by Mark Smiley
It is the fastest, coolest, most beautiful trike in the history of trikes and it turns out that it is perfect for community policing according to the Glendale Police Department. The Department has already purchased and is employing one of these beautiful vehicles in day-to-day police work. It’s called a Can-Am Spyder Roadster and it goes up to 125 miles per hour and performs 0-60 mph in just 4.5 seconds.
The three-wheeled motorcycle is manufactured by Canadian company Bombardier Recreational Products better known for their work with snowmobiles and jet skis. The vehicle has a single rear drive wheel and two wheels in front for steering, similar in layout to a modern snowmobile. In fact, it rides more like an ATV or snowmobile rather than a typical motorcycle. The futuristic-looking three-wheeled vehicle, equipped with state-of-the-art radar and camera systems, has been on the prowl since April. More are on the way.
Residents love to stop Glendale police officers riding the Can-Am Spyder to admire the vehicle and talk about its attributes. Just don’t call the vehicle a “trike” to an officer’s face as the Glendale Police are a little touchy about what they deem is a pejorative word for their pride and joy.
With the Riverwalk concept on the horizon (now known as Glendale 180), Captain Mike Gross looked for alternative ways to patrol the area which will be heavily pedestrian. The department has bicycles in its fleet but needed something faster that could still maneuver through tricky terrain, especially from Colorado Boulevard to Cherry Street. After testing a variety of different modes of transportation including electric motorcycles and segways, Gross found a rental company in Sheridan that had the Can-Am Spyders.
The time required to train the officers in the operation of the vehicles is less than traditional motorcycles. The training is held at the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s track. The motorcycle license endorsement is still required in order to ride these new vehicles. “This gives us an alternative to a patrol car,” said Chief William Haskins, Glendale Police. “We train our officers in one half day as opposed to the two weeks of motorcycle training.”
The normal two-wheel motorcycle became a hazard to police officers in Glendale. Approximately 50 percent of officers going through the two-week training would “graduate” and become certified. Chief Haskins points out that shorter statured officers could not place their feet firmly on the pavement with the motorcycles. A fair amount would sustain injuries that would shelve them for an indefinite period of time. In contrast the anti-lock braking system allows the Spyder to stop on a dime making it safer for officers to ride.
The Police Department has sold its last motorcycle and you will not find any more on the streets. Currently, there are 27 sworn in officers on the force and 23 of them are eligible to ride the new Spyder.
Glendale is the only police department to have such a vehicle in Colorado, and is one of only a handful in the entire country to utilize them. Branson, Missouri, has two in their fleet and they are the only department in Missouri with them. The police chief in Branson, Kent Crutcher, says the vehicles “offer better stability on the hills of Branson, and better safety ratings than traditional two-wheeled motorcycles.” Glendale’s police chief’s main focus and mantra is to “take officers out of the metal box and have them be more approachable.”
“O.K., O.K.” Police Chief Haskins conceded at the end of the Chronicle interview. “If you want to call it a ‘trike’ you can call it a ‘trike.’” He went on to explain, “It was Shakespeare who correctly noted in Romeo and Juliet that a rose by any other name still smells just as sweet.”