Monday, November 25, 2019

A Cycle Tote Trailer with Auto-braking

At Saturday's Friends of Trees planting, one of the fellows had this very cool Cycle Tote Trailer. It worked great for hauling trees and supplies, but he explained to me that normally he is using it to haul his Golden Labrador and that the trailer has a Conestoga-style roof.

The trailer has very interesting and clever hitch and braking system. The seatpost mounted hitch has a spring which compresses when the trailer has greater froward momentum than the bike. This action tugs on dual brake cables that activate the Sturmey-Archer drum brakes in the trailer wheels. Thus, the trailer and the bike slow simultaneously with the braking action of the bike and the trailer doesn't over-run the bike.






My own, much smaller, trailer doesn't have such a feature and while it is fine for the relatively small loads I regularly carry, there are circumstances where I do notice the momentum of the trailer. If I was carrying a large load in hilly areas, I think I'd definitely want some sort of braking on the trailer.

The Cycle Tote Trailers are made in Fort Collins, Colorado. While they are certainly not cheap, their design and construction is first rate. I have no financial interest in them, but I appreciate good design when I see it.

Kent Peterson
Eugene, OR USA

1 comment:

herzogone said...

Very cool, I wasn't aware of those trailers. Looks like the bicycle equivalent of what are known as "surge brakes" in motor-vehicle trailers. Nice to see you posting again also!