Pulling a trailer

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jeffoi

Active Member
Hello,

So, I'm on holiday.

We base ourselves out of a self catering cottage and cycle to local touristy places.

We have 2 choices, an upright tandem with me (who truly cannot set off on a normal upright by myself) on the back and our 2yo in a trailer or....

Me on my trike pulling the trailer and my husband on his own bike.

The trailer is new, bought the day before we came...

And advice on pulling a Burley bee on a trike (or a tandem for that matter?) we do have her normal seat with us, but it's a bit of a squeeze on the back of the tandem and my oh's dawes galaxy skips a lot on hills with the weight of trying hard and daughter. And obviously I don't fancy child seat on the trike!

Final bit... We're from good old flat Manchester and out in East Lothian, so some of the hills may be a shock to me (but a necessary one as I need the training for the Manchester to Blackpool ride later this year (not a lot later). Rides'll be around 20miles each way at the very top end.
 

Bazzer

Setting the controls for the heart of the sun.
I am sure others who have cycled with a two year old on a tandem and/or trike will be along shortly and provide some advice, but I'd get the Dawes' gears sorted. If you or your OH can't do it, your LBS will be able to. The gears shouldn't skip. Sounds like a worn chain and/or cassette.
 
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jeffoi

jeffoi

Active Member
I am sure others who have cycled with a two year old on a tandem and/or trike will be along shortly and provide some advice, but I'd get the Dawes' gears sorted. If you or your OH can't do it, your LBS will be able to. The gears shouldn't skip. Sounds like a worn chain and/or cassette.

It's neither, we changed the chain and the back wheel, I suspect it's a damaged cog on the front changer, but the OH tells me it's unlikely because front gears wear so slowly and it started when the bike was brand new.

He also likes to just get on and cope without having to be arsed even though we're both capable of fixing bikes.

I think truly he prefers the tandem. Every time I suggest a fix he says yes... Then never gets round to it
 
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jeffoi

jeffoi

Active Member
I cant help with trailer advice but if problems started when the bike was brand new and he didn't bother , now that I don't understand.
Was my bike at the time and we did try. Problem seems to be definitely not at the back end. We've changed out the chain, wheel, derailleur...

All the things you would try and see what settles. It didn't get ridden too hard because I have a knee... One of those knees that just got worse.

It only skips under stress, which is hard to replicate in the workshop.

Anywho... Trailers on recumbent trikes?
 

cosmicbike

Perhaps This One.....
Moderator
Location
Egham
From what I've read, and I did a fair bit of that, no issues with a trike pulling a trailer. I was looking at using one on my ICE Trice Q for camping trips. So long as you can get the hitch to fit the bike it's a non-issue, though be aware of the speed you will make going downhill...Uphill is no problem since you can go below walking speed on the trike and not fall off!
 

plantfit

Guru
Location
Lincolnshire
There's plenty of youtube video's by Graham Williams of his many trike riding adventures towing a trailer with his camping gear in,also on here is Tigerbiten who covers many miles towing his trailer behind his Ice trike, so plenty to go at for advice,good luck and enjoy the trike
 
I've towed a large Carry Freedom trailer behind my bent trike for around 50,000 now.
Empty it slow me down on average by around 2 mph but with no real difference in handling.
But when used on tour with a full camping load in it, then the extra load slows me down by roughly another 2 mph.
So a lot slower uphill, slightly faster downhill but no difference around corners.
I think that having a trailer on behind my bent trike improves overtakes even more.
As long as you have a straight run then things like bollards are fine because the trailer is normally the same width as the trike.
Just be careful of the trailer cutting the corner and hitting something on the inside if on a bend.
Going backwards with a trailer is "FUN", it took me a few years before I could do more than just a few yards backwards before I jackknifed without getting off.
The harder the trailer tyres are, the more the trailer will bounce when hitting potholes. So I tend to run the trailer tyres slightly softer than the trikes tyre.

Luck ........... :biggrin:
 
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jeffoi

jeffoi

Active Member
On the way back to Manchester now. Towing was an experience. Definitely harder work and a head wind made a huge difference.

But it all went smoothly.

Except the trike being carried on its side in the van made it lose the ability to reach the two lowest gears at the back... Making towing even harder.

But we managed :smile:
 
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jeffoi

jeffoi

Active Member
No, the cable slipped (or maybe stretched) . Just needed pulling tight again. Only problem was that I discovered it when I tried to down shift on a sharp hill on the way out to a castle.
 
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