A Catrike Trail E-Cat accessorized with a Shimano Alfine-8 drivetrain upgrade, Racktime rear rack with integrating basket, phone-mount, and extra mirror using AlphaBENT accessory mounts.
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6 November 2017 - 9:11am
Catrike 700 gets 2018 makeover
Catrike is giving the venerable Catrike 700 racing trike a makeover for 2018 and addressing rider feedback gained over the years.
One constraint that has been a sticking point over the years is simply the 130" ground-shipping limit imposed by UPS and Fedex. In order to keep the length plus girth of the package close to 130 inches, the frame has to be physically limited. And although Catrike takes some liberties with that 130" limit, the fact is that the 700 recumbent trike, with its longer rear fork (to accommodate the larger 622 ETRTO rear wheel) and more laidback seating angle, will always be a large shipping package.
This is the primary reason Catrike has been unable to increase the frame length to gain the extra space to dip the upper seat cross-tube backwards to move it away from the rider's upper back. At our recumbent trike shop, we have addressed this issue for years simply by bolstering the upper part of the seat with large-pore open-cell foam, or with a Ventisit seat-pad.
For 2018, though, Catrike has formally redesigned the seat to include a special cushion on the upper seat covering the cross-bar. The seat now also includes lumbar/kidney side cushions to fit the rider more snugly and work against centrifugal forces in turns.
Catrike is also upping the ante on the specs converting the rear wheel to a modern disc-compatible 24-spoke Zipp wheel, and building it around a wider (142mm) hub with a 12mm through axle for increased stiffness. The new wheels will be compatible with newer 11-speed drivetrain technology.
New changes for the 2018 include:
- new seat mesh incorporating upper support cushion, and side lumbar bolsters
- slight frame change focusing on the upper seat
- 142mm rear wheel with 12mm through-axle
- carbon triple crankset
- rear disc brake for drag and parking usage
- new dropout system to accommodate the rear wheel and disc parking brake
- 11-speed drivetrain compatibility
The new Catrike 700 will also be significantly more expensive than the current $2950 price tag, though how much more is still not known.
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