Touring - painners or trailer

I have done some touring with painners, but would like to try a trailer, but I think the trailer would be to heavy on the hills, whats it going to be.

Both.

Trailer.

Neither. Backpack.

Credit card!

I like my panniers.

Diet Coke vs Diet Pepsi. User preference.

I have done some touring with painners, but would like to try a trailer, but I think the trailer would be to heavy on the hills, whats it going to be.

My trailer weighs in at eight pounds. It's only noticeable on hills really. That said, I'm flogging it as I've had to give up camping.

My trailer weighs in at eight pounds. It's only noticeable on hills really. That said, I'm flogging it as I've had to give up camping.

Tell me more. My BOB weighs over 14 pounds. That's a significant weight, considering that the rest of my camping gear and other gear is probably less than 20 pounds.

Yes, but you should really only consider the difference in weight. When I added up the weights of decent panniers and racks it was very close to the weight of the BOB. The prices were about the same as well so I chose the trailer for the versatility of being able to use it to haul groceries and other things when needed and the fact that on the level or downhill you wouldn't be impaired in any way. Overall, I think it's a wash but since I can also use the trailer with my mountain bike if needed I think the BOB gets the nod for versatility.

i use panniers here as well on self contained and credit-card tours. easier to move, pack, repack, and put in a bike-bag to ship with the bike.
my choice goes to the use of panniers!

For touring, I'd stay away from the backpack unless it was a very short trip (a few hours each day and not more than two or three days total.) Even then I'd think twice. I prefer keeping the weight lower on the bike. I also feel more tired with a backpack than moving a heavy bike. The backpack option is best for commuters who travel short distances with light loads.

Tell me more. My BOB weighs over 14 pounds. That's a significant weight, considering that the rest of my camping gear and other gear is probably less than 20 pounds.


Here you go.
http://www.extrawheel.com/index_en.php

If you live in the UK you're welcome to buy mine. It works well and has only been used once.

Let me put it this way - trailers are very rare outside the USA. The rest of the world tends to use panniers. If the roads are long, straight and flat (as in the USA) then a trailer is fine.

Let me put it this way - trailers are very rare outside the USA. The rest of the world tends to use panniers. If the roads are long, straight and flat (as in the USA) then a trailer is fine.

What about the Netherlands?

For touring, I'd stay away from the backpack unless it was a very short trip (a few hours each day and not more than two or three days total.)

Very true, it was a joke for the most part. People need to learn to use the search function.

Let me put it this way - trailers are very rare outside the USA. The rest of the world tends to use panniers. If the roads are long, straight and flat (as in the USA) then a trailer is fine.

Obviously, you have not ridden Pennsylvania, West Virgina and at least a dozen other states.

Trailer
Whether flat, rolling or over mountains.
I see more and more people using them, both here in the UK, and in Europe.

george

I have done some touring with painners, but would like to try a trailer, but I think the trailer would be to heavy on the hills, whats it going to be.

This is easy: Trailer. The simple fact that you're asking the question, and you plainly state that you'd 'like to try' one, suggests that a small monetary investment is well worth satisfying your curiousity.

Let us know how it works out.

I would tend to agree: get a trailer and try it out. I was curious myself a couple years ago, and decided to buy one to see what it was like. I'd never use a trailer again personally, but at least I got my curiousity out of the way. Now I love my panniers more than ever.

Let me put it this way - trailers are very rare outside the USA. The rest of the world tends to use panniers. If the roads are long, straight and flat (as in the USA) then a trailer is fine.

I've used my BOB quite successfully behind a mountain bike on unpaved roads in Big Band National Park. Anything but straight and flat. In fact, they're extremely rough, twisty, and hilly. My BOB, without suspension) simply rode along behind me with no problems.

Trailer or panniers is simply a matter of personal preference. They each have their pros and cons.

panniers=road
trailer=tail/dirt road

panniers feel better descending on the road

my 2 cent

borrow a trailer if you can, plenty of them out there collecting dust.

I have a BOB trailer and I love it around town. I have never taken it touring because, frankly, I don't carry nearly enough on a tour to justify the extra weight.

Maybe someday I'll do a tour where I'm carrying, I don't know, video equipment or something, and then I'll want to take the trailer.

A lot of beginners way overestimate how much stuff they're going to need on a bike tour and opt for a trailer -- or, worse, get the trailer first and can't help filling it with extra stuff because there's plenty of room for it. So it's probably a good idea to at least start with panniers.

Thanks all you guys, I think I will spend my money on my travels, not on the trailer,