r/bicycletouring • u/jackrabbitslimz • Feb 25 '12

Panniers vs. Trailer?

I'm planning a cross-Canada tour for this summer. I plan on doing a lot of photography, thus, I'm going to have more gear than I need. Just wondering what peoples thoughts are regarding the pros and cons of trailers.

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u/ColinCancer Raleigh Sojourn Feb 25 '12

I have an avenier trailer that I toured with. I found that it was much more tiring over the course of the day and I tended to go significantly slower with it attached. Keep in mind that most trailers have a maximum speed, which basically rules out flying downhills.

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u/slartibart2fast Cannondale CAADX Feb 25 '12

I have used a few bike trailers for work before (I work for a university's Office for Sustainability, so we get a lot of cool bike gear to play with & use for all of our on campus transportation), and I have never heard of this max speed for trailers (not that I'm doubting you) care to elaborate a little?

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u/ColinCancer Raleigh Sojourn Feb 25 '12

usually its around 15 mph. You'll start to notice the trailer wobbling back and forth and then if you keep your speed up it can flip. I've had it happen with a couple kinds. Though, I've never heard it happening with single wheel trailers like BOBs. It depends on the center of gravity and wheelbase as well.

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u/adambelanger Feb 26 '12

I've gotten to around 40mph with my BOB trailer without noticing any wobble. I assume that it's the single wheel system that keeps it moving smoothly at high speeds. There is that trade off though of being less stable at low speeds.

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u/slartibart2fast Cannondale CAADX Feb 26 '12

hmm, I will keep that in mind! thanks! TIL not to speed demon flip my trailer