Tell me about Bike Trailers

[SuzaBanana]

DH is an avid cyclist. He trains April-October for marathons & triathlons & LONG bike rides. He wants a trailer for DD (11 months old) and I am the researcher, but have NO IDEA where to start! Tell me about these things - I won't ever use it as I don't own a bike. DH has a Felt triathlon bike & a fixed wheel bike. I've found a bunch online varying in price from $99-$925 :eek:

Talk to me...

[lovinwaves]

Chariot Bike Trailers (http://www.chariotcarriers.com/) Some of their models will also turn into various things, like:

Chariot’s innovative CTS system makes it easy to transform your CTS-ready chassis into a smooth-rolling stroller, a dedicated performance jogger, a superior-quality bicycle trailer, a unique hiking trailer, or an exciting cross-country ski sled.

We got ours from REI with 20% off.

[4boysmom]

11 mo might be a little young still for a bike trailer. I think bare minimum is 1 yo and ability to hold up their head well with that weighty akward helmet on.

[SuzaBanana]

To clarify, we intend to do our research & hopefully get one during an end-of-season sale to use next year, when DD is almost 2 yrs old. I don't think she's ready for it this year at all!

[capeKO71]

I started with a cheap one I found at Walmart... lasted one trip, I returned it and went with a Chariot. They are just worlds away. i'd say the chariot and burley are sort of the two brands that are in a different class. The baby jogger one is pretty good too (and actually - the one that is just a trailer, and doesn't switch to a jogger, is on the babyjogger website for $199 because its a closeout)

I suggest you go touch/feel them... if your DH is such an athlete - you might find all the options on the Charriot really cool... :)

Here is the baby jogger one: http://www.babyjogger.com/c-31-accessories.aspx#closeouts

[SuzaBanana]

CapeKO71 - thanks for the info! DH won't be taking her on every ride he does, but wants to be able to give himself a good training workout while forming a Daddy-Daughter activity that they can look forward to...plus I get a couple hours to myself :D!
I don't think we need the coolest, most hard-core bike trailer that exists - especially since we won't go off-road with it. But we want something that will last & that will not impede the athletic pursuits of DH.
The BabyJogger option looks like a good compromise. I'll need to find a place that carries it (or a similar model) to get a feel for it. :thumbsup:

[southpawboston]

CapeKO71 - thanks for the info! DH won't be taking her on every ride he does, but wants to be able to give himself a good training workout while forming a Daddy-Daughter activity that they can look forward to...plus I get a couple hours to myself :D!
I don't think we need the coolest, most hard-core bike trailer that exists - especially since we won't go off-road with it. But we want something that will last & that will not impede the athletic pursuits of DH.
The BabyJogger option looks like a good compromise. I'll need to find a place that carries it (or a similar model) to get a feel for it. :thumbsup:

have you considered a bike-mounted rear child seat? depending on where your DH will be riding, bike-mounted seats have certain safety advantages over trailers, and vice versa. for example, if DH is going to be doing mostly road riding, a bike-mounted seat is safer. on the other hand, riding strictly on MUPs, a trailer may be safer.

from a "bonding" perspective, there's no contest-- a bike mounted seat provides a richer bonding experience as DC is within inches of DH. i have both a bike-mounted seat and a trailer, and i can't even hear my DD talk from the trailer, as she is literally several feet behind me. there's little bonding experience in that.

i commute to work daily by bike, and drop DD1 off at preschool on my way to work. we ride on urban streets, where trailers are considered unsafe. they have too large a footprint and stick way out into traffic. in addition, if the trailer catches a curb on a sharp turn, it can flip. trailers offer little to no rollover protection. they also allow all sorts of dust and debris from the bicycle's rear wheel to kick up into DC's face unless the front window is in place.

if i were to drive out to the country in the car, and take my bike for a leisurely ride on a MUP on which there was no motor vehicle traffic, i would consider a trailer. but not for any roads on which there is motor traffic.

my DD1 and i were were rear-ended by a vespa, causing the bike to fall right onto the pavement. because of the design of the child seat (which is essentially like a carseat) and because she was wearing a proper fitting helmet, she sustained no injury beyond two scraped knuckles and a scrape on her forehead. the seat and helmet protected her completely. if she had been in a trailer, it's hard to predict what would have happened, but it's conceivable that the vespa would have plowed right over the trailer and run her over. a trailer does not have the same cocooning properties as the bike-mounted seats.

since you are researching the topic, i highly recommend reading through all the pages of the bicycle helmet safety institute (http://www.helmets.org). these questions and others are answered with great detail and scientific evidence is presented for both sides.

oh, and as another PP mentioned, 1 yr old is way too young. 2 yr is more realistic. the key is neck muscle strength. trailers jolt the child more than bike-mounted seats (most bike-mounted seats have a suspension). excessive jolting without adequate neck strength can cause injury comparable to shaken-baby syndrome.

[SuzaBanana]

have you considered a bike-mounted rear child seat? depending on where your DH will be riding, bike-mounted seats have certain safety advantages over trailers, and vice versa. for example, if DH is going to be doing mostly road riding, a bike-mounted seat is safer. on the other hand, riding strictly on MUPs, a trailer may be safer.

from a "bonding" perspective, there's no contest-- a bike mounted seat provides a richer bonding experience as DC is within inches of DH. i have both a bike-mounted seat and a trailer, and i can't even hear my DD talk from the trailer, as she is literally several feet behind me. there's little bonding experience in that.

i commute to work daily by bike, and drop DD1 off at preschool on my way to work. we ride on urban streets, where trailers are considered unsafe. they have too large a footprint and stick way out into traffic. in addition, if the trailer catches a curb on a sharp turn, it can flip. trailers offer little to no rollover protection. they also allow all sorts of dust and debris from the bicycle's rear wheel to kick up into DC's face unless the front window is in place.

if i were to drive out to the country in the car, and take my bike for a leisurely ride on a MUP on which there was no motor vehicle traffic, i would consider a trailer. but not for any roads on which there is motor traffic.

my DD1 and i were were rear-ended by a vespa, causing the bike to fall right onto the pavement. because of the design of the child seat (which is essentially like a carseat) and because she was wearing a proper fitting helmet, she sustained no injury beyond two scraped knuckles and a scrape on her forehead. the seat and helmet protected her completely. if she had been in a trailer, it's hard to predict what would have happened, but it's conceivable that the vespa would have plowed right over the trailer and run her over. a trailer does not have the same cocooning properties as the bike-mounted seats.

since you are researching the topic, i highly recommend reading through all the pages of the bicycle helmet safety institute (http://www.helmets.org). these questions and others are answered with great detail and scientific evidence is presented for both sides.

oh, and as another PP mentioned, 1 yr old is way too young. 2 yr is more realistic. the key is neck muscle strength. trailers jolt the child more than bike-mounted seats (most bike-mounted seats have a suspension). excessive jolting without adequate neck strength can cause injury comparable to shaken-baby syndrome.

Excellent info & I'll be reading up on it, as well as sending it to DH. I don't ride, so he'll have to make the determination as to what is most appropriate for the activities he does.
As for road conditions, SouthPaw, are you from the Boston area? If so, we live on the North Shore. DH usually rides through Wenham, Hamilton, Gloucester, Ipswich, Mancester-by-the-Sea, Rockport, Newburyport, Essex etc. They are all paved roads open to traffic (not familiar with MUP), but not urban in any way. He's a road bike guy only, no mountain biking.
As I mentioned previously, we're researching for an end-of-season sale to use next year when DD is closer to 2 yrs old (birthday is July 3rd). I'd be freaked out to have her near a bike right now!

[southpawboston]

Excellent info & I'll be reading up on it, as well as sending it to DH. I don't ride, so he'll have to make the determination as to what is most appropriate for the activities he does.
As for road conditions, SouthPaw, are you from the Boston area? If so, we live on the North Shore. DH usually rides through Wenham, Hamilton, Gloucester, Ipswich, Mancester-by-the-Sea, Rockport, Newburyport, Essex etc. They are all paved roads open to traffic (not familiar with MUP), but not urban in any way. He's a road bike guy only, no mountain biking.
As I mentioned previously, we're researching for an end-of-season sale to use next year when DD is closer to 2 yrs old (birthday is July 3rd). I'd be freaked out to have her near a bike right now!

ah, another member from mass! we've got quite a few here.

we don't live in boston proper. we live in somerville and all of our biking is in somerville and cambridge. not quite as urban feeling as boston (although somerville is technically the most-population-dense city in new england), we still have very busy and narrow streets-- especially around harvard square, where DD1's preschool is. personally, i feel that non-urban roadways such as secondary highways are equally dangerous as urban streets, since 1) vehicle traffic is much faster, and 2) there are no dedicated bike lanes like there are here. both of these factors would push me to favor a bike-mounted seat, for certain. i can give specific recommendations if you or DH would like (we have two different bike-mounted seats, each with distinct advantages). but go where your research tells you to go, and kudos to you for actually doing the research rather than just winging it. :thumbsup:

MUP = multi-use path, such as a bike/jogging path.

good luck with your research.

[SuzaBanana]

i can give specific recommendations if you or DH would like (we have two different bike-mounted seats, each with distinct advantages). but go where your research tells you to go, and kudos to you for actually doing the research rather than just winging it. :thumbsup:

MUP = multi-use path, such as a bike/jogging path.

good luck with your research.

If you have a few favorite models to rec that will at least give me a good idea as to what direction to head in.
As I think DH wants to keep to the roads he's familiar with, the trailer might be out. But I want to read up & see if there might be new territory with MUPs (thanks for the definition!) that he might like to explore with DD.
Excellent! Thanks for all the help!

[Peony]

Another bike trailer company that isn't well known in the US is Wike. http://www.wicycle.com/ I have a moonlight which is the cheaper one and it really is a great trailer. I was going to go with a Burley and then I happened to meet a mom biking one day with a Wike and fell in love. We've had ours over 2 years and couldn't be happier. I also like supporting a small company that makes quality products. :thumbsup:

[southpawboston]

If you have a few favorite models to rec that will at least give me a good idea as to what direction to head in.
As I think DH wants to keep to the roads he's familiar with, the trailer might be out. But I want to read up & see if there might be new territory with MUPs (thanks for the definition!) that he might like to explore with DD.
Excellent! Thanks for all the help!

the two seats we currently have are the kettler teddy and the topeak babyseat.

teddy: great seat, comfy, lots of room, 50 lb weight limit, excellent suspension, excellent adjustments for height/angle, side storage compartments. down side-- no grab bar for the hands, and doesn't fit on some bikes. the higher end model, the "flipper", has the grab bar, as well as a recline adjustment.

topeak: less comfy than the kettler, 40 or 48 lb weight limit depending on date of manufacture, poor suspension, few adjustments, no storage. on the plus side, it has a grab bar, and it mounts to a hard-mounted rear rack which fits a very wide range of bicycles. note: topeak just introduced a new version of the seat by the same name. it is currently only sold by REI. has a very car-seat like cocooning shell and 50 lb weight limit.