pulling a children's trailer??? [Archive]

freediver

08-25-03, 08:53 PM

I have a new little girl at home, almost 6 months, and am waiting until next spring to start taking her out in a trialer, as I have read that they should be at least a year old before you start riding with them. Has anyone on here started younger than that? I know of some people who have, but they are very quiet about it.

My main question is which bike should I use to tow her, my mountain bike or my road bike? HAvig never done it before I am not sure which way to go. The MT bike is more stable, but slow, adn the road bike would be faster while carrynign a load, but less stable.

Anyway, I am just curious to see what everyone else has come up with.

Thanks,

Jon

Michel Gagnon

08-25-03, 09:10 PM

The bike + trailer assembly is almost more stable than the bike by itself. However, if your road bike is geared like the typical road bike, it doesn't have very low gears. When pulling a child uphill, you typically need 2 or 3 lower gears than what you would use by yourself.

On the MTB, you could improve its speed by installing slick tires instead of knobbies.

Finally, you could try it both ways. MOst trailers are easily moved from one bike to the other.

Regards,

Buzzbomb

08-31-03, 08:40 AM

Why are you worried about max speed when pulling your child in the trailer? That kind of riding is best done on the road, not bike paths and such. I put in twenty miles yesterday with my 4 month old twin boys. We have some foam and towels to prop them up, and they hold their heads up, which I believe is the criteria used to determine when they can be pulled in a trailer. I don't know why they say that anyway, because they sleep a lot of the time anyway. The ride is about socializing with my wife and our friends, not about my average speed, and there is a 10 mph speed limit on the trail anyway (I'm sure I violated that one quite a bit of the time). Use the MTB and put slicks on it. It's got better brakes and gearing for the task of pulling the trailer. My .02.

freediver

08-31-03, 01:34 PM

Not as worried about max speed as I am about pulling it up a hill.
Do you manage to get your infant car seats into your trailier and then pack foam around them? Which trailer are you using?

The things I have read have mentioned a soft correlation between the constant jarrying in the trailer and subtle signs of "shaken baby syndrome". Not enough to cause damage right now, but could impede their academic progress once they hit school age.

As soon as my wife read that she decided we would wait until the baby's one year old to start.

Jon

Michel Gagnon

08-31-03, 09:53 PM

Some of us ride from point A to point B, some of us ride on roads and some of us do long roads. One of the favourite Summer destinations for our children has been Cap-Saint-Jacques, who, Montréalers know, is a nice park on the North-Western tip of the island of Montréal... 35 km away from home (one way) when we take the direct route.
Or riding to church via Côte-des-Neiges and Atwater is a good way to test brakes. One needs a solid rigid bike

BTW, with the "road train" (bike + trailercycle + trailer), I usually ride on flats at 15-30 km/h depending on wind (avg 18 km/h) but I usually limit my downhill speed to 50 km/h if the coast is clear, to the dismay of my youngest child who enjoys fast thrills. With the trailercycle by itself, I go a bit faster.

Regards,

Buzzbomb

09-01-03, 04:36 AM

I have access to some nice smooth bike paths, and unfortunately, that and offroad riding are the only kinds that my wife is comfortable with. I have a Schwinn Joyrider, one of the bigger ones around, and I can't fit two carriers in it, so I glued some foam together and shaped it to cradle the boys. The kids are suspended on a nylon sling, which, in combination with really smooth bike paths make shaking a non issue for me. Check out your local county parks and see what kind of shape your trails are in. It might be doable. My MTB gearing has no problems getting up the hills, even the steep ones.

lamajo25

09-01-03, 09:39 PM

My little girl just turned a year old in June. I have been riding with her in a 2 seated trailer. I like the mountain bike with it personally. A few lower gears make it easier to go uphill (not easy just easier). The mountain bike does feel quite stable though I haven't actually pulled it with anything else. I have been able to do some light trail riding that way also. Very easy to pull through just about anything. As for age, in the trailer as long as the child can sit up on it's own I woldn't worry too much. As you can tell they can fall asleep in any position and not have a problem (but do check on your child frequently). My little girl usually misses most of the ride because she just falls asleep.

Greg

10-26-03, 07:34 AM

Buzzbomb's got it right. As long as the child has control of their head (add the weight of a sturdy helmet) they are good to go. Lower the trailer tire pressure toward the min to add cushion.

I'd recommend using the ATB for the added weight and braking power. Think of it as the equivilant of a station wagon. Bigger, heavier, kids aboard.

The most important thing is to create a environment that the kid(s) will enjoy. Memories of you pulling them to the park, beach, or ice cream parlor will carry with them for the rest of their lives and encourage them to do the same for their kids.

Make it fun.

Bikedud

10-29-03, 02:19 PM

I like pulling my son's trailer with the mtn bike. The gear range helps because we live in a very hilly area but I also prefer the braking ability and upright position of the mtb. I'm not concerned with speed and it's easier to turn and check on the little tike. I try to make the rides entertaining, not too long, and with a fun break in the middle of the ride. We like to ride to the playground about 5 miles from the house. After playing on the playground we may visit the horse farm or go for an ice cream. Unlike many children, my son has never fallen asleep on a ride and he likes to go fast.

2bike4

10-29-03, 03:15 PM

HI freediver,

I started pulling my son in the trailer around 6 months. Unfortunately it was also above 90 degrees out so it did not go so wel for either one of us. (I am extremely out of shape)

Anyway, I used my road bike (no triple, no hills either). I thought the breaking was fine, no problem with gears. I too had him padded with towels, stuffed animals, etc.. I use a burley trailer. The one that can hold two children up to 100lbs in total. I waited to get a performance coupon for bike clubs and got it for 20% off. They are very expensive around here. (Princeton, NJ) I saw one for almost $500.

Again, worth mentioning, make sure the head can support the helmet. I hope this helps.

Stephen

I have a new little girl at home, almost 6 months, and am waiting until next spring to start taking her out in a trialer, as I have read that they should be at least a year old before you start riding with them. Has anyone on here started younger than that? I know of some people who have, but they are very quiet about it.

My main question is which bike should I use to tow her, my mountain bike or my road bike? HAvig never done it before I am not sure which way to go. The MT bike is more stable, but slow, adn the road bike would be faster while carrynign a load, but less stable.

Anyway, I am just curious to see what everyone else has come up with.

Thanks,

Jon

freediver

11-04-03, 11:43 AM

Thanks for all of the replies. I think that I will wait until spring so that she is a year old.

I spent the latter part of the summer rollerblading the bike trails around here with her in a jogging stroller. That went over pretty well so I am sure that she will like the bike trailer.

For the past two months I have out hiking with her in a Kelty kid's pack. She really likes to look around at all of the fall colors and I even get to take the dog along.

Spring's only a few cold months away. :( ;)

Jon

Neil Wheadon

01-15-04, 02:51 PM

Hi from the UK

Wait till 1 year, what's all that about? Our first and second in at 2 months, as have most of our friends who have gone through the Burley phase. We pulled ours on a Tandem.

I'm intrigued, why wait so long, it's certainly our experience that the later you leave it, the less content the child.

;)

dirtbikedude

01-16-04, 06:31 AM

What bike you use will depend on you basically. I use my SS mtb when pulling our trailer. If you have the strength and endurance it is not a problem. As mentioned though, the mtb will be an easier ride since it has the lower gears.

We started our litle one in the trailer at 4 mo. She has already been on trail and on the bike path and enjoys it very much. She hates if we need to stop though. I do avoid the larger hits so we stay mostly on the fire roads which have all been recently plowed. There is only one single track I will take her down and it is extremely short.

As for the bumps, we have a Chariot Cougar trailer and it works great. the susspension is adjustable up to 75lbs so when we go out on trail I set it soft and run lower tire pressures. I am currently building a set of wheels for it that will have 24" Nokian tires on it so it will handle the bumps even better.

:beer:

aerobat

01-16-04, 07:41 AM

HI freediver,

I started pulling my son in the trailer around 6 months. Unfortunately it was also above 90 degrees out so it did not go so wel for either one of us. (I am extremely out of shape)

This points up one other issue with the kids in a trailer, and that's to make sure they have access to water, juice or whatever they usually drink so they won't get dehydrated.

Another problem I found with my granddaughter was that she had a problem with her helmet contacting the back wall of the trailer, making the helmet slide down over her eyes, and being very uncomfortable when she was younger. Some trailers have a shelf behind the child's head so there is more room for the helmet. When she got a little bigger this wasn't a problem.

I like the idea of having an actual destination, such as a playground or ice cream shop. We took the granddaughter to an ice cream shop once and her diaper came off and slid down to her ankles. We had forgotten to bring extras and the sticky tabs no longer worked, so I had to stick the diaper together again with duct tape from my seat bag!

DieselDan

01-16-04, 08:20 AM

Another type of bike to consider is a hybrid like a Trek 7200 or a Specialized Crossroads, upright MTB bikes with 700c wheels/tires.

I had screwed a bottle cage into the side of my son's trailer so he could have access to a water bottle and a place to put one so it doesn't roll away to the foot of the tub.

Use a children's helmet rather then a XXS/XS adult helmet. Children's helmets don't have a point on the back. Same goes for a skate/BMX helmet, but those are too hot to use in the summer.

Don't forget to pack a spare tube for the trailer tires! Usually trailers use a 16"x1.5" or 20"x1.75 tire, your average child's bike's tire. Most trailers, you don't even have to remove the wheel from the chassis. A flat on a trailer is like tripling the weight of your child.

Inflate the trailer tires to the max pressure on the tire's sidewall. This decreases rolling resitance. Some will argue a lower pressure will make for a softer ride for the child. Lubracte the joints in the hitch at regular intrevals with your chain lube.

Carry a long cable, 6'/2m minimum, to lock BOTH the bike AND the trailer, or carry two locks.

PaulH

01-16-04, 09:15 AM

I've been taking my daughter to and from school with an InStep Turbo Elite trailer. The trailer fastens to the bike with a coupler that is attached to the rear axel. The company sells spare couplers, making it possible to set up both of your bikes for towing.

We started at one year. You could check with your pediatrician for guidance here. Buy a child's helmet.

In the winter, a blanket to serve as a lap robe is a good idea. Ours trailer has a plastic front window that stops the wind, and we have never had complaints about the cold.

I'd say gearing is the important part. The trailer ways about 20 pounds. Add in child, diaper bag, and whatever stuff you may want to bring, and even a small child can result in 40 pounds to tow. Hills are where I really notice the trailer.

You could try both bikes and see which you like best. I use my Kettler European commuter bike.

My daughter loves the thing. I'm not sure why she is so wild about it, but I suspect that there are several factors:

Being low to the ground, the sensation of speed must be very great.

The large windows provide a panoramic view.

It's kind of like a rolling tent and fun to just be in.

Paul

Dchiefransom

01-18-04, 01:31 PM

I've only seen trailers pulled by people riding MTBs. I agree the gearing is better for the load. If your trailer has 20" tires, Specialized makes an Armadillo tire in that size, but it might have tread and not be a street slick.That would keep changing flats on the trailer to a minimum.
When the little folk have fun in the trailer, they'll be ready to get their own bikes and go riding when they're older. Enjoy.

calibrate

02-10-04, 02:48 PM

I can't use my Bianchi road bike to pull my Instep trailer. The vice attachment is too close to the wheel and will make contact with the spokes.

I have to use my Mtn Bike which has more space between the chainstay and the wheel.

YMMV.

Txthroop

02-20-04, 09:59 PM

Jakey

02-21-04, 07:59 PM

I've been pulling a Burley trailer (got it used on Ebay) for about a year now and it's great. I'm still amazed at how nimble the bike is with the trailer in tow and unless we're going up a hill I hardly notice it's there--two kids, too! Well, okay, now the kids are bigger and one's almost too big for the seat so I do feel a little drag back there but a year ago it was remarkably easy. I think most facets of trailer life have been covered here but I will go out on a limb and say that we don't even bother with helmets. The awkwardness of the helmet contacting the back of the seat is one reason and the other is that the thing is so darn stable I don't think I could tip it over if I tried. I guess that doesn't eliminate the possibility of getting t-boned by a beer truck but I'm a fairly cautious rider when the guys are in the trailer. Hope your baby turns one year old soon! You're gonna love riding around with a trailer.

I was going to bring this up... I don't put a helmet on my son when he is in the trailer, but at the same time, I won't take him on streets... just paved bike paths in which I hardly ever go faster than about 15mph... I have a helmet for him, but it hits the back of the seat, and causes his head to tilt forward, and hurts his neck (one time it really freaked me out cause he wouldn't straighten his neck for about an hour after we went for a ride....

I am looking at getting a chariot cougar 2, now that we have an 8 month old..

How neccesary is the helmet in that thing anyway? Its essentially got a roll cage and five point harness around them.. I guess the biggest worry would be getting hit by a car, but if you don't put yourself in that situation I don't see the discomfort that they seem to cause (with my trailer and child anyway...) as being worth it...

freediver

03-11-04, 08:49 PM

Thanks for all of the replies that I have gotten so far. My little girls turns a year old next week and we went shopping yesterday. :D

I got her a helmet, but she isn't crazy about it. I wouldn't mind leaving it off of her if I were in a trail only situation- meaning no cars around at all. I am not sure how possible that is and would be interested in how many others make their kids wear helemts inside of a trailer.

I looked at a few different trailers and ended up getting the new Burly De' lite 2004. It has some nice paddin and easy to use rain/sun /bug screens onit. I wanted the most comfortable thing I could find, for my child, figuring that the more comfortable she is the longer I get to ride. ;)

I also put some slicks on my mountain bike since it makes more sense to use that than my road bike to pull a trailer.

Now, I just need some above freezing temperatures to use it in. :D

Jon

freediver

04-07-04, 09:02 PM

After a few trips around the neighbordood, to get used to the whole set-up, we finally got out for a decent ride today- 72 degrees and sunny in Madison!

We went for a 3 hour bike ride using my mountian bike, with slicks on it, and the new, Burley, trailer. The ride normally takes me about 1 hour on my road bike, but we had to stop a few times- crackers, bottle, go down the slide, play in the park, feed crackers to the ducks, ect. I certainly felt like I had a good workout by the end and I know my daughter had a good time from the sounds I heard coming out of the trailer. I am sure I could improve on the time, but I am more concerned with her having a good time right now than I am aobut speed- need to make sure she'll want to go on more rides in the future.

We've got rain, and even snow, in the forecast in hte next couple of days so I don't know when I'll get out again.

Jon

SchreiberBike

04-13-04, 05:10 PM

They do tip!

My daughter likes it when I do jiggle wiggles. "jiggle WIGGLE DADDY!!!" It means I steer back and fast quick, so that the trailer steers back and forth quick. I figured with the wide stance back there she was safe as can be.

On one of the first rides this spring, we did the jiggle WIGGLE quite a few times. One time, as were were coming out of a turn, I began a jiggle and she tipped right over. Scraped the trailer's axel quick release for about 15 feet on the ground and abraded some of the "window" material on the side. Rachel was strapped in tight, all five points and she was none the worse for wear. She was a little frightened, but I tipped the trailer back up and we went on. I made sure we went right to the park and had lots of fun so she wouldn't be afraid next time.

Now I'll be a lot more afraid next time though. I really thought there was more room to spare. Another factor may be that now that she's three-and-a-half, she's taller and that raises her center of gravity.

After I found that she was OK, what I was really afraid of was telling my lovely wife.

VINCENT228

04-17-04, 06:41 AM

I got a instep prowler on EBAY.
I replaced the mtb tires with road tires which made the riding much easier (in more ways than one). I found the mountain bike being used like this was much better than the road bike to pull a trailer.
If you can find one of those "rail to trail" trails use it. Im from CT and were loaded with them.
Its a gret place to get used to the trailer with very little risk of traffic.
HAPPY PEDDLING!!!

freediver

06-21-04, 08:29 PM

We just got back from a weekend on the Elroy/Sparta trail in western Wisconsin.

It was quite a bit of fun, but we had to scale back our biking a little to fit into nap times better. We packed every kind of food/ toy/ book/ blanket we could think of to distract my 15 month old. It worked for a while, but in the end we just need to do shorter rides and let her get out and play more- live and learn.

I use my mountain bike, with thinner tires on it, to pull the trailer. Ther gearing is nice, but I think I need to get a new stem and bars for it so I can be more upright on such rides. The bike is set-up for more off road kind of stuff and I find myself thinking about trading it in for a hybrid, or a cyclo-cross ;), to make it easier to pull- on my back and neck. Seems a pity to have to refit a mountain bike so much just to pull a trailer but it was starting to wear on me a bit.

I got out for a ride today on my road bike, without the trailer, and felt like a million bucks! It wasn't the weight so much as it was the geometry, I've had the bike custom fitted so it feels really nice when I ride.

Suggestions?

Jon

freediver

07-01-04, 07:50 PM

I finally got everthing just the way I want it!

I put a new fork on my mountain bike to make the ride nicer- got rid of the Rock Shock and put on a rigid Surly instead. I also put on a new stem, shorter with a 15 degree rise to it. Finally, I put on new bars with a slight rise to them, as my other ones were flat.

After all these alterations I tried it out tonight and found my riding position to be much more comfortable for pulling the trailer. I am saving all my old parts, like the rock shock and stem, for when the kids grow up and I can go back to mountain biking again- if I'm not too old. ;)

Jon