First trip with my trailer

[stevetailor125]

I've had a bykaboose trailer for about a month now and finally got to use it today. It was great I had it loaded with about 25kg of bagged compost and although it was noticeable it was behind me the whole lot towed a lot easier than I expected. I did have to remember to stay wider out especially passing parked vehicles but overall I was very impressed. I towed it on my Ridgeback Adventure hybrid by the way

 

[chillyuk]

I use mine a lot. One good thing I notice is that motorists seem to allow me a bit more room when overtaking.

 

[Amanda P]

We've had a Bykaboose for years and it's had lots of use. We've also built another, bigger trailer and that gets used more, now.

The Bykaboose rubber hitch allows a certain amount of shunting and waggling with a heavy load, although its simplicity has a certain elegance.

 

[ajp233]

Is there a UK supplier for Bykaboose trailers?

 

[ACS]

Think I saw somone pulling one of these trailers up towards the top of the Drumochter Pass on the A9 on Monday morning.

Respect to that man.

 

[abo]

Say you went to the supermarket or some other shop with the trailer, what do you do? Does it lock to the bike? Or do you unhitch it and lock it seperately, or something else?

 

[stevetailor125]

I have mine locked to the bike and if I'm going to be in somewhere for a while I also lock its wheels

 

[funnymummy]

When I had my bubs in a bike trailer, I replaced the QR pin on the axle hitch with a padlock, I also ran a bike chain through both wheels.

 

[corshamjim]

My trailer bounced on something and came unhitched as I was riding along yesterday which was a bit embarassing! I'd rather it did that than take the bike and me with it though. I must remember to take greater care avoiding potholes and such - especially when it's unladen.

 

[palinurus]

My trailer bounced on something and came unhitched as I was riding along yesterday which was a bit embarassing! I'd rather it did that than take the bike and me with it though. I must remember to take greater care avoiding potholes and such - especially when it's unladen.

They can handle badly unladen. Mine once flipped on it's side after hitting a really very small pothole, I'd just given the tyres some air too- it seems to handle better if they are left a bit softer.

 

[danphoto]

My trailer bounced on something and came unhitched as I was riding along yesterday which was a bit embarassing! I'd rather it did that than take the bike and me with it though.

I used to think the same way, until one day I kerbed Der Roland due to a combination of my excessive speed (I forgot I was towing!) and a fool driving a van not looking where he was going.

The loaded trailer uncoupled, flipped and discharged its contents in the road before stopping with the tow-bar across the pavement. No major damage, but a lesson learned for sure about speed and bike trailers

Next day it occurred to me that the errant trailer could have caused an accident and/or injury to pedestrians, and that that scenario bothered me far more than any risk of an auto-unhitching causing me to come off. I have ever since, therefore, used a length of nylon webbing 'twixt towbar and seatpost as a secondary means of attachment.

 

[stevetailor125]

The bykaboose is pretty stable unladen(up to now anyway ), the good thing is it does have a breakaway strap so if it did come unhitched it won't go wandering off. Mine is an early one that clamps onto the bike, I know the later ones had a hitch pin that stayed on the bike.
I think Bykaboose has now gone as I couldn't find any stockists and the website is no onger run by the company

 

[Amanda P]

I fear the Bykaboose has come and gone. We got ours from Orbit Cycles/Freewheel.

Ours might be for sale if anyone wanted it - it's a bit battered now.

I had it flip once, when it was lightly laden. I was entering a shared-use bike path; the bike and the trailer's right-hand wheel went up the lowered kerb; the left-hand wheel bounced up the unlowered part and caused the flip. You can make an unladen trailer a bit less lively by deflating its tyres a bit. Or by putting a load on it, of course - for this reason, on shopping days, my panniers go on the trailer on the way to work and the supermarket, on the bike when the trailer's full of shopping.

I'm also aware of what might happen if a trailer were to come unhitched, and always (nowadays) have some sort of tether in case that happens.

I usually use a cable lock to secure the trailer to my U-lock when it's locked up outside a supermarket. The hitches of my trailers are flexible enough to allow the trailer to be stood on its side folded back against the bike to save space (if space is limited).

 

[Night Train]

Secondary straps are a good idea to prevent runaways causing more problems. Unless you are constantly thinking about it I can appreciate it is possible to forget a trailer. We'd be quick to complain of anyone else forgetting they are towing something so it is better to keep it in mind too.
That is one good thing, I suppose, of a rubber coupling as it adds some dynamic feedback to remind you there is somethign attached.

It's a bit OTT but my hitch isn't going to pop off going over bumps. It has just enough play to give a little rattle to say it is still there but it tracks so well that where ever the front wheels go the trailer ones follow within an inch. The trailer is also heavy enough, at 10kg unladen, not to flip over easily.

The bit on the trike is the hitch from a Ransomes mower.

The trailer end looks like this.

 

[phantasmagoriana]

I've got an Avenir Mule (same as chillyuk's if I'm not mistaken) and find it very useful for "big" supermarket trips (I don't have a car). I don't think I'd want to do too many miles with it loaded, but for short journeys it's fine.

Parking can be difficult, but 2 locks normally does it - one D-lock for the bike and a heavy-duty cable lock for the trailer, or vice versa depending on how much space there is. Reversing out of the bike racks can be interesting if it's very heavily laden!

(With reference to the OP, I wish I'd used the trailer last time I bought I similarly-sized bag of compost. For some reason I thought a 40l bag would be fine bungeed across the rear rack...I don't recommend it! )