Having no idea about trikes, a fair amount of internet research was required on what what the right type of trike to buy.   I started this information discovery whilst still in Australia and finding the South African microlight site www.microlighters.co.za provided a wealth of information.

Many of the questions coming to my mind where:

• How far could one travel?
• What type of fuel – could the fuel be easily obtained?
• What was the right engine?
• How much luggage could the trike carry?
• Was it easy to get the license – how much time was needed?
• What sort of maintenance was maintained?
• How much money was needed?
• and importantly – what was the *right trike*

Skipping to the last question, I settled on a Solowings Windlass Aquilla.   The Aquilla is a second generation trike manufactured by Solowings which is an immensely popular trike in South Africa that is still in production which means readily available spare parts – important.

The engine was a difficult one.  Everyone was pointing to a Rotax 912 which is a 4 stroke 2 cylinder engine made in Austria – similar to the BMW 650 GS Dakar motorcycle one that I did the RTW trip in.   As a 4 stroke it consumes less fuel and is more reliable than a 2 stroke as well as being a closed oil system uses far less oil.   However it adds about $10,000 on to the cost as well as being much heavier.

Another option is the 503 which is a cheaper 2 stroke version of the Rotax running at around 50 hp.   I was told from various sources this would be fine, but others that the fuel burn to much as well as being under powered.

The balance was set with a Rotax 582 which is a 2 stroke 65 horse power that a lot of people settle on.    This was a hard decision as anyone with a Rotax 912 says that is the only way to go for a long distance trip like this, but budgetary constraints dictated.  Aside from annoyances from carrying extra oil and also worrying about getting oil, this choice has working out for me so far.

Tires

Tires without a doubt – tundra tires for landing on the sand and other normal African conditions.

Panniers

I replaced the panniers with the trike which were older versions with the latest ones that zip out like modern luggage to provide more capacity.   Definitely a wise choice as even still I am struggling to fit my gear in there.  I have also put a luggage pod on the bottom which provides an extra 35 litres or so.   If you have seen a 35 litre back pack you can appreciate how small that really is.

Fuel

After research it seemed like a larger 100 litre fuel tank would be the choice.   Replacing the standard 50 litre fuel tank with one with more capacity made sense.   I’m still one the edge with this one as most people said just put 2 x 25 litre jerries on the rear seat.  This will allow me to carry them to get fuel and provide flexibility.   Probably the most sensible solution but I could certainly use the rear seat for luggage space.   But then I would still need something to carry the fuel from the gas station to the trike.

Other Equipment

TBA

Tent

Sleeping Bag and Mat

Defence