Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad
Plastics guy that I am nowadays, I'll suggest that you could also use short segments of PVC.  Either should be available for cheap at your local hardware store. |
PVC would be tits, if I could figure out some kind of ratcheting mechanism to adjust the length.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Farenheit
When you are on the road, aren't you gonna be kinda slow? Cos normally its easy to overtake cyclists who sit to the left (or right in your case), but if you take up the entire width, aren't you going to be a bit of a hazard?
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Yeah, a little. I think it's justified by horse-drawn carts though - they're yet larger, slower, and towed not by a determined cyclist but a 1,500-pound animal. And they're still road legal virtually everywhere.
I'll make myself seen by motorists though - I plan to mount one of those reflective triangles that denotes a slow-moving vehicle, along with tail lights for night use. If I find that insufficient, I could get one of
these as well, so I can be the loudest (in addition to widest and slowest) cyclist on the road.
Yeah, that makes me sound like a prick - I don't mean to be. From my test run I didn't notice anything to indicate driver irritation, and I wasn't riding any further out than I usually do. The trailer only extends laterally two feet beyond the center of my bicycle, which is only a few inches more than most handlebars. I pedaled around 10-12 MPH on flat ground, which I'm sure will increase as I gain confidence in towing this beast.
Another thing to talk about - I'm having trouble coming up with a sturdy towing arm design. The one I put together had the tendency to twist clockwise (as viewed from the front) with even a slight amount of tongue weight. Anyone have ideas?