WASHINGTON — With sweat beading on a hot August morning, Howard Quinn of Catonsville, Md., paced the pavement at Mt. Airy Bicycles in suburban Carroll County, studying recumbent tricycles that he and his grandson, Freddy, could share. After neck surgery, Quinn tires quickly on a bike, and the boy has trouble balancing on a two-wheeler.
“It’s in first gear,” Tom Hill told Freddy, situating him on a seven-gear Delta model priced at $1,399. “Here’s your hand brake.” He sounded like a salesman, but Hill, 61, of Damascus, doesn’t work at the shop. He’s a customer — a frequent customer, having bought three trikes in nine years after undergoing back surgery.
“I like this better. My back doesn’t hurt; my upper body isn’t tired from having to control the bike,” Hill said.
Customer Lynn Carr, 70, a former bike rider and runner, is less enthusiastic. “You really can’t get the same level of aggressive riding as you can on a two-wheeler, just simply because on a two-wheeler you can stand up on the pedals and really get after it,” he said. “Here, you’re sitting.” But riding a trike enables the Mount Airy resident to stay active after two hip replacements and three back surgeries. Carr rides more than 100 miles a week.