Introducing the Catrike MAX - Catrikes Newest Model

The cat's out of the bag! There is a new trike making its way across our showroom floor, Catrike's newest model the Catrike Max.

After the Dumont's release three years ago, Catrike has finally engineered a new model of Catrike and we can't wait to tell you all about it. Released May 18th, 2023, this is the Catrike Max! We've been test riding this big guy for a while now and getting a feel for it, and I for one can say that it is a great trike with some awesome additions.

I get calls all the time of people saying “Harold, you're a big guy. What type of trike do you recommend for a 300 plus pound person?” It's always been hard to answer because there really are only a few trikes for the bigger riders. The Ice Adventure HD, and the HD support up to 330 pounds has historically been our favorite. The other trike option has been the Sun USX HD Delta Trike. Otherwise, you'd have to upgrade to a quad like the Fat Cat-4, or the UTCustom eQuad. Not to mention that all of these options are more expensive than your average trike.

The Catrike Max is the best of both worlds. Coming in at $3350 it's over one thousand dollars cheaper than all the other heavy weight options. And its weight capacity is 425 pounds. Which is the largest weight capacity on a trike that we sell.

Along with the increased weight capacity, the Catrike Max also features a wider and taller Villager style frame. With a 34-inch wheel track and a 15-inch seat height it allows for a much roomier and comfortable riding experience than the standard Catrike.

Speaking of comfort, the MAX features the classic Catrike seat which is made of a padded and breathable seat mesh. Providing great riding comfort while still being removable and easily washable. The pad is secured to the seat mesh with velcro so if its too hot you can always take off the padded portion and use the breathable mesh underneath instead

The seat is also adjustable this allows you to customize your trike to fit you more comfortably. The seat angle can be adjusted easily to accommodate your riding style with the quick release brackets on the back of the seat. The stock adjusters allow for the seat angle to be set to any of the four positions from an angle of 47-degrees upright to 57-degrees, fully reclined.

If that range is not enough for you, we also offer our UTCustom Catrike Seat Extensions which are a direct swap and will allow the seat to adjust to about 90-degrees upright and 35-degrees fully reclined.

You may notice these extra tall and out of the way handles on the Catrike MAX. These are the Catrike Exit Assist Bars. Released a couple weeks ago as an additional add-on for any Catrike for an extra $200, they now come stock on the Catrike MAX, at no extra charge.

Similar to our UTcustom Easy Entry Aids, Catrike's Exit Bars provide an easy way of dismounting from a trike, allowing you some leverage to pull yourself out of the seat. Where they differ though is in the placement on the trike. The Catrike Exit Assist Bars are designed to curve out and away from your body, allowing for a roomier cockpit.

These are super great for big and tall people like me, needing a little more assistance dismounting while still having the room to sit comfortably in the cockpit.

All of these aspects combined add up to be the perfect trike for bigger guys like me who still want to get out there and ride!

Catrike has been equipping their trikes with 3x10 gearing as standard for several years, with a triple crank up front and a 10-speed cassette in the rear. With the introduction of the eCat, Catrike has been offering 1x11 gearing and the MAX is the first non-eCat to feature this setup. The MAX comes with a single crank up front and SRAM 11-speed gearing in the rear paired with a bar-end shifter.

This is great if you are planning on equipping your trike with a motor. This 1x11 setup allows for a wider gear range even with a motor attached, unlike the standard Catrike setup which would leave you with the lower-range 10-speed cassette in the rear with a motor.

However, if you are a pedal power only rider we have plenty of gearing options to increase that gear range to your preference. We sell options from Pinion, Rohloff, and Nuvinci. To widen your gear range and tackle anything from large hills to long straight roads.

If you do decide to go with a motor we offer several options here. We have the factory eCat upgrade. It gives you a Bosch Active Line Motor and 400Wh battery. This is a Class 1 eBike Motor with a speed limit of 20 miles per hour. Built in with a torque sensor and gives a natural feeling power assist to your pedaling effort.

We are also now offering the new UTCustom eCat Sport Upgrade. This upgrade includes the Class 3 Bosch Performance Line Sport electric motor, and a 500Wh battery. This motor has a 28 mile an hour limit as opposed to the Active Line Plus’s 20 mile per hour limit. Similarly it has a torque sensor to provide a natural pedal assist, but with a much faster speed limit.

If you are itching for more than just a pedal assist motor we also offer. Bafang motors that come with a throttle and pedal assist. The Bafang motors come in 3 options. 750 watts, 1000 watts, and the Ultra. The Bafang Motor options do not have speed limits, and unlike the Bosch motors, all come with a throttle for electric operation without pedaling. The 750W and 1000W motors use a cadence sensor for pedal assist, which means it measures the rotation of the crank arms rather than the torque placed on them. The Ultra motor option has a torque-based sensor.

We got so excited about these showing up that we decided to build them all up. While this was happening I took the opportunity to spec one out for myself. I'd like to introduce you all to Delilah, my personal Catrike MAX. The highlight of this build is the Performance Line Upgrade with its smooth and quick pedaling boost. Making rides a breeze.

On top of all the fun performance accessories there are also a ton of accessories for comfort and practicality. We have a few of these on Delilah here. Like this integrated lighting kit from SuperNova. It includes the SuperNova Mini 2 in front with 235 lumens of power, and the TL3 Pro Tail Light that acts as a brake light when you stop. This is an awesome lighting set that just plugs into the motor internally running off of your trikes battery

Other addons include Bottle cages so you can stay hydrated on your rides. Headrests to provide more neck support and comfortability. A plethora of lights to choose from with all different levels of brightness and pricing. Racks to install on the rear of your trike for more storage space. Trike mounted bags for even more storage space. Tons of different pedals to accommodate your riding style and needs. Equipment for trike upkeep and maintenance, like air pumps, helmets, maintenance tools, and so much more. We also have Fenders to keep debris away from you while riding.

That's just the basic add-ons that we offer. We have so much more to get you all the things you need to make your trike experience the best it can be!

So, what did Catrike do to increase the weight capacity? The answer lies in the specifically engineered frame supported by wider and stronger wheels. The MAX looks just to be a wider Villager, but there more underneath than meets the eye.

If we take a look underneath we can see at the base of the seat there is a horizontal bar called the cruciform. In comparison to the Villagers cruciform the MAX’s is wider and thicker. Providing a stronger and more sturdy trike frame that increases its weight capacity.

At each end of the cruciform there are also the front wheels which also play a part in this stronger build. Each wheel is fashioned with a high quality rim that is wider and stronger than your average Catrike wheel.

On these wider rims, you've got to have a wider tire. The Catrike MAX features three Schwalbe big apple 20x2 tires equipped as stock unlike the usual Catrike tires which are the Schwalbe 20x1.5 Racer Tires. These upgraded Big Apple tires allow for a wider wheel with built in suspension. These are perfect for your everyday urban use on roads and light trails!

If the Big Apples aren't enough for your endeavors, fear not, we offer may 20-inch tire upgrade options that we can use to customize your trike for any terrain. Maybe you want a faster trike built for road use, in that case we can swap out the MAX’s rear wheel and replace it with a 26 inch wheel giving you a higher top speed.

If you want an even sturdier vehicle with an even higher weight capacity, in proper Utah Trikes fashion we will turn your Catrike MAX into a quad. Specifically the Cat-4, distributing the weight to 4 wheels instead of 3 it creates a more stable and strong ride.

And if you want even more wheelbase and better off roading capability we can swap out the tires on any of these conversions to be fat tires, converting it to our UTCustom Hot Rod quad, Catrike Annihilator, Fat Cat V3, and even our Fat Cat 4 quad!

The customization doesn't end there either. If you aren't content with any of the eight Catrike stock colors you can check out our UTCustom color shop on our website. There you can browse over forty colors that we can powder coat your trike to make your trike truly your own! Like I did with Delilah here

We may be called Utah Trikes, but we offer worldwide shipping. Allowing you to get a trike even if you don't live in Utah. We ship our trikes fully assembled, so you can be out riding minutes after delivery. If you want to make the trip to Utah (Which we highly recommend) you can always come and pick up your trike here in Springville, and tackle some of our local trails trying out your new trike the same day. Depending on where you live shipping rates may vary.

The Catrike MAX is the perfect combination of comfortability and strength. If you are a larger rider or just want a wider and more sturdy ride then this is definitely the trike for you!

I hope you all are as excited as I am about this new addition to the Catrike lineup! A new heavyweight trike is something we here at Utah Trikes have been looking forward to for a long time. Let us know what you guys think about this new addition in the comments below! We would love to know what you think about all the new options here at Utah Trikes.

Remember to relax, spin, fast and ride trikes. I'll see you next time.