Trailer users experience sought

Specific board for this popular undertaking.
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Tigerbiten
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by Tigerbiten »

charliepolecat wrote:A previous poster shew his unweighted recumbent which weighs in at 30+ lbs, too much to move along for me.

My recumbent trike in touring setup is around 25 kg plus 10 kg for the trailer, so a base weight of rig is ~35 Kg, plus I then add camping gear on top of that.
The 10 Kg of the trailer plus the added drag from it does slow me down by about 2 mph.
But being slightly disabled means I cannot pack things like a tent or a sleeping bag into their smallest possible volume.
So the advantage of the extra room on the trailer more than makes up for the reduction in speed.
Plus a recumbent trike has no real minimum speed, so with a 9.6" first gear only +20% hills are hard work.
The rest I can just spin up, just very slowly ......... :D
charliepolecat
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by charliepolecat »

I make that about 77 lbs, I just can't imagine wanting to pull that much load on a touring trip.
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Tigerbiten
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by Tigerbiten »

charliepolecat wrote:I make that about 77 lbs, I just can't imagine wanting to pull that much load on a touring trip.

Once I accepted because of my disability (left arm was eaten by a tiger) that it was either that or not getting out at all, there's no contest.

I accept that my average flatland speed is around 10-12 mph range and my hill climbing range is roughly half that.
But the trike has no real minimum speed so the slowest I've recorded on an up a 25% hill was only ~1.8 mph, I'm basically single leg pressing the trike up the slope at that speed.
While at the other end I've only spun it out a couple of times by hitting +50 mph down 20% hills.
Once I'm fully cycling fit on a tour, usually after week 3, it takes me roughly 3 weeks to cover 1,000 miles.
Again not fast but steady.

Luck ............ :D
charliepolecat
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by charliepolecat »

I've lived my entire life believing it wouldn't be very nice putting my arm into a tigers mouth, but that's just me.
PH
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by PH »

Tigerbiten wrote:Once I'm fully cycling fit on a tour, usually after week 3, it takes me roughly 3 weeks to cover 1,000 miles.
Again not fast but steady.
Luck ............ :D

That's the other thing - when people say "tour" they can mean anything from a long weekend to months on the road and it can be those things and everything in between and either side of. They may need to be carrying kit to cross the desert or get to the lunchtime cafe. The idea that we'd make the same choices for such a variety of circumstances is unrealistic, if I were to ever do a tour where I considered the first three weeks as getting fit, I wouldn't be packing the two small panniers I do on my usual ten days away.
Vorpal
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by Vorpal »

I tour with tandem and trailer if the kids are with, but not otherwise.

I don't think that a trailer is particularly better or worse than panniers. Each has its own advanatages and disadvantages.

I do recommend avoiding segregated routes with a trailer. Barriers can be a hassle. Kissing gates designed to accomodate a bicycle don't include space for a trailer! Nor do chicanes and various other obstructions.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
Wheeledwidewebb
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by Wheeledwidewebb »

Vorpal wrote:II do recommend avoiding segregated routes with a trailer. Barriers can be a hassle. Kissing gates designed to accomodate a bicycle don't include space for a trailer! Nor do chicanes and various other obstructions.


That’s exactly what concerns me.

Still I’m gonna have a go with mine on a mini-tour :D
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Tigerbiten
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Re: Trailer users experience sought

Post by Tigerbiten »

I've found that there are very few anti-cycling barriers that I cannot get my bent trailer through one way or another.
It's just that they are so much hassle and I waste so much time doing it that I most of the time I cannot be bothered even trying.

Luck ........... :D
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