Motorcycle Trike Lifts Off the Ground

Some people think that a modern motorcycle trike is inherently unstable. They are actually thinking of the old 3-wheeler ATVs that were banned. Modern motorcycle trikes came after that with most built on stable Honda Gold Wing platforms that have a low center-of-gravity.

I took a trike training class that had an exercise to show how stable a modern trike can be. Trikes driven in a circle at high speed or making quick 180 degree turns will not tip over. They will possibly lift the inside wheel off the pavement but as soon as the wheel leaves the ground, the power to that wheel stops and the trike returns to the ground.

Here's a very short video I took. The instructor is standing inside the circle as the trike moves faster and faster around him. When the instructor hears a slight slipping sound, he knows that the trike is lifting off the ground. He signals the student so the student can see that the trike then returns to the ground and then the student slows the trike.