child bike trailers

Quoted message said:

just thinking about some things i want to do to prove all the old parents
wrong who thinnk i will change. i dont want to become a caraholic again
just because i have a kid now even though they say i HAVE to. but my wife
dont like the child trailers. they scare her. any thoughts? anecdotes?
encourage me! hell i cant get it anywhere else (in car culture). i'll walk
if i have to!

I was concerned myself about the safety of using a child trailer, but the
reality is that cars gave me a whole lot of room. Not once did I feel
threatened; seems like the cars are pretty scared of the darned things. Plus
the trailers track very nicely, no need to worry about going around corners.
The drag's not too bad on level pavement, but when you hit a hill, you go
into what I call "mule mode" which is quite different from how you'd
normally climb. But you still *can* climb with one.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

greggery peccary said:

just thinking about some things i want to do to prove all the old parents
wrong who thinnk i will change. i dont want to become a caraholic again just
because i have a kid now even though they say i HAVE to. but my wife dont
like the child trailers. they scare her. any thoughts? anecdotes? encourage
me! hell i cant get it anywhere else (in car culture). i'll walk if i have
to!

My kids loved riding in mine, and cars gave us a lot of room. (I admit
that I wasn't as bold about riding heavily traveled commuter arteries with
it, just in case.)
I don't remember who it was, but someone on this ng once told us about
taking a spill on her bike while towing kids in a trailer. The trailer
went over on its side, IIRC, but the kids were fine, not even scared.
They wanted her to "do that again." The frame of most trailers acts as a
roll cage, at least for minor spills.
BTW, eBay is usually a good place to comparison shop for kid trailers.

Bill

__o | When gas hit $3 a gallon,
[ ]___`\(,_ | People stopped asking why,
(_) (_)/ (_) | And asked, "Where can I get one?"

i have a kid now even though they say i HAVE to. but my wife dont

Quoted message said:

like the child trailers. they scare her. any thoughts? anecdotes? encourage
me! hell i cant get it anywhere else (in car culture). i'll walk if i have

and riding in a car with the kid is safe? the illusions we live
behind. as far as I have seen drivers are very good about giving
trailers room even if they don't have a child on board.

greggery peccary said:

just thinking about some things i want to do to prove all the old parents
wrong who thinnk i will change. i dont want to become a caraholic again just
because i have a kid now even though they say i HAVE to. but my wife dont
like the child trailers. they scare her. any thoughts? anecdotes? encourage
me! hell i cant get it anywhere else (in car culture). i'll walk if i have
to!

I started both my kids out in a trailer when they were less than a year
old (they're now 21 and 16). It's a great way to get around, and you can
carry plenty of supplies (e.g. diaper bag, food, toys, books) in the
trailer without affecting the handling of the bike.

When they got to be about 5, they started using a kidback on our tandem
(there were a few years when I'd be on the tandem with my son, pulling
my daughter in the trailer) and then they move to singles. I used to
take them to kindergarten on the tandem -- very popular with the other
kids, but became less "cool" later in elementary school.

My son never got a driver's license -- not interested. He lives in
Seattle now and finds his bike and public transportation to be
complet4ely adequate.

--

John ([email hidden])

"John Thompson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

greggery peccary said:

just thinking about some things i want to do to prove all the old

parents

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

wrong who thinnk i will change. i dont want to become a caraholic again

just

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

because i have a kid now even though they say i HAVE to. but my wife

dont

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

like the child trailers. they scare her. any thoughts? anecdotes?

encourage

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

me! hell i cant get it anywhere else (in car culture). i'll walk if i

have

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to!

I started both my kids out in a trailer when they were less than a year
old (they're now 21 and 16). It's a great way to get around, and you can
carry plenty of supplies (e.g. diaper bag, food, toys, books) in the
trailer without affecting the handling of the bike.

When they got to be about 5, they started using a kidback on our tandem
(there were a few years when I'd be on the tandem with my son, pulling
my daughter in the trailer) and then they move to singles. I used to
take them to kindergarten on the tandem -- very popular with the other
kids, but became less "cool" later in elementary school.

My son never got a driver's license -- not interested. He lives in
Seattle now and finds his bike and public transportation to be
complet4ely adequate.

--

John ([email hidden])

good for your son! i am impressed. i still have about 9 years of
car-commuting to atone for. i'll show these comments to the boss. maybe
she'll change her mind ... if not i got the baby backpack. it's just that
the busses get so stinky in the winter with the windows closed!

On a related note, can anyone recommend a brand? I've been looking at
the Chariot models (http://www.chariotcarriers.com) specifically the
Cougar 1. I'd also use it for jogging.

Ideally it would be nice if it could also be stripped down to the
chassis so it could be used to carry cargo (tent, clothing, etc...).
I'm not sure if the Chariots can do that.

Thanks,
-Joel

Joel Bierling said:

On a related note, can anyone recommend a brand? I've been looking at
the Chariot models (http://www.chariotcarriers.com) specifically the
Cougar 1. I'd also use it for jogging.

Ideally it would be nice if it could also be stripped down to the
chassis so it could be used to carry cargo (tent, clothing, etc...).
I'm not sure if the Chariots can do that.

You might look at cycletote:
http://www.cycletote.com/

I bought a kid-carrier and set it up for cargo. It's well made,
not terribly heavy and uses standard-sized tires. The one drawback
I can see is that when fully collapsed it's still fairly big: The
frame is welded aluminum in a box configuration. Even with the
wheels and rollbars removed it looks too big to fit in a car
trunk.

The cargo setup is simply to remove all the upholstery and weather
guards (there's a lot of stuff to take off!) and fit a weathertight
container. The claim that a particular Rubbermade storage box
would fit "perfectly" is a small lie, but it fits well enough to
be useful.

The comments that drivers give a wide berth to bikes hauling
children seems to be true; When I started out, before removing
the upholstery, everybody gave me extra room, with one fellow
asking "is there a little one in there?" to which I replied
"No, just practicing". Obviously folks noticed and cared.

HTH,

bob prohaska

I have lots of friends who raised their kids from trailers to kid-back kits
on tandems all the way to their own bikes.

I have one friend who got a little overly enthusiastic with his 3 year old
daughter in the trailer one day (a Burley) and took a downhill around a
corner a little fast and close and the trailer wheel hit the curb (did I
mention FAST?) and the bike and trailer flipped over. Needless to say he
was beside himself as he scraped himself off the ground and rushed to the
trailer to check on his daughter. He was mortified and relieved when her
response was "Daddy--that was FUN! Can we do it AGAIN?". Though he would not
recommend using a trailer without a helmet, or riding so fast and hard, she
did not have a helmet, was belted in and did not have a scratch on her.

I assume she grew up to be a downhill expert.

--
ie
ride fast, take chances.

"bob prohaska's usenet account" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Joel Bierling said:

On a related note, can anyone recommend a brand? I've been looking at
the Chariot models (http://www.chariotcarriers.com) specifically the
Cougar 1. I'd also use it for jogging.

Ideally it would be nice if it could also be stripped down to the
chassis so it could be used to carry cargo (tent, clothing, etc...).
I'm not sure if the Chariots can do that.

You might look at cycletote:
http://www.cycletote.com/

I bought a kid-carrier and set it up for cargo. It's well made,
not terribly heavy and uses standard-sized tires. The one drawback
I can see is that when fully collapsed it's still fairly big: The
frame is welded aluminum in a box configuration. Even with the
wheels and rollbars removed it looks too big to fit in a car
trunk.

The cargo setup is simply to remove all the upholstery and weather
guards (there's a lot of stuff to take off!) and fit a weathertight
container. The claim that a particular Rubbermade storage box
would fit "perfectly" is a small lie, but it fits well enough to
be useful.

The comments that drivers give a wide berth to bikes hauling
children seems to be true; When I started out, before removing
the upholstery, everybody gave me extra room, with one fellow
asking "is there a little one in there?" to which I replied
"No, just practicing". Obviously folks noticed and cared.

HTH,

bob prohaska

oldhickory said:

I have lots of friends who raised their kids from trailers to kid-back kits
on tandems all the way to their own bikes.

I have one friend who got a little overly enthusiastic with his 3 year old
daughter in the trailer one day (a Burley) and took a downhill around a
corner a little fast and close and the trailer wheel hit the curb (did I
mention FAST?) and the bike and trailer flipped over. Needless to say he
was beside himself as he scraped himself off the ground and rushed to the
trailer to check on his daughter. He was mortified and relieved when her
response was "Daddy--that was FUN! Can we do it AGAIN?".

I have a friend whose husband was pulling their daughter in a
trailer. He cut a street corner too sharply, the trailer's inside
wheel hit the curb, and the trailer tipped on its side. The
daughter's face was scraped up by the asphalt. She wasn't seriously
hurt, but she was plenty, plenty scared, and reluctant to ride in the
trailer again for a while.

So, even with trailers, it's best to keep the rubber side down. Watch
those curves.

- Frank Krygowski

Quoted message said:

daughter's face was scraped up by the asphalt. She wasn't seriously
hurt, but she was plenty, plenty scared, and reluctant to ride in the
trailer again for a while.

My Doberman Annie was reluctant to go in the Tanjor Trailer the
first time I put her in it. Or tried to put her in it.

I lifted her up (80 lbs, a little awkward, but she's basically just
a huge puppy) and gently lowered her into the thing. Or tried to.

Whenever she was lowered, some leg or paw always was extended to
hit the top, and it took a dozen attempts, gathering in this or that
paw and trying again.

There was no complaint, just an appendage protest every time.

The trick was taking her out after a few seconds, and praising her.
Then doing it again, praising again on being removed. The backwash
of praise moves to infect the apparent danger, and soon she's climb
in on a suggestion.

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin2.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin3.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin4.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin5.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin6.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout2.jpg

Puppy Vicki was easier to get in but protested things in general

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin6/odyssey001.jpg

--
Ron Hardin
[email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

"Ron Hardin" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

daughter's face was scraped up by the asphalt. She wasn't seriously
hurt, but she was plenty, plenty scared, and reluctant to ride in the
trailer again for a while.

My Doberman Annie was reluctant to go in the Tanjor Trailer the
first time I put her in it. Or tried to put her in it.

I lifted her up (80 lbs, a little awkward, but she's basically just
a huge puppy) and gently lowered her into the thing. Or tried to.

Whenever she was lowered, some leg or paw always was extended to
hit the top, and it took a dozen attempts, gathering in this or that
paw and trying again.

There was no complaint, just an appendage protest every time.

The trick was taking her out after a few seconds, and praising her.
Then doing it again, praising again on being removed. The backwash
of praise moves to infect the apparent danger, and soon she's climb
in on a suggestion.

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin2.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin3.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin4.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin5.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin6.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout2.jpg

Puppy Vicki was easier to get in but protested things in general

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin6/odyssey001.jpg

--
Ron Hardin
[email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

What's the floor of the Tanjor trailer made of? I need a dog trailer.

Bellsouth Ijit 2.0 said:

"Ron Hardin" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]..

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

daughter's face was scraped up by the asphalt. She wasn't seriously
hurt, but she was plenty, plenty scared, and reluctant to ride in the
trailer again for a while.

My Doberman Annie was reluctant to go in the Tanjor Trailer the
first time I put her in it. Or tried to put her in it.

I lifted her up (80 lbs, a little awkward, but she's basically just
a huge puppy) and gently lowered her into the thing. Or tried to.

Whenever she was lowered, some leg or paw always was extended to
hit the top, and it took a dozen attempts, gathering in this or that
paw and trying again.

There was no complaint, just an appendage protest every time.

The trick was taking her out after a few seconds, and praising her.
Then doing it again, praising again on being removed. The backwash
of praise moves to infect the apparent danger, and soon she's climb
in on a suggestion.

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin2.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin3.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin4.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin5.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin6.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout2.jpg

Puppy Vicki was easier to get in but protested things in general

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin6/odyssey001.jpg

Quoted message said:

What's the floor of the Tanjor trailer made of? I need a dog trailer.

For Annie I put in a very thin plywood floor, with cross members to
to match the aluminum bars across the Tanjor fore and aft, covered by
faux lambswool, for footing.

This was because she didn't like the slippery plastic-material floor
below, and tended to climb up on the cross bracing to get a secure
paw-hold.

Vicki tolerates the original curved floor so doesn't use that.

Tanjor is out of business so you can't get this trailer in any case.

A Burley works fine, if you construct a suitable floor. Mine was :

Get a 3/4" length backpacking sleeping pad (which fits the floor
shape).

Get two wooden dowels the usual hardware store length, about 3' I guess,
and make an X with them, and place them on one side of the pad. This
prevents the pad from shifting or scrunching down.

Wrap the whole affair in a blanket. This attaches the X to the pad,
and gives good footing.

Put it on the floor of the Burley.

Mine lasted for years, two dog-lives worth, before I went to the Tanjor.

If your dog isn't absolutely 100% solid on a stay command, you need to
secure him in the trailer. For the Burley, put a 4' leash across the
back top of the trailer cab, and run a short lead from that to his
collar, just long enough so he can lie down or sit.

I train my dogs with Koehler's method, so they're good in the stay.

--
Ron Hardin
[email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

In article <[email hidden]>,
Ron Hardin <[email hidden]> writes:

Ron, I respect your insights & experience. But
it's unclear to me about that X thing with the
doweling. How can you make an X with doweling
to reinforce a trailer floor, and yet keep it all
to one side?

Quoted message said:

Get a 3/4" length backpacking sleeping pad (which fits the floor
shape).

Get two wooden dowels the usual hardware store length, about 3' I guess,
and make an X with them, and place them on one side of the pad. This

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Quoted message said:

prevents the pad from shifting or scrunching down.

The above is the part I find confusing.
Please forgive me -- sometimes I admit I can be a
little "slow". At least, so I've been informed.

Anyways, I note you're talking about keeping the X to one
side of the /pad/ -- not necessarily the floor of the trailer.
I'm trying to envision it, but I can't, and it's driving me nutz.
How does it all relate to the floor of the trailer, while keeping
Puppy happy with a confident footing?

Quoted message said:

Wrap the whole affair in a blanket. This attaches the X to the pad,
and gives good footing.

Put it on the floor of the Burley.

I guess a nice, wooly Hudson Bay blanket would be nice & comfy.
Actually for chilly weather one can make a pretty decent capote
out of a Hudson Bay blanket. Well, to do it right, it can take
/two/ blankets. My last doggie liked to sleep on my flannel
jacket because it had my smell in it. I liked to wear it
because it had my Skipper's smell in it. We shared that
fabric, and it was comfortable and pleasing to both of us.
I guess that's what you need to persuade canine kith 'n kin
to trust you and your trailer.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

Tom Keats said:

In article <[email hidden]>,
Ron Hardin <[email hidden]> writes:

Ron, I respect your insights & experience. But
it's unclear to me about that X thing with the
doweling. How can you make an X with doweling
to reinforce a trailer floor, and yet keep it all
to one side?

Quoted message said:

Get a 3/4" length backpacking sleeping pad (which fits the floor
shape).

Get two wooden dowels the usual hardware store length, about 3' I guess,
and make an X with them, and place them on one side of the pad. This

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Quoted message said:

prevents the pad from shifting or scrunching down.

The above is the part I find confusing.
Please forgive me -- sometimes I admit I can be a
little "slow". At least, so I've been informed.

Well, imagine you take a 3/4 length backing pad, and wrap it in a blanket to
make the surface have traction.

Then when the dog stands on it for a while, it will scrunch up and move out
from under the dog and go off to the side.

It needs to be stiffened.

Just put a big X consisting of two diagonal-running dowels across the pad
(will wind up on the bottom) before wrapping it in the blanket. That makes
it stay on the floor under the dog. It can't shift out from under the dog
because it has noplace to go, if it can't scrunch up.

--
Ron Hardin
[email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

"Ron Hardin" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bellsouth Ijit 2.0 said:

"Ron Hardin" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]..

Quoted message said:

[email hidden] wrote:
> daughter's face was scraped up by the asphalt. She wasn't seriously
> hurt, but she was plenty, plenty scared, and reluctant to ride in the
> trailer again for a while.

My Doberman Annie was reluctant to go in the Tanjor Trailer the
first time I put her in it. Or tried to put her in it.

I lifted her up (80 lbs, a little awkward, but she's basically just
a huge puppy) and gently lowered her into the thing. Or tried to.

Whenever she was lowered, some leg or paw always was extended to
hit the top, and it took a dozen attempts, gathering in this or that
paw and trying again.

There was no complaint, just an appendage protest every time.

The trick was taking her out after a few seconds, and praising her.
Then doing it again, praising again on being removed. The backwash
of praise moves to infect the apparent danger, and soon she's climb
in on a suggestion.

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin2.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin3.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin4.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin5.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerin6.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout1.jpg
http://home.att.net/~rhhardin/trailerout2.jpg

Puppy Vicki was easier to get in but protested things in general

http://home.att.net/~rhhardin6/odyssey001.jpg

Quoted message said:

What's the floor of the Tanjor trailer made of? I need a dog trailer.

For Annie I put in a very thin plywood floor, with cross members to
to match the aluminum bars across the Tanjor fore and aft, covered by
faux lambswool, for footing.

This was because she didn't like the slippery plastic-material floor
below, and tended to climb up on the cross bracing to get a secure
paw-hold.

Vicki tolerates the original curved floor so doesn't use that.

Tanjor is out of business so you can't get this trailer in any case.

A Burley works fine, if you construct a suitable floor. Mine was :

Get a 3/4" length backpacking sleeping pad (which fits the floor
shape).

Get two wooden dowels the usual hardware store length, about 3' I guess,
and make an X with them, and place them on one side of the pad. This
prevents the pad from shifting or scrunching down.

Wrap the whole affair in a blanket. This attaches the X to the pad,
and gives good footing.

Put it on the floor of the Burley.

Mine lasted for years, two dog-lives worth, before I went to the Tanjor.

If your dog isn't absolutely 100% solid on a stay command, you need to
secure him in the trailer. For the Burley, put a 4' leash across the
back top of the trailer cab, and run a short lead from that to his
collar, just long enough so he can lie down or sit.

I train my dogs with Koehler's method, so they're good in the stay.

--
Ron Hardin
[email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

Hey, thanks, Ron!

Bellsouth Ijit 2.0 said:

Quoted message said:

If your dog isn't absolutely 100% solid on a stay command, you need to
secure him in the trailer. For the Burley, put a 4' leash across the
back top of the trailer cab, and run a short lead from that to his
collar, just long enough so he can lie down or sit.

It's not clear, is it, now that I reread it. Double the 4' leash into a loop,
so it's 2' across twice. It's a sort of mini run for the dog from side to
side. Then the lead down from that to the collar can be quite short, just
allowing the dog to lie down.

--
Ron Hardin
[email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.