Trailer trial #1!

I took the Burley trailer to the grocery store today. I didn't real need it. I've carried that much stuff in my bike bags before. (2 gallons of milk, 80 count box of kitchen trash bags, mustard,family sized box wheat thins a couple of other minor odds and ends) But the idea was to try out the trailer not see how much I could haul.

Riding there with an empty trailer was a bit like having a mild head wind on the uphills and a mild tail wind on the down hills and a little jingling form the trailer Assembly. No huge difference. I did notice parking was a bit different as I had to do a tight U turn to get to the bike rack and to avoid having a trailer to be tripped over I unhooked it and parked ti along side the bike at the rack and managed to lock it to my bike and the rack. I may chose to get a longer cable to make that a bit easier. I did notice that I need to be careful to stay a bit farther form the curb than I normally am but we fit well in the bike lane. It's also a bit harder to have to worry about glass and tires being a different width behind you. Probably not an issue so much with a trike as the wheels are close to the same as the front wheels on the trike. Of course you have that pesky center back wheel so over all about the same. I wonder if we can convince the state of Oregon to require the sweeping of bike lanes instead of sweeping the debris from the traffic lanes into the bike lane.... Yeah that's what I thought. I may be spending more time in the car lanes due to road hazards in the bike lanes.

On the way home I felt it a bit in the thighs going up hill. not horrid but definitely slower and will need to work on those muscles. But not as bad as it was on the same hill when I was 30 lbs heavier. So yes work but OK. I did feel like it slowed me down a bit but since my bike computer is in need of battery replacement I really don't know for sure. Down hill wasn't an issue and I was a bit worried about control, stability and stopping with a load but I didn't have any problems other than finding out that I need my front brakes adjusted as they make an awful noise. All in all a successful first outing. We may take the trailer next week when we cook for the homeless teens rather than taking the car. Over all I'm very pleased with handling ease of hookup etc. I think it will be a great addition to the family in day to day life.