Alt Bike Culture - Bike hauler? One bike towing another

Hi all.

I've got my commuter bike built up and getting close to finishing my hardcourt polo bike. So I was thinking...

My polo bike will have a ridiculous fixed gear ratio that works out to about 50 gear inches (20T cog, 30T chainwheel), which kind makes it a PITA to ride *to* the match. Seeing as how I have a perfectly serviceable commuter ('87 Raleigh Technium 440 I swapped to STIs, 7sp drive-train, 700c wheels, plus rear rack and panniers) it occurred to me that there must be a way to build a "trailer" of sorts that would allow someone to tow along another complete bike behind them. Sure I could strap it to the front of a bus and pay $3 round trip, but WTH, why ride when you can RIDE?!

So I thought I'd put this post out and see if anyone has come up with a novel approach to towing one bike behind the other? The commute would be approximately 8 miles each way along some hilly and curvy city streets (READ: garbage pavement :mad:). I have a rear rack and panniers, so I can't just try and add the polo bike's forks' dropouts to the rear Quick-Release on the commuter since it wouldn't clear. My initial thought was a long skinny capital H (about 4 inches wide and 3 feet long) with one side clamped onto the QR of the commuter and the other end on the QR of the polo bike. For this to be feasible, I'd probably have to lock the bars somehow so it couldn't steer itself while in tow. :ride:

EDIT: Oh, and the polo bike is an '81 Schwinn Traveler with 27" wheels and it's a fixie. Both frames have a 35" standover, so the dimensions are about the same.

Is this plausible? Are there any other solutions to this problem? TIA!

http://www.trail-gator.com/accessories.htm

Something along the lines of a trail gator comes to mind. Solid link from seat post of tow bike to head tube or bars of bike to be towed. Use a big loop of velcro around rim and downtube of towed bike to keep wheel centered.

My Worksman cruiser is geared 2:1 which gives me 52 gear inches. That seems low, but if you just take it easy, it's actually a pretty rideable ratio, and helps out on the hills. Just ride 12-15 mph instead of 18-20 or whatever. The trailer might slow you down that much anyway.

Zip-tie a quick release front hub to your rear rack. Instant bike-hauler. Polo bike fork goes on that hub, strap the polo front wheel to the frame and you're all set.

zip-tie a quick release front hub to your rear rack. Instant bike-hauler. Polo bike fork goes on that hub, strap the polo front wheel to the frame and you're all set.


+1

I discovered that I could tow a bike with another bike that had a sufficient rear rack. With bungies and strips of innertube, or a piece of protective foam.

It has a tendency to endanger the paint, but that is solved if you put rubber or foam between various scratch prone surfaces.

Would be something very low budget with high reliability if done right. Doing it right is difficult to describe though. Sound like something you could use?

Zip-tie a quick release front hub to your rear rack. Instant bike-hauler. Polo bike fork goes on that hub, strap the polo front wheel to the frame and you're all set.

^^ This is what I'd do for occasional use.

If I was hauling a bike on a regular basis, I'd spring for a $10 truck bed fork mount (http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/14572-255_SETHC6-2-Accessories-38-Racks/Sette-Hitch-It-Bike-Mount.htm) and attach it to my rear rack. Strap the polo bike's front wheel to my backpack, maybe toe-strap it to the polo bike.

you can do what mike flanigan of ANT did to deliver his local customers' bikes via bike: convert a kid's trailer to a flatbed trailer, and attach a car rooftop bike mount (like a yakima steel head or equivalent): Bike delivery by bike (http://antbikemike.wordpress.com/2008/07/07/bike-delivery-by-bike/)

you could bolt one of these to your rack


http://www.nashbar.com/nashbar_photos/500/AG-TR1-NCL-ANGLE.jpg