Easy Rider

Journalist Chris Dabbs, who is paraplegic, says the revamped Martin Conquest trike provides a head-turning thrill ride

The Martin Conquest trike is a marriage of car and bike technology, with the front end, engine and fuel tank of a BMW R1200R motorcycle mated to parts of the top end of the kit car world.

The Conquest has had a complete revamp since the first prototypes in 2005, making it stronger and lighter. The new package will hit about 125mph flat out and see off most BMW and Mercedes drivers at the traffic lights by hitting 60mph in 7 seconds.

Getting into the riding position is straightforward. A remote control rear ramp allows you to pull yourself up on two rails, then forwards to the “office” where an electronic locking clamp holds you tight. You have to pull a little wheelie to get onto the standard ramp, but electric wheelchair-users can have a longer ramp with a shallower gradient.

You’re now ready to go, and popping down to the shops suddenly becomes a more attractive option, not least because everyone will stop and stare as you ride past – the Conquest has the same presence as a Ferrari or an armoured car!

The view ahead is familiar to anyone who’s ever ridden a bike with throttle, clutch, brake lever and electrics in conventional positions. Gear changing is taken care of by an electronic push-button cluster under the left-hand grip, which includes a reverse.

You sit a lot higher than a conventional bike, so you’re almost as high as a 4 x 4, but the high sides mean you sit “in” the trike, so it feels very snug, and you can have the central channel tailored to your wheelchair width too.

With 536 kilos to manoeuvre and no power steering the Conquest needs a lot more steering input than a motorcycle, but once it’s on the move it lightens up considerably and you can fling it around if you’ve got the shoulder muscles to cope. I was testing it on the same Millbrook banked bowl in Bedfordshire that recently had an Aston Martin car back-flipping for a stunt in the latest Bond movie, but I never felt like the Conquest was going to get me into trouble on the dips, hairpin bends and S-bends of each lap. The brakes are strong but light enough to apply, the traction was great and the sensory rush of the wind, whining gears and brute acceleration took me back to my bike riding days.

The Martin Conquest costs £19,948 and is available on the Motability hire purchase scheme. There are also plenty of options, like occasional passenger seat, flyscreen, six-CD auto changer, metallic paint and luggage racks. Engine 108bhp at 6750rpm; fuel consumption: 40mpg; six-speed gearbox plus mechanical reverse gear.