Finally, a post-ride report!

It went fine - no major problems. It was a bit of a challenge at intersections, since the extra weight at torso level threw off my balance when I was standing and mounting the bike (although not once I got on the bike). I loaded it into a frame pack and tightened down the compression straps on the sides of the pack, so the load shifting was minimal, which helped. Most of the weight was supported directly on my back or on the hip belt of the pack. The only real discomfort was that my lower back hurt the entire time I was riding - I think the case for the hydraulic ram kit was digging into my hips and spine a bit. As soon as I took off the pack, it quit hurting, and it was never particularly bad, just a dull ache.

I thought seriously about putting it the Trek (Chariot) trailer that I haul my kids in - it routinely handles more weight than that, and other than the extra effort I hardly know it's there. I opted not to partly because I don't want to risk damaging the trailer, as I really depend on it at times, partly because there's not really room to park it at work (too many people in the office bike to work - what a wonderful problem to have!), partly because I'm stubborn, and partly because maybe I do have a bit of a masochistic streak in me. :-)

I was surprised at how much extra work it was to ride; I routinely pull one kid on a Trail-A-Bike and a second in the trailer, which adds perhaps 130 lbs., and it's easier to ride with that setup. Maybe my son pedaling on the Trail-A-Bike helps more than I'd though, or maybe it's more efficient for my muscles since I'm not also working to support a lot of weight on my back. My upper legs got a little sore, which never happens in any of my regular rides, so I'm thinking I was using some different muscles.

The ride home was uneventful, if a bit slow. I wasn't particularly sore, but I also wasn't motivated to hammer into the headwind.