PaulH

I never thought I would ride fast enough to gain any advantage from drafting someone. I probably go about 12 mph -- why arrive tired and sweaty at work? However, I just had a cool experience::

We fly to Ocracoke Island, NC, about four weekends every summer. It is a beautiful place to go; however, car rentals are not available and, because the beach is a National Seashore, one must stay a mile or two from the actual shore. Fortunately, they rent bikes there. We reserve one bike with a trailer, for hauling beach gear, and one with a Trail-A-Bike, for hauling our daughter. I usually wind up with the cargo bike, as shown below:



On our latest visit, I was returning from the beach to our B&B, right into the teeth of the usual 20-30 knot wind. Another cyclist came alongside to ask about the trailer. I explained that yes, it was a rental, but that I also had one at home and had put a few thousand trouble-free miles on it. I highly recommended it to her. As she rode off, I asked whether I could draft her. She said yes, and it was nothing short of amazing how much lower the effort became. What fun!

Paul

CrossChain

Whoa.....you drafted someone while you were pulling a trailer. Cool. How far behind her rear wheel were you and what speed were you going while drafting? Besides the speed and reduced effort, drafting is also fun as you and another rider(s) get to feel "close" in thought as well as position. Especially with someone you trust. Going faster than usual and trading pulls is a fun, teamwork thing. Makes the post-ride beer and Mexican food that much more communal. Just don't overlap wheels unless you really, really trust the steadiness/alertness of the rider up front.

Glad you had a good experience!

PaulH

I'd guess about 10 mph -- the headwind was quite strong. I rode to the side and about a foot behind. The trailer and attached chairs are so wide that position is not critical at all. Yes - it really is a fun attunement thing as you work to anticipate the speed and position of the lead rider. It reminded me of flying formation in an aircraft, except in only two dimensions. The motions and thinking are the same, but there is a much lower level of concentration required with bikes.

Afterwards, we tried it with my wife and daughter on the Trail-A-Bike. Interestingly, they got almost no benefit from drafting me, although I got a big one from drafting them. Ocracoke is not the best place for Mexican food. However, after the ride, Howard's Pub provided the cold beer (cold lemonade for my daughter) and steamed spiced shrimp, and it was indeed fun discussing the trip. My 7 year old daugher shared in the conversation and learned a bit about aerodynamics. Educational family fun -- we will do more of it on Labor Day Weekend.

I'd always assumed that drafting required high speeds to work, but it seems a very practical, and fun, way to manage a trailer in a headwind.

Paul

will dehne

I noticed that you are a male and "She said yes." Most male bikers I know would have fun.

nmichell

Pulling a trailer in 20mph wind has to be huge amount of work! My daughter went from the trailer to the tag-along to her own bike, so things are easier now. But the trailer always reminded me of having a large parachute behind me.

leob1

Ride in the city, draft a bus. You can acctually get sucked right behind the bus. The down side is you are also riding in a cloud of deisel exuast.

p8rider

You can also draft a garbage truck. I did this inadvertently last month and had an increase in speed of almost 5mph. It was a rather fragrent increase though. lol
Ocracoke has always been a favorite place to travel to. You are lucky to get there with such frequency.

Little Darwin

I was half joking to a cyclist in Lancaster county, when I mentioned that an Amish carriage would be good for drafting, and she said it really is...

Many times the horses are trotting, so for us slower riders, it would be a good break.

Speaking of the Amish, it is nice to see someone besides cyclists who will wave at you while riding, and the Amish and Mennonites are such people... at least the ones who were heading the other way when I had the energy enough to wave, whether they were in buggies or on bikes.

All of the "road apples" along the shoulders of some roads were another interesting aspect of riding in Lancaster county...

dck

When I was a kid and my buddies and I all got 10 speed bikes we were intrigued by the stories of riders pursuing land speed records on bikes by slipstreaming behind a motorized vehicle someplace. Well there was a stretch of level road nearby with several stoplights spaced about a mile apart. My friends and I would go there and wait for large moving vans or similar large trucks to stop at the light and then we’d fall in behind the truck and go for a high-speed run of our own for as far as we could keep up. We'd get up to around 40 or 50 mph, but we had to keep a keen eye on the truck’s brake lights, since we’d be no more than 5 or 10 feet behind the rear bumper and in those days nobody ever wore a helmet. Usually we stayed near the side so we could peel off if the truck hit the brakes hard. If there were three of us, the guy in the middle always had to be the one with the best brakes. Luckily we all survived, but it great way to spend a Saturday afternoon chasing our own land speed records.

CrossChain

Ahh, the weighty substance of air! How many times have I been pushing into the wind, muttering and grumbling, when along comes a truck or string of cars, punching a momentary hole in the wind, and giving me a respite.