Originally Posted by cradduck
i have seen an overwhelming number of bikes on this forum that use panniers and racks instead of trailers...like the B.O.B. trailers i see at REI. are the trailers no good or is it the expense that people are steering away from? i am planning on doing a ride from SF to OC this comming spring/summer and don't want to start laying out cash for the wrong equipment.
On my first week long tour I used panniers. I already had the panniers from commuting (where a trailer would be overkill IMO) so it was a simple matter of convenience and avoiding expense. On the trip we ran into a couple that were about 2000 km into a cross Canada tour. The husband had a BOB trailer and the wife had panniers. They mentioned the BOB was *much* easier to pull the weight. I would say too its a matter of how light you plan to travel, on the heavier side I would definitely think the BOB would be nicer.