If you have decided on a single seat trike, the next decision is which wing to get. The Maverick is tried and true. The latest revision is the Maverick 3. The Maverick wing is well proven and I can strongly recommend it. It has pleased many customers. The Pacer is also a nice wing but it is more specialized, for those who want to go faster but still keep to a single seat trike. The downside for the extra speed will be increased setup time (only a factor if you are trailering instead of renting a hangar), reduced climb angle (not much of a concern except when operating out of very short fields), and extra fuel consumption. The extra fuel consumption is an issue because an ultralight can only have a 5-gallon fuel tank. With the faster wing your endurance will be less even though your range may be greater. So long cross country is limited with the ultralight fuel limitation.
Most people just want to go up and fly around a local area, and either wing is fine for that. Five gallons will keep you going for a couple hours and that is plenty at one time for most people.
The Pacer is a less forgiving wing, which will require more training. The ideal approach would be training with an instructor in a two-place trike, then soloing that two-place trike, then soloing a single seat trike with a Maverick wing, gaining some experience and proficiency before flying the Pacer wing.
Unless you have a definite need for the faster wing, I advise going with the Maverick. And if later, you just have to go faster, we can always take your Maverick back as a trade-in towards a new Pacer. The Mavericks have great resale as they fit what most people want from their flying.
Posted by Michael Percy
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