Originally Posted by
Newspaperguy
On my last short bike tour, just over a week, I used a Burley trailer to haul my gear. On most trips, I've used panniers.
The trailer handled admirably and I often would check to see if it was still behind me. The weight was there, but no handling issues. The trailer also meant I did not have to worry too much about balancing the load, which becomes more important when using panniers. The biggest drawback is in trying to load the trailer in a bike box. Using a trailer also requires carrying spare tubes for it, since the trailer does not accommodate the same size tires as a bike. Oh, and it's also easy to pack way too much onto a trailer.
The panniers will affect the handling a little, but then everything's on the bike. It's also a lot easier transporting the bike without a trailer instead of a bike and a trailer.
I'm interested in which option you prefer and why.
I do both.
2 small front panniers and a Burley Travoy at the back.
Jim Shubert once said..
"It is somewhat counterintuitive that putting weight on the bike’s steering would improve the bike’s handling, but it most certainly does. For proving this, we owe thanks to Jim Blackburn, the since-retired founder of Blackburn Designs."
The small panniers at the lowest point provide little aerodynamic drag, but improves steering especially climbing and downhill descent. I use the Burley Travoy to carry the rest of the camping gear. So far, it's stable and does not effect bike handling at all. As far as I am concerned, I'm riding a bike with 2 front panniers. Headwind performance is better than 4 panniers system as the trailer is drafting me. The small aero penalty on the front panniers is very negligible. No rolling resistance noticeable as the tires on the trailer are low pressure which ACTUALLY promote better rolling resistance since the pneumatic effect helps keep the shape of the tire round with a camping load and resist punctures. Low pressure tires have better puncture resistance than high pressure tires. Here's the conundrum. If you tour with panniers, you have all the weight loaded on the tires. You have 2 choices. You either change to fatter tires so you can run lower pressure and accept some minor possible increase in rolling resistance OR keep the same tires and run higher pressure. Higher pressure is what makes tire more susceptible to punctures compared to lower pressure. I carry a spare tube, but I rarely have punctures on the trailer though.
During my last trip to the island attending a Velo conference, I would EASILY out climb traditional 4 panniers system due to the fact that I can stand up on the pedals and attack the hill like I would with a single unloaded bike. With a loaded bike, the weight on the bike means you need to work harder with your core muscle groups to do the same -- ends up more tiring than a low front pannier and trailer system.
For anything less equal or less than 20lbs, I usually tour with 2 panniers.