It’s no secret that geeks like the things that make us happy. Sometimes, it’s the powerful feeling of wielding technology only dreamed of in our youth. Sometimes, it’s grabbing the joys of our youth and diving into the innocent happiness that is oh-so-difficult to recapture. I rarely have the chance to do the latter, so when I found the 24″ RockPoint Adult Trike, on the Kent.bike website, I had to have one.
As a kid, I loved my trike. It was everything I wanted from a toy. It was durable, stable, brightly colored, and exactly the right size. As an adult, I’m a tad too big to hop on a 16″ Big Wheel, but with great size comes great opportunity, right? I’ve seen other trikes, many of which were too small for me, despite being “adult” sized. Most of them had only a single gear, and were just lackluster in their own right. I wanted something more, and I found it.
Kent’s RockPoint Trike has 24″ rims, a highly-adjustable seat, and 7-speed shifters. The seat has a back, which is large enough to be supportive when I’m tackling a hill, and small enough that it doesn’t leave a huge sweaty spot on my back. It reminds me greatly of the little backs on a Big Wheel, so it’s a nice touch, for me. Behind the seat is a large basket, totally big enough for a trip to the store, or a comfortable way to carry my backpack on hot Arizona days.
One of my favorite things about the 21st century, of course, is at-home-delivery. If you order a trike, prepare to receive a whopper of a package. Also be prepared to assemble it on the spot. You’re not going to carry it far.
Opening the box was an adventure of packing materials. You’re going to need only one tool – something very sharp. My handy KnifeArt pocket knife saw a lot of action as I hacked my way through the pile of zip ties holding the whole thing together. A pleasant surprise was the pair of tools included – a reversible Phillip’s/flathead screwdriver and a multipurpose wrench. Once I cut them free, I needed no other tools.
The assembly was quick and easy. The instructions were easy to follow, and the two tools covered every need. The frame of the bike came with the rear tires attached. The front tire, handlebars, seat, and basket were all loose, but easy to attach. I did it without aid or hurdles. Once it was assembled into a single unit, it occurred to me that I didn’t have my bike-tire air pump available. I tested the tires with some degree of hesitance, only to find that the pressure was perfect.
Test-ride! I should note that I’m not a cyclist. After a brain injury (a long time ago), I forgot how to ride a bike, and I’ve never really got the knack of it again. (Kent is also a big, big advocate for cycling helmets, with good reason, believe me!) After a short struggle to get the rhythm of pedaling down, I was speeding along. Can I just add that the turn radius on this thing is amazing? ‘Cause it is. The ride is smooth, and the seat is comfortable.
I live in a very pedestrian-oriented area, so triking around has been very nice. Thanks to the 7-gear design, I can ditch the roads for the trails with little difficulty. Of course, any seasoned athletic cyclist would likely chuckle at the curved top-tube. This doesn’t bother me, of course, because a trike isn’t for competitions or athletic trails. I get exactly what I want from my trike, and that’s more than I expected, to be honest.
To store it, I turned it up on end. I didn’t think it’d be a good idea to suspend the heavier frame of a trike the way some folks hang their bikes, so standing it up was the better option, IMO. If I tip it a full 90-degrees the basket will hit the ground, so it’s not perfectly perpendicular but it’s still an efficient and aesthetic option.
Thanks to an easy-to-adjust seat, everyone in the house can ride the Rock Point trike. We use it for everyday tasks like picking up the mail and taking out the trash, both of which require us to leave the pedestrian road our house faces. The basket is big enough to carry several packages when needed, which is more useful all the time, thanks to online ordering.
Overall, I think the Rock Point trike is a fantastic creature. I challenge anyone to ride one and not feel the slightly-silly joy of riding a trike. The high quality everything leaves me unable to bash any aspect. To be honest, I was a bit worried I’d feel ridiculous riding a trike, but my neighbors think it’s great fun, and I have no regrets.
Thank you to Kent, who provided a Rock Point Trike for review purposes. Rave review totally my own opinion, of course!
