Touring - have youused trailers, BOBs, etc. for extended touring?

i've been going back and forth about buying a touring bike, but having bought two bikes in the past 5 months already, i'm not so sure...

i absolutely love my specialized allez elite and want to tour with it...but i don't think i want to rig up a rack and panniers as it's not designed for touring.

what are the drawbacks to trailers? aside from the obvious fact of having to pull extra weight, are there any significant performance issues? any stress on the bike? any reason why i shouldn't/wouldn't want to do this?

also, does anyone make a really little one? i don't need more than 2500 cu in of room...

i should also mention: i'm talking about 5-7 day tours, with lots of hills. (rocky mountains). half motels, half camping.


oh and uh, how do you get over the visual issue? i mean, my bike looks cool. i'm afraid my bike with a trailer will make me look like someone's grandpa. (NO offense to grandpas. i'm just not ready to look like one, that's all!)

oh and uh, how do you get over the visual issue? i mean, my bike looks cool. i'm afraid my bike with a trailer will make me look like someone's grandpa. (NO offense to grandpas. i'm just not ready to look like one, that's all!)

LOL-- :D Sorry Mark, I can't answer your questions about trailers, as Im thinking of getting one myself. But I just had to respond to the above... Get over yourself, "Grammpy"! If you're so concerned about the vanity of you or your bike...then maybe bike touring is NOT for you...hahahaha. And if you're anything like the rest of us: Whatever you choose- leave your mirror and "image" at home...Get out and tour baby! Booya. :)

I ride with panniers and racks, but have travelled with guys who use BOB trailers. If my bike didn't have the necessary braze-ons and eyelets, I would definitely go with a trailer.

The biggest problem I've seen is that everything is in one big bag. I like having multiple bags and pockets to organize my gear.

The big advantages that trailers have are: 1. they make it possible to tour on a bike that won't accomodate racks, and 2. they provide a sort of "kickstand" for your bike. That is you can jackknife the bike and trailer to make them stand up.

I don't think handling is a great issue with a BOB trailer. I'm sure it affects handling differently than panniers, but probably not to a greater degree.

A concern I'd have would be the long steep 50 mph descents you'd face in the Rockies. I'm not sure what a trailer would do in a situation like that, especially if you had to lock up the brakes. Maybe someone who has ridden in that situation can say?

Buy a tandem and arange your bags so they look like a stoker. :rolleyes:




Sorry

i've hauled a bob for about 25000 miles, both with and without additional
panniers, on gravel and road, and over hills (rocky mtn nat. park). don't
think i'll ever tour without again. handling seems better than with bags,
no longer feel so top-heavy. yes, there's the drag, but you get used to
it. actually evens out due to the decreased wind resistance.

top speed with a bob so far is 54 mph in the ozarks. no loss of control
or stability.

i no longer use a rear rack, other than for the sleeping bag. takes so much
weight off the rear, less chance of spoke problems. i use front bags to carry
stove and food, and hang them at night.

you can carry all the stuff you'll ever need, which can be a drawback if you're
not selective. you can carry 5 gallons of water in 2-liter bottles. pack size
of a tent is no longer an isssue.

use color-code mesh draw-string bags to separate items inside the large bag.

for that cool visual effect, i replace the yucky orange safety flag with a
12"x18" marine-grade flag. you got your skull 'n crossbones, your
semper fi flag, your rebel flag, or my favorite - black skunk on a yellow
field.

I've toured with both full panniers and a trailer. I prefer the way the bike handles with a trailer (B.O.B.) One negative of a trailer is downhill handling. I use to ride downhill very fast with my trailer (50+ MPH) and never got worried. I did this for several years. It only takes one time! I was touring in the Yukon, descending the continental divide about 45 mph when the trailer started oscillating back and forth very rapidly and pulled me over. It is not fun crashing at that speed; lots of bruising and road rash. The manufacturer suggests a top speed of 35 mph and I now stick to that rule.

I have an interesting hypothesis about the oscillation. My crash was on pavement. Since then I've ridden the Great Divide Trail with my trailer. It seems to me that the oscillation doesn't occur on dirt, possibly because of extra friction or the fact that the trailer is bouncing around more than on pavement. My top speed on dirt has only been 40 mph with the trailer so I'm not sure if the oscillation might occur at higher speeds.

I find the fact that every goes into one bag an advantage over panniers. I find the trailer much easier to organize that panniers.

Jeff

thanks for the input; sounds like a trailer's the way to go...

only one problem: now i have no excuse to buy a touring bike. maybe i should start another thread: "reasons to buy a trailer AND a touring bike."

Buy a cross bike and youll be set....some even have braze ons for racks and fenders...my does not so I use the bob ibex for touring

I had thought about getting a trailer, but I decided it would be a bit much behind a tandem. The concept of riding a rig over 12 feet long doesn't appeal to me.

Doc

I've done MTB riding with a non-suspension BOB over rough jeep roads in Big Band National Park. Lots of rocks, ruts, loose sand, steep hills, etc. Once you get used to the sluggish handling of the bike and trailer, you just forget about it and go. The BOB bounces around but it's reasonably stable and no problem.

The biggest problem with a BOB is packing too much stuff in the big bag. On my last trip, I replaced the bag with an internal frame backpack so I could ride then hike. A full size backpack fits real nicely on a BOB.

4 of us went on a 17 day tour this summer. One guy had a trailer. He really liked it. To me it was just a pain in the ass. Just stuff like hooking it up and I think he ended up bringing a ton more gear just because he could. It convinced me that panniers are the way to go, at least for me.

I thought it looked cool tho....

great idea supcom! my first "big" tour will be denver to moab and back and i want to do a lot of exploring the hills on the way...backpack + trailer should be perfect! not to mention that it'll make me feel a lot more secure about stops...i can lock up the bike and take all my stuff with me...

i hate the idea of hauling a 15 pound trailer to carry 20 pounds of stuff, but then i think i'd hate more having to keep a constant eye on my bike and loaded paniers anytime i stopped somewhere...

i am going to get a bob because them i can be fully independent for a period of time, instead of having to go into the cities or towns just to get supply everyday which is quite dangerous with all the big cars and heavy traffic, and thieves! but haven´t decided yet as to which to go for, yak or ibex?

Dammit people, you are really really making me want to go get a touring bike and trailer and just bail on my job and go touring. I guess as impractical as that would be, maybe it's better my knees would not tolerate it right now :( (assuming they get better eventually). I've been idly planning a tour for months now, and I really like the idea of a nice big backpack on one of the trailers.

To anyone who can do it now, best of luck and have fun!

On my last trip, I replaced the bag with an internal frame backpack so I could ride then hike. A full size backpack fits real nicely on a BOB.

Dang!...I like that idea.

re bob

or "wee boab" as our trailer is known as

have used it on the tandem for years
it coped with a nova scotia to boston tour
also a slovakia poland tour http://img76.exs.cx/img76/5634/polandavatar.jpg

the only problem is TAKIN TOO MUCH GEAR

from a wheelbuilder i know he says the rims and hub on the rear wheel suffer a lot of lateral force
i dont know too much regarding this to comment

When my kids were younger I used to carry them in the trailer, two at a time, and my kis were always big and heavy for their ages (an apple never falls far from teh tree). Typical loads were about 160 lbs (well over the recommended limit). My bike was a Scwinn le Tour II with a mountain crank 48-38-28, and an Ultegra Cassette that went up to about 28 (can't or won't remember). I never had any problems with the trailer, including on modest hills. One time I tried pulling it with a mountain bike with lower gearing and got an unexpected wheelie in a short gear. If you are not particularly flush with cash you might look for a used kids' trailer and load it up. you won't have any problems.

We used to blow out spokes with an old moutain bike and trailer. With a real touring bike & overloaded trailer......... no broken spokes yet (10 years or so).

1 week tour with motel half the time? definitely, rack. it's just lighter and simpler. you'll feel more free. and in such a brief period, you certainly won't need much. i've done tours just as you described with only a handlebar bag, using a thin fabric hammock for sleeping.

some first-time tourer quickly become last-time tourer as well because of the sheer rigor of the venture. spending a big wad upfront before trying a couple of short tours might be regrettable.

as you can see, some of the tourers on this forums have done serious miles, enough to put them in the professional class if this were a "commercial sport". you're getting advice from the equivalent of sponsored professional cyclists. take their advice with a bit of salt.

my longest bike tour lasted over a year, my shortest five days.

another thing to keep in mind, a spanking new touring bike, bags, gear, & rack/bob get a lot less respect than you would suspect. "bling-bling" value is not high on the serious tourer's list :)

have a great tour!

lighter and simpler of course, but then also more limited to where you can go. i wouldn´t try doing gobi without a trailer, well, of course it´s also possible, but you have to follow the water everyday, instead of having the ability to venture "into" it.

I have used a child trailer for a child and for large cargo runs. The child trailer has more wind resistance than a cargo trailer, I know, but I o prefer touring with panniers anyway.

A few issues:
- On a stable bike (aka touring bike), you need about 5 minutes to get used to how the bike handles.
- A single wheel trailer such as the BOB tends to induce shimmy at high speed. Not really an issue with a very rigid bike (like a tourer or hybrid), but definitely an issue with a more flexible bike. IOW, a single-wheel trailer may not be the best if you ride a high-zoot road bike.
- A double-wheel cargo trailer (24-26" wide) takes a little bit more room than you take anyway. But there are thee wheels that track on the ground, which is a problem in snow, mud, or on other places with really rough pavement. This is the most stable configuration.

More info could be found at :
– Adam K (http://adamk.ca)'s website. He toured with a trailer and with panniers, and seem to prefer panniers ;
- Alex Wetmore's (http://phred.org/~alex/bikes) bikepages. As far as I know, he tours with panniers, but has used single-wheel and double-wheel trailers for carrying stuff around town. A primer on issues with both types.
- Crazy Guy On A Bike (http://crazyguyonabike.com) website. In the equipment reviews, you'll find list of people who tour with panniers and of those who tour with a trailer. If you read their comments, you might find whether or not they would apply to your situation. Basically, there is no right or wrong set-up. Just one that will work better for you.

Stever-
That looks pretty much like our potential setup. We're on a Cannondale RT & considering a BOB. Though I'm also considering homebrewing a trailer. Regarding 'takin too much gear,' do you camp or stay in hostels/ motels/ etc? Seems like for 2 folks a tent & a couple-three days of food, the BOB is gonna fill up quick.




have used it on the tandem for years
it coped with a nova scotia to boston tour
also a slovakia poland tour http://img76.exs.cx/img76/5634/polandavatar.jpg

the only problem is TAKIN TOO MUCH GEAR