JohnJ80

Glad to help. The overwhelming percentage of touring cyclists use panniers, but there is really no overriding reason to do so and it boils down to personal preference and cost. When you factor in aero, then I feel that it is then a better solution.

The counterpoints to a trailer are:

• Too easy to carry too much stuff. This, to me, is a matter of personal discipline. I’m a million miler in business travel and I learned long ago that extra stuff doesn’t seem all that great after you lug it around. So I can handle this.
• Trailers can be a nuisance in hotels. The Cyclone IV fixes that too. It’s the transformer of trailers. Turns into a duffle or a wheelie. No hotel is going to have a problem with it.
• Trailers are another opportunity for things to break. I’m an engineer. I’m good at preventative maintenance. But you also ditch the whole high wear issues of the back wheel and tire with panniers where there is a lot of extra weight. You now have no wheel heavily loaded and that’s going to be good all around. I’d put money on the notion that it’s net less broken stuff per mile.
• Extra rolling resistance of one or two extra wheels. This is basically nonsense. Rolling resistance on a fully loaded bike tire is around 7-10W or so. Two lightly loaded tires or a single lightly loaded tire is going to be very low. A wash at worst and likely advantage to the trailer. But at this point, I think we’re splitting hairs.
• Handling. A bike with a trailer can have different handling characteristics depending on how you load it. True and you have to mindful of that. However, the handling is still going to be way better than a heavy bike with heavy panniers on it. Just like with a car, don’t forget it’s behind you.

So that’s my argument for trailers and against buying a new bike especially if you like the bike you have.

My son and I did a spreadsheet of all the trailer picks that are interesting for the two tours we’re doing next summer. If you’re interested in that, I can send it to you. PM me.

J.