Reverse Gear Blog

We wrote about our first experience cycling in Florida on February 1st. By then we were in the Tampa Bay area and planning to do the Pinellas Trail. Weather and flat tires conspired against us - so we only caught glimpses of that trail as we drove by sections close to the highways or bike shops in the area. Then we moved on and stayed near the  Withlacoochee State Park, at the recommendation of Pete whom we met through one of the Florida recumbent forums. We liked the area so much that we stayed a month to ride the Withlacoochee Trail and attend the Catrike Rally on March 6 and 7.  The weather remained cool with most mornings just above freezing. But we had finally decided that we would not allow weather to keep us cabin-bound, that is hibernating in the RV.
We rode the section of the Withlacoochee Trail from the Sandy Oaks RV Resort  in Beverly Hills to the town of Istachatta. We did several variations of this trip or sections of it. We rode it:  with Pete as a guide, by ourselves, with fellow RVers from Sandy Oaks and also with the Catrike Rally ride sponsored by Regis and Cindy of Hampton’s Edge. The ride we most looked forward to was the Moonlight Ride organized by Hampton’s Edge on the Saturday closest to the full moon each month. Since the trail is normally closed after dark, this was going to be unique. So we donned our thermal long-johns, our Moonah and  Woolybutt bottoms and lots of layers, including down vests on top. We found our ski gloves and winter toques. And off we went to the shop at 6:30 pm. But alas no-one else showed. So instead, we joined Regis and Cindy and some locals at the pizza restaurant that would have been the destination for the ride.  We left before their next Moonlight Ride but we hope the weather improved for them. If planning to be in the area, check out Hampton’s Edge Trailside Bicycles for information on rides and trails or drop by their trailside location and  say hello. They now carry REVERSE Gear and KangaTek bags too.
Another trail we rode with the RVers from Sandy Oaks was the canal ride near Crystal River to Gulf of Mexico. It was a short flat ride that was perfect for the cool and windy day we had.
On the weekend of March 6 and 7, we attended the Catrike Rally. On Saturday morning about a hundred Catrikes, and a few hanger-ons like us, gathered at the park on Lake Apopka in Winter Garden. The group self-divided into 3 sub-groups to cover varying distances of the West Orange Trail. Then we all returned to Winter Garden for a bite to eat before descending on the Catrike factory for a tour. Before the tour started everyone enjoyed sunshine, refreshments and exhibits in the parking lot and Paulo Camasmie explained the technology, research and testing behind Musashi, the new Catbike. The next day, Hampton’s Edge organized a ride of the Withlacoochee Trail for any riders staying in the area. About sixty people attended and went for lunch at Frankie’s Grill where REVERSE Gear had a draw for a free jersey. It was an impressive sight on both days to see dozens of trikes wending their way down the trails. We would like to thank Regis and Cindy for their hospitality and for dinner where we met Larry Varney from Bentrider Online (see Larry`s review of the Greenspeed jersey). This ride concluded our stay and our cycling in Florida - for this year.
We had so much fun and we look forward to visiting this area again.