fooling with utility bikes is still a for fun thing for me, so this is just my second try at carrying something
i'm doing a very slow gazebo build, and needed 3 pieces of 8' decking, so i measured to see how far back it would stick out from the bike, stuck an 8' ladder on it to eyeball it, and decided to try and get it on the bike.
there's a lowes about 2.5mls from my house that makes a good test run. not too far away, and there's a railroad overpass along the way to see how fighting with an uphill and downhill works out.
the load was 62lbs, but i think the length of it was the bigger issue. had a few tail wagging the dog moments. i also had a front end failure, but it looks like i managed to leave a bearing race out when i put it together (at least i hope that's what happened, even though it was real inept of me).
the whole utility bike thing is still interesting to me, but i'm seeing things that i need to try and change for my replacement attempt, mainly trying to get it lighter. even though the steering failure was my fault, i remember reading it can be a weak point on a cargo bike (i thought something like that had happened at first), so i mean to look for a bike with a 1 1/8" head tube for the next try. the suspension stays though. i like it and i felt it helping on bigger bumps that might have got the wood bouncing more. i still have the light spring on it, but with the wood it didn't bottom out. i still mean to change it eventually. i also think i want to try lowering the load, so i'm keeping an eye out for sturdy looking 20" bikes with rear suspension to make the next rear section from.