergo-Flow mesh seat
- 26-inch Surly Clown Shoe rims
- Surly Big Fat Larry 4.7-inch front tires, and a Surly Lou 4.8-inch rear tire
Additionally the frame folds, making the trike easier to transport and store. There's no word on complete trike weight.
ICE co-founder Neil Selwood told us that trade show version of the Full Fat would sell for about US$7,200. If potential buyers were OK with no front suspension and a 27-speed derailleur-based drivetrain, they could get away with paying around $5,400.
Should anyone be more interested in getting an upright tadpole-style fat trike, they might want to check out Standard Bearer Machines' Rungu.
Source: ICE
