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Can I tow someone on a trike with my bike?
I’m wondering if I can connect my wife’s Schwinn trike to my 2 wheeled bike with some sort of solid bar, similar to those attachments for kids to hook onto their parents bikes essentially creating a tandem bike. My wife walks with a cane and she’s afraid to ride a regular bike in case she has to stop suddenly and put her bad foot down, so I bought her a trike. She has not used the trike since I bought it. I’d really like to take her out for a ride, so I’m wondering if it’s possible for one man (with strong legs) to tow another person who’s on a trike. The trike itself is not light, so does anyone have any experience trying to do what I’m considering? Or will I be blazing a trail for others? Thanks. Mike |
What about, instead, having the trike converted to an electric-assist bike? (I don't know level of her impairment, but it is possible this would be a workable solution, and she may really enjoy it).
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The first question is whether your wife really wants to ride, or to ride with you.
Depending on weights, gearing, etc, you should be able to pull her. But, I'd be a lot more worried about your ability to stop her. Or, perhaps steering issues. You could use a rope to tow her, but eventually the two of you will end up in a very painful HEAP. I like @daoswald's suggestion of an E-Trike for your wife. But, that would assume she really wanted to ride with you. I think I saw a Craigslist ad where someone had fixed up two Delta style trikes to tow each other as essentially a coupled tandem. But, I think that would be a lot safer than our 2 wheel bike towing the trike. But, your other option would be a 2 wheeled tandem, or a tandem trike. Again assuming your wife actually wishes to ride. |
Thanks for the replies. As far as the desire to ride, she gets a little bummed out when she sees pictures from the trails I ride because she can’t do it. That’s why I think if I get her out there, it would motivate her to want to give riding a try. I did look into tandem trikes and electric assist, but they’re very spendy. I’m trying to do this on a budget since it’s experimental and may not have the results I’d like, which is getting her riding. I was hoping someone else may have tried this already and could share some insight. I would use some sort of solid bar as opposed to a tow rope to prevent slowing/stopping issues. I’m going to give this a try in the next week or 2. I’ll report back here with the results, hopefully not from a hospital bed. Lol. Mike |
You could probably build your own E-Assist kit from parts off the internet. I'd probably go with a simple front wheel motor (traditional trike or delta trike) plus control kit and batteries.
The "Trail Gator" gives some of what you're wanting, but designed for lightweight bikes/passengers. I believe it picks the front wheel off the ground, so no rear steering issues. It may have problems with a rigid bar connecting between a bike that has side to side movement and a trike that sits straight upright. Although, one can learn to ride without a side to side wobble, but still, one must lean into turns. |
I've never towed but saw a few people do it. There are issues with it.
A HARD tow point makes the bike being towed a little jerky, a trike may be the same, especially since it is going to be lower than the bike. If not mounted low enough or long enough it may actually lift the front tire off the ground when starting making the towed trike or bike wander. A SOFT tow eliminates some of the jerkiness, but of she fails to stop when you do can make her plow right into you, or get the tow strap / rope wrapped up in the wheels. The person I saw do it did it only on hills, they used a strap and had a system of calling out when it was time to stop, so the towee could also apply their brakes and keep the strap from going slack and wrapping in the wheels. It took a lot of trial and error and still posed risks if it came to an emergency stop. They had to constantly stop and connect / disconnect so it seemed like a hassle to me. But at least it allowed them to get out and ride together. Is she small enough that a trailer would work? I've not seen a modern one but I saw a plan for a sidecar for a bicycle here before on the forum. I'm not sure how well it would work. I know they also make utility bikes with a large front end or large back end for hauling stuff, many have converted them to carry multiple children or pets. Or even a REAL tandem bike. I too would look into the ebike conversion, it's probably the most practical and eliminates the issues with the towing. |
As far as the trailers. I helped distribute bike share bikes around town for the initial rollout. I brought a "kid's trailer" with me to tow the bikes with (rear wheel in the trailer, front rolling).
Anyway, on one return trip I had a young woman riding in the trailer. Not very heavy of a person. It towed just fine. A little funky, yes... but towing was good. Mostly flat, and some small rises. Only issue was the one place where someone had been power washing... and I didn't realize the issue until a little late when I yelled MUD!!!! |
This popped up on our local Craigslist today.
https://images.craigslist.org/00U0U_...j_1200x900.jpg http://www.morgancycle.com/thumbnail...axx=300&maxy=0 https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/...726164660.html Actually, it is in Portland. I'm not up there, but I'll be there shortly. Caboose Trailer Bike According to the specs, max of 180 lbs, and riders with inseams of 25 to 31 inches. Single speed on rear, and no brakes. Personally, I'd outfit it with multi-speed and either coaster brakes, or some type of hub brakes (disc or drum). I'd be pretty terrified of taking the thing around high speed corners, but it would probably be fine along things like MUP riding. |
I'm pretty sure ropes or bars would be illegal, but this looks custom made for OPs purposes. Provide he had a tow bike that is sturdy enough to support the added weight.
Originally Posted by CliffordK
(Post 20623559)
This popped up on our local Craigslist today.
https://images.craigslist.org/00U0U_...j_1200x900.jpg http://www.morgancycle.com/thumbnail...axx=300&maxy=0 https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/...726164660.html Actually, it is in Portland. I'm not up there, but I'll be there shortly. Caboose Trailer Bike According to the specs, max of 180 lbs, and riders with inseams of 25 to 31 inches. Single speed on rear, and no brakes. Personally, I'd outfit it with multi-speed and either coaster brakes, or some type of hub brakes (disc or drum). I'd be pretty terrified of taking the thing around high speed corners, but it would probably be fine along things like MUP riding. |
THAT is exactly what I need! Of course, seeing that makes me wonder if I remove the trikes front wheel and fork assembly, could I fabricate something similar to the way that thing hooks up to the front bike? Hmmm....... |
A tandem bike, of course, would allow you to hold the bike upright while your wife gets on and off, and might be overall safer to ride.
There are cheap "Pacific Cycles" tandems for around $200, I think. Or, they periodically pop up on Craigslist. I think there are a few Step-Through tandems. I have a Gitane tandem which is a "Mixte". Bike Friday tandems, of course, have low top tubes.
Originally Posted by groverdill
(Post 20624803)
THAT is exactly what I need! Of course, seeing that makes me wonder if I remove the trikes front wheel and fork assembly, could I fabricate something similar to the way that thing hooks up to the front bike? Hmmm....... I'm not in Portland, but I may be able to facilitate. Or there are other Portland members. Many adult trikes have an idler pulley system that allows a simple exchange of idler hubs to change gearing. I can't tell if that Morgan trike has that option. So, outfitting it to be really comfortable (and safe) to ride might be a bit of work. Given some time (and expenses), I could probably do some moderate fabrication. |
Sounds like the tandem would be a better fit, although the above attachment is more versatile, but not nearly as sturdy, for more random dual riding.
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You could use a rope if you also get an extra long brake cable and housing, and use your brake lever for her brake so you'll never get crashed into! :D
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I would warn that unless the linkage you fab up between your DF and the trike involves some manner of passive steering, you will be pulled down by the trike going off course.
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Tail gator tow bar
I have the Trail-Gator tow bar used to tow my 6y/o daughter. It’s a really cool tool as it disconnects from her bike once we arrive at the park so she then can ride on her own. Then hook back up for the long tow home. When she applies her coaster brake by accident, it does slow me down a bit but just enough to notice the drag and not stop us both. Towing a trike, I’d be more worried about striking an object or person with the wider width of this set up. You would have to always be aware of your new wider stance and learn just how much space is needed to manover it around trail curves occupied by oncoming bike traffic or others using the trail walking/running. I’ve gotten pretty close on bike trail curves in wooded areas where one can’t see too far ahead, then suddenly you run into traffic. My 6 y/o weighs about 37 lbs. so that addd to our complete stop plus she can’t see ahead of me so she is still pedaling away as I’m trying to slow us down. I’d too recommend adding brakes to that purpose built trike tow behind if that’s the route you take. Then coming up with a ringing bell Morris code you can use to communicate with your Wife to slow you down by applying her brakes. If fabricating your own, trail-gator can sell you just the bike attachments as some ppl have different bikes you can use to tow with. I ordered an extra seat post bracket for my wife’s bike and she can tow her without removing the bracket on my bike. You can order the parts online via trail-gator’s website. Good luck and be safe. This reminds me.... Have you seen that movie about that farmer who wanted to build a rocket to go to the moon? lolhttps://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...8b0cd70ea.jpeg |
That Trail-Gator looks like something to consider. Is the length of the bar fixed, or adjustable? |
It’s intended for a small kids bike with wheels 16” or smaller. The tow bar has two slots, one is fully extended while towing and the other being fully closed for storage. It has one of those locking clevis pins to secure it in these two positions. If you are fabricating the trike by removing the front wheel and clipping off the forks, then you could use this trail-gator and just drill a new hole slot at the shorter length you need. I wouldn’t extend it any longer than the factory slot but using it in a shorter position shouldn’t be an issue. Keep in mind that the childs handle bars shouldn’t turn and should be secured. If the bars turn it can cause the child too loose balance and fall off. The Trail-gator tow bar includes this handle bar stiffener to secure it. I’m not sure it would matter on a trike as you’ll have two rear wheels to keep balance. I assumed you were going to fabricate one from raw steel. |
I built this for my son out of an old tricycle and a kids trail a bike. Here's the forum link.Trail a Trike
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