doing groceries

ridingvet

Does anyone have any experience working out how they can do their groceries without having to use the car? I've recently gotten back on the bike and am LOVING it. I still struggle up hills and so far I've done minor grocery shopping with a backpack on my back - I thought about hooking up a rear rack (don't have one right now) and then hooking up some panniers (or even hooking up my backpack onto it) - I don't mind riding with the backpack but it can get really heavy after you pop in a bag of potatoes...

I was looking into trailers but am not real confident that I'd be able to pull them up hill - I live in the Hills District and they don't call it that for nothing. Already without a trailer hooked up I'm walking up some of those hills. It's not far to the shops (3.5km) - just hilly. So would you suggest I wait till I build up my fitness before embarking on getting too adventurous with the groceries?

thanks for the advice

Garyh_GONP07

Weekly shopping jaunts to the market and/or supermarket for groceries is one of the best introductions that cycle tourists had in their early years. A pair of quality big panniers will do the job perfectly. The trick is not to overbalance the load and to put the heaviest items at the bottom, most fragile items at the top, and evenly distribute left/right.

DON'T USE A BACKPACK TO CARRY SHOPPING.
Trailers allow you to put bigger (and heavier) loads on, but the downside, as you observe, is the hills. A trailer loaded up with say 10-15kgs is going to cause grief if you stop suddenly on a hill--it will literally pull the bike down if you don't counter-balance! With trailers, any unbalanced load will have a negative affect on bike steering. The BOB Yak and Ibiza trailers are excellent (if expensive) but choice must be based on your capacity to understand the affect a trailer has on tyres, brakes and steering (brakes, especially, must be capable of stopping both the bike and the weight behind it). Rear tyres wear out much quicker with a trailer.

A sturdy rack (ie. Blackburn) and good quality panniers are the best choice for starting out.

Once you've got the panniers, load 2-3 bags of rice in each and ride the hills near home to get a feel for the load. Then ride to the shops and get the groceries and ride back. Practice, practice, practice!

__________________
I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like."
—Freddie Mercury, 'Bicycle Race'

ridingvet

Thanks for the advice - I will probably stick to what you've suggested first ie rack with panniers and build up strength before getting a trailer. I didn't think about the trailer dragging me back downhill - thanks for letting me know. I'll have to think about brakes as well. Would you suggest pumping up the tyres up more to cater to the extra load?

Garyh_GONP07

Assuming the use of panniers with a load, the rear tyre of the bike should be pumped up to its maximum inflation pressure for fast road riding (reduced for gravel or slick surfaces). Trailer tyres can have a high psi for fast, on-road heavy touring or mid-psi for gravel/unsealed.

You should have no problems stop-starting on hills with panniers.
But it can be quite difficult to get started on a hill again with a loaded trailer; granny gears can do it, but there's still the risk of spontaneous loss of balance and ... crash! clunk! tinkle! . Best to start off holding onto a roadside marker post or tree then spin off in lowest granny gear and maintain rpm. A trailer is definitely not recommended for riders unfamiliar with load dynamics.

__________________
I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like."
—Freddie Mercury, 'Bicycle Race'

gclark8

I am testing front rack or basket at the moment, the rack + cane basket seems the best so far.

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__________________
Cheers,
George.

ridingvet

That's a cool set up. I guess it does mean more trips to the shops for me and break it up to a couple of trips rather than the once weekly BIG shop with the car. I do love the fresh air but I need to work on 'spinning' on those hill climbs - I've tried standing up to ride and it works fine for a while till I get the dreaded lactic burn and then I switch to the low gears in an attempt to keep spinning. I'll stick to the panniers - may set up the rear rack first and then when I build up enough strength move onto ones in the front.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Trailer Boy

ridingvet.....

I live in Winston Hills and own a trailer that attaches to my bike.....It is a very good set up and I have done a $100 shop + a carton of beer easy

I have ridden up to Baulkaum Hills and then ridden home.....

As long as your tyres are pumped up and you have a decent box in your trailer it is quite easy....

The trailer can carry up to 100lb (40-50kgs) easily... I also have a front basket and a back basket (on a quick release bike rack that can take 8-10kgs)

I also have a freezer basket that can attach to the very back of the trailer

You will struggle up hills ...but it is half the fun and I certainly get some looks up on Windsor road especially with beer in the back.

But it's a good feeling that you are not entirely reliant on your car (as so many people in the hills are) and that you are not emitting more carbon into the atmosphere

The whole set cost me about $400.00....$250 for the trailer and $150 for the racks and baskets......I use the same set up to deliver the Advertiser for extra cash..... If you have any question..do not hesitate to ask or maybe we could meet up...When i get home I will post some photo's

ridingvet

Thanks for the support Trailer Boy - my knees are dodgy which is why I think I will need to build up enough strength and confidence before I hook up a trailer. Starting small with the panniers first and working my way up. I certainly agree with you about the 'feel good' factor and not being totally reliant on the car. I don't mind it as much on long distances but with petrol prices the way they are and the fact that it's under 4km to the nearest Woolies I feel like I can no longer justify the short trips. Plus I get that wonderful adrenaline buzz getting there and back. I've recently bought a Tag-a-long for my 6yo (it's in the mail) so attaching it to the back of my bike and getting used to the pull on gradual slopes and flats will probably gear me up to get serious about the trailer.

cheers

Trailer Boy

That'll be a good start with a 6 year old....

Pannier I guess is a good start but most racks i believe need to be fixed to carry them...

The good thing about my set up is that is really easy to attach and remove the racks..

I got baskets and my racks down at Pedals Plus in North Parra (side street across from the Tollgate hotel)

You can view the different racks on the attached website

I bought

Topeak QR Beam Rack MTX
Topeak MTX Rear Basket
& a cheaper front basket (Topeak front basket out of stock)

http://www.bicyclestore.com.au/Bike...-c-377-p-1.html

Trailer Boy

Not really sure how to post photo's..but wuill try and do so...Anyone no how to???

ridingvet

Hi Trailer Boy,

I'm not sure this is right but when you hit reply and type in your post, you can scroll down to the section that says Additional Options and there should be a box there which says Manage Attachments - click on that and you should be able to load up pics.

I've got the Tag-a-long for my 6yo and she loves it - tell you what though - it's not easy to get use to because she throws in added weight and not only that - she also throws in weird wobbles as she cycles (esp. when she tries to stand up to bike) - I find that I have to really hold onto the handlebars a lot tighter than I usually would and cater for the odd wobble here and there. The good thing is once I take the tag-a-long off my bike I feel SO MUCH lighter and riding is much much easier! Good training that's for sure .

I'm trying to figure out if I can still attach a rear rack on because of where the trailer attachment is - it doesn't leave much room - I'm not that tall. Plus my bike is an older model that doesn't have those screw points on the frame near the seat to attach the rear rack.

Looking forward to seeing your photos.

cheers
RidingVet

Trailer Boy

See attached photo's..Both show a couple of uses I have for my push bike and trailer....I like to avoid using a car when I do not need to...

The photo with the Newspapaers is 215 local papers weighing roughly 70-80 kgs.....I manage to drag this up a long hill using my mountain bikes lowest gear

The other shows a trip to the bottleshop and some food shopping...

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ridingvet

That's just brilliant! Inspiring stuff Trailer Boy.