They may look ungainly, but the aerodynamic advantages of recumbent bikes and trikes give them an edge – especially if you throw a 4 kW wheel hub motor into the mix. Case in point is the Mark 5 Super from Odyssey Trikes, which boasts a top speed of 60 mph (96 km/h) and a range of 300 miles (480 km) on a single charge.
Using a range of lightweight, 3D-printed parts manufactured in-house, Wisconsin-based Odyssey Trikes asserts that its Mark 5 Super comes with the most comprehensive and extreme electronics and mechanics packages possible to build into an electric trike. With a 750 watt maximum power limit factory set on the controller, this can be tweaked by the owner to deliver maximum power of up to 4 kW and speeds of up to 60 mph (96 km/h). Add an extra cost an auxiliary battery pack, and up to another 105 miles (168 km) of additional range is possible up to the claimed maximum 300 miles (480 km). At lower speeds you can also cover extra distance by using the pedals.
Carrying on from the previous iteration of the Mark 5, (and despite an unsuccessful Kickstarter campaign), the Mark 5 Super sees the 80 V lithium-iron-phosphate battery replaced by a 88 V lithium-manganese pack from Blue Line Batteries.
Motivation is via a 4 kW wheel hub motor driving a 24-in single speed wheel out back, powered by batteries mounted on the frame. The two front wheels are both 16-in with disc brakes.
Standard with an array of accessories, the Mark 5 Super comes with a frame mounted battery, a headlight and taillight package, an APM display cycle computer, a charger and a rear rack with a Topeak rack bag, and a helmet.
With a top-end speed and power output now much higher than other electric recumbent offerings, such as Outrider's Horizon off-road machine or the HP Velotechnik, the manufacturers claim the top-of-the-range Super model is also the most affordable, high-performance alternative vehicle currently available.
"We spent years designing, prototyping and perfecting our trike design ... We got to this level of performance through a variety of new manufacturing techniques, but the most important among them is 3D-printing," said Dustin Herte and Ryan Bass, co-founders of Odyssey Trikes. "All our trikes have around a dozen 3D-printed parts, and this gives us unique engineering abilities and the option to keep the cost a lot lower than our competitors. We are innovators in this sector and are currently developing new 3D-printing technologies that we will share with the world, once they're ready."
Model prices in the 2016 Odyssey range start at US$4,499, with the souped-up Super selling for $9,899 ... with this caveat: "Change this power setting at your own risk! Study and abide by your local law!"
The manufacturers say to expect 45 days between payment and shipping in the continental US, with free freight anywhere in that area.
Source: Odyssey Trikes
I suppose that means you run over every squirrel that crosses you path. How do you stay in your lane? That paint on the asphalt (which is at ground level too! how do you stay on the road?) is at ground level.
What an ignorant comment. And by ignorant, I mean the dictionary definition of not having the facts.
I have been riding a trike for years. No one has ever come close to hitting me for "being far too low to the ground."
Stop spreading FUD.
No, trikes are not unstable in cornering. No more than a diamond frame upright two-wheeler. I take that back. I have never fallen, received a concussion, broken a limb while piloting a tadpole trike. I have many injuries racked up on a UCI approved bicycles. As with any wheeled conveyance, one must exercise caution and not exceed the limitation of the vehicle. I have dumped bicycles, I have seen motorcycles wind up in trees. I have watched automobiles flip over. I have heard of tricyles being flipped while cornering. Always it has been pilot error ... traveling too fast in the 30 mph range while cornering or failing to lean into the corner (many new riders will try to lean out)
No trike I have ever driven has "lightweight bike wheels with standard spokes" that most upright bikes have. Such side stresses are taken into account at the design level. Nearly every trike I have ever driven also uses disk brakes, not rim brakes because the speeds one encounters on trikes make those rim brakes a poor substitute for safety. Emergency braking has never, ever been an issue. Not once have I taken a header. I have had the rear wheel lift off the ground but in only one extreme case, the front boom stopped the trike from flipping over. Can't say as much for my Mountain bike. Emergency braking has indeed sent me into a header.
You have a lot of speculation in your post that bears little semblance to experience. I think you may have done a walk around, made some faulty assumptions and decided, no thank you.
Study up. Stop spreading FUD. Everything you say is misinformation, disinformation, error, and ignorance borne out of an uninformed opinion.
Would I want to take one of mine out at 65 MPH? No way! Would I want to take any bicycles out at 65 MPH? No chance in ever.