At the invitation of TerraTrike, Recumbent Journal spent a day with some of TerraTrike’s top dealers and a whole lot of new 2011 product (that we can’t talk about).

Dealers from Washington, Utah, New Jersey, New York, Kentucky, Illinois, Oregon and other locales converged on the TerraTrike headquarters in Kentwood, MI for the purpose of scoping out upcoming products and determining which they want on their show floors this year.

In addition to that, dealers had an opportunity to provide feedback to TerraTrike on topics like distribution, technical improvements, and TerraTrike’s possible expansion into tangential markets.

A topic of interest to Recumbent Journal was the presence (or lack thereof) of TerraTrike at traditional bike shows like Interbike. The explanation was simple: the years they did go, they were passed over by so many of the show attendees that it wasn’t worth the money. Owner Jack Wiswell and marketing director Jeff Yonker stated that flying dealers (and press – both Recumbent Journal and ‘BentRider Online were present) into Kentwood was far more cost effective for a far more targeted audience than the expenses and hit or miss lead generation associated with exhibiting at a bike show.

A full day was spent discussing all manner of items of interest to dealers, but it was evident that the ride demos on TerraTrike’s indoor test track were the highlight of the dealer day. Dealer after dealer waited for their turn with each new product. Some rode around sporting familiar trike grins, others took a more clinical approach, running the track three or four times, braking hard, testing the tipping limits, paying attention to every detail.

By the end of the day, everybody had a good feeling for which products were their favorites, and opinions ran the gamut.

But of course, Recumbent Journal is not at liberty to provide any details of TerraTrike’s new products. We can say, however, that recumbent enthusiasts should prepare to be shocked. TerraTrike has demonstrated with the Rover that assumptions were made to be broken, and their lineup for 2011 continues along that path.

Please note the use of the word “path” in no way implies anything about the TerraTrike Path. If it did, we would surely hear from TerraTrike’s lawyer.

Read the whole article here