Costco Run with the new trailer.

So I took the new trailer to Costco.

The normal way I ride to that part of town involves a shortcut down a fairly steep (but short) bank, then hopping a curb. I didn't really want to do that with an empty trailer, let alone full, so I went the long way around.

I don't yet have a feel for home much the trailer holds, so I went easy: a 36 pack of canned soda and a large bottle of laundry detergent were the primary items. I added a couple loaves of bread and a box of zip lock bags just because they were there.

The first Costco run

The weight was noticeable on the ride home. There are some "speed humps" on one street and when I was on the flat, the trailer was still rolling down the hump and I could feel it pushing me at bit.

Physically, I could have fit another 36-er of soda but then I probably would have had to strap the bread or something to the lid.  Once I get a bit more practice, I'll up the load.

The downside is, for my four items I still had to wait 20 minutes to check out.  If I was filling up a car rather than the trailer that wait time would be spread over more items and I'd have to make fewer trips. I guess I'll need to schedule my Costco runs a little earlier to miss the crowds.

Saturday it's a longer run to pick up veggies from the farm co-op.

A New Toy Device for Reducing My Carbon Footprint

I was invited to be a beta tester for a new bike trailer from BicycleR Evolution. That sounds more impressive than it is -- I was one of the first 50 to purchase the trailer at a reduced price, in return for proving feedback.

BicycleR Evolution makes the kit that converts the packing suitcase into a trailer, so that have lots of experience with Bike Friday (they are also in Eugene, OR). The trailer is basically a 27 gallon plastic tub on an aluminum frame.

When the trailer arrived all the pieces were packed in the tub. I am a software guy, I try to avoid anything requiring the use of physical tools. (How many programmers does it take to change a light bulb? None, it's a hardware problem) My college roommate once threatened to break my arms if I ever picked up a soldering iron again (I haven't).  That being said, the trailer was a snap to put together. I was going to take pictures as I went, but before I knew it I was done.  It would have been easier if I had a socket driver with English sockets (my set is metric) but I made do with a crescent wrench.

The trailer, unassembled.

EcoShopper Trailer all ready to go.

With the trailer ready to go I decided to ride over to the local grocery store and stock up. I have never ridden with a trailer before. I really didn't notice it at all except when going over speed bumps in the parking lot.

They advertise that you can take the trailer in the store with you and use it as a shopping cart. I didn't. I wasn't sure the best way to lock it so I just ran my cable thru the gaps in the wheel. Somebody could disassemble the trailer and make off with it (less one wheel) but I figured that wouldn't probably happen in broad daylight in Marina del Rey.

Locking it was a bit of a challenge

I wanted test it somewhat loaded so I bought three 2L bottles of soda and 10 half liter bottles flavored fou-fou water that was on sale. Throw in 3 pounds of frozen stuff and a couple of pounds of Clif Bars (they were on sale) and I figured I had a good test weight.

Full of groceries and ready to go.

Going home I took the long way around -- a bit more distance but less traffic. I didn't want to attempt moving thru LA rush hour traffic with a big weight behind me.

Going home I did notice the weight (no jackrabbit starts) but the trailer tracked smoothly behind me.

Closeup of the groceries.

Later this week are a couple big tests: First a COSTCO run. It's only about 2.5 miles (maybe a bit longer if I go a quieter way) but that is quite a bit farther than the grocery store. Then on Saturday it's a 10-12 mile round trip ride to pickup fruits and veggies at the local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) group I joined. I have no idea how big the "box" of veggies will be, but probably larger than my panniers so the trailer should work great. I'll report back on the weekend.

"Gear"-ing up for the trip

Updated Below:

This summers bike tour will require some new toys equipment, including some way to haul my stuff. I considered purchasing some standard bicycle touring panniers, but that seemed a little impractical -- even if I do a couple of these trips a year they'll sit in the garage most of the time.

I considered trying to use the Oyster Buckets, but that just isn't practical -- no easy way to get them on the plane.

Last year my father and I used a Arkel Bug but we didn't have much stuff to carry. The Bug is a convertible backpack pannier. When you take it off the bike you can unfold should straps and carry it like a backpack. I used it as my carry on on the flight over and back. It's a little heaver than a normal backpack because of the hardware to attach it to the bike rack, but not so much so to cause problems. It also has a nice pocket designed for a U-Lock and it has been on my bike pretty much all the time, except when I use the Oyster Buckets.

I considered buying a second Bug -- that would be plenty of space. But I really don't have the need of another backpack and it violates my idea of buying only stuff I'll use frequently.

Luckily, Arkel has another bag in their "Urban" series -- the Utility Basket. It is basically a big square-ish bag with a large opening and is designed to take a standard brown paper grocery bag.




It does have some disadvantages compared to standard touring panniers -- other than a small pocket in the lid it is all one section -- many panniers have multiple compartments to make stuff easier to find. And the single top opening means that if what you want is on the bottom, they you have to remove all the stuff of top to get it. But I will get a lot more use out of these than touring panniers. I have been making regular trips to a local farmers market to by fruit and vegetables. These will hold a lot of veggies. With the price of gas north of $4/gallon, my Bike Friday has become my regular vehicle for trips to the grocery store -- except for Costco runs -- I still need motorized transport for that :)

Update: July 13, 2008

After using the Utility Baskets for nearly a month I have some more insight:

Normal panniers usually have a bit of a cut out on the leading side to give you more heel clearance. The Utility Baskets don't, which means I have to put them father back on my rack. This isn't really a problem except going up a steep embankment where there will be too much weight it the back.

Also, the square shape and the fact they stick out a bit really does increase the wind resistance -- if riding into a strong wind (as we often get here near the coast) I can definitely feel the drag. Now I am not the streamlined myself so it probably doesn't matter that much.

If this tour goes well (which means I'll do more touring) then I probably will buy some more standard panniers for the next trip.

Accessories I

Of course when you buy a big new toy, there are a lot of little toys that you end up needing or wanting. I won't bore you with every little purchase ("Check out these cool tire levers...") but I will highlight some things I found very useful.

First up are Oyster Buckets from Cobbworks of Olympia, Washington. Oyster Buckets are one of those things where your first reaction is "Why didn't I think of that..." At their heart is Ropak square 4 gallon food grade buckets. If you need 4 gallons of mayo, macaroni salad, Thousand Island dressing or some such, it probably comes in buckets like these (When I was in the homebrewing business we sold 5 gallon round buckets from Ropak for use as fermenters. ) I use the Oyster Buckets mainly for grocery shopping, but the would work for bike touring as well.

Of course the trick is, and the value Cobbworks adds, is they are perfectly set up to be attached to a standard rear rack. Plus they have added nice cushy covers to the wire handles (made from recycled air hose from Boeing) , brightly colored stickers to improve visibility and handy handle loops on the lids for easy removal.

Cobbworks Oyster Buckets on Friday

They hold a fair amount of stuff and even heaver items such as 2 litre bottles of soda don't seem to be a problem. The extra width took me a little getting used to, but then again I'm not used to riding with panniers.

Oyster Buckets with groceries

On nice design element is the tops of the buckets are level with your rear rack, so you can strap bulkier items across the buckets. If you were doing a self supported tour I can see how that would be useful. But even just running errands it is a nice feature. I had to ship a box and while I could have strapped it to just the rear rack, having the Oyster Buckets gave me an extra bit of support.

Oyster Buckets with a box

All in all I am very happy and can recommend them to anybody who needs to carry stuff.