Sale Price : $284.00
Availibility : Usually ships in 24 hours
Burley Travoy Bike Commuter Trailer Overview
The Travoy is a revolutionary new commuter product. It hitches to the seat post of any bike, and detaches easily when you reach your destination. As a stand-alone, you can wheel the trailer around the aisles of a store, onto the bus or right into the office. The Travoy has a very light (but sturdy) aluminum frame and weighs less than 10 pounds and can carry up to 60 pounds. We’ve introduced a series of integrated bags to store everything under the sun. The trailer itself folds down to a tiny size to stash in its carrying tote which is small enough to fit in an airliner’s overhead bin.
…Read More product detail
Burley Travoy Bike Commuter Trailer Features
- New Burley commuter trailer Perfect for work, school or running errands without a car
- Hitches to the seat post of any bike Detaches easily with the flip of a switch to wheel around inside, right up the stairs and into the office
- Lightweight aluminum frame Weighs less than 10 pounds Carries up to 60 pounds
- Accessory bags clip right onto frame, then lift off to carry inside
- Folds flat for easy storage Includes carrying tote
Burley Travoy Bike Commuter Trailer Best Review
I love to ride my bike, but am not a serious cyclist, and the fact that I don’t ride as much as I’d like to is what made the Burley Travoy Bike Commuter Trailer appealing. Pulling a trailer on a bike is not something I have any experience with – never used a child or pet trailer — nothing. My motivation is to find a way to ride my bike more and use my car less.
The trailer is amazingly light weight (9.8 pounds) and portable. Right out of the box there is little to do but unfold the frame which entails a cable release for the bottom shelf (with pop-up reflectors) and twist hand grips that turn to both secure and release for the other two segments, and actually serve as handles to carry the collapsed trailer. Next, the 12 1/2 x 2 inch pneumatic wheels are attached by pressing a button on the hub (also serves as the release,) and screw the hitch to the seat stem (compatible with 25-32 mm seat posts, but not recommended for use with carbon fiber posts) with the included hex key, and then attach the trailer to it. That’s it, done, ready to ride. The entire process took maybe five minutes.
A large carry-all tote bag (approximately 21 x 17 x 7 inches) is included which is secured to tie-down buttons on the trailer frames with attached loops and swivel-lock buckles. There are also two included tie-down straps to further secure the bag. The tote is generous in size and would easily transport two or three bags of groceries or other purchases, a large picnic lunch or work clothes and a laptop if commuting. The same tote also holds the entire collapsed trailer for storage when not in use. This set-up should serve anyone looking for a means to transport most anything (up to 60 pounds), but if it isn’t exactly what the rider needs, a variety of other bags for the trailer are available, including one designed to hold more groceries. For night riding, there are pop up reflectors on the frame and a small amount of reflector cloth on the tote.
So, how does the trailer ride? I hooked it up to my bike and took it for a test trip to the grocery store. There is a bike lane (asphalt) right in front of my home and a grocery store a couple of miles down the street. Headed down my steep driveway I felt no loss of control with the trailer hooked to my bike, of course I had no load and the trailer itself is lightweight. The area is hilly and it handled well and almost immediately felt like a natural part of my bike.
At the store I locked my bike, flicked the lever on the hitch and removed the trailer and wheeled it in. With the tote bag attached to the trailer, I selected a gallon of milk, some lettuce and a frozen pizza, intentionally buying a load that would be out of balance for the return trip home. I unloaded at the checkout and wheeled the trailer around to the other side of the loading area and the cashier repacked the items in the tote. The entire exercise – unfolding the trailer, attaching it to the bike, de-attaching it and rolling it through the store, re-attaching it to the hitch and riding off was so convenient there is absolutely no excuse not to use it. Some products sound good on paper but in actual practice are more trouble than they are worth – not the case here.
On the trip home, the presence of the trailer was more noticeable, particularly when turning, but the handling, although not as precise, was fine and the bike felt very stable. It did require more distance to stop, but the rider quickly makes adjustments to compensate for the added weight and changes in handling. At no time did I feel out of control.
I looked at Burley’s other trailers – the Flatbed and Nomad, and although the benefits of both for a particular use are clear, the Travoy, with its lighter weight and smaller wheel base, is better suited for my needs. Its design adds to the feeling that it is one with the bike, not a small feat because trying to transport anything on a bike is a challenge — imperfect at best and requiring compromises.
If the bike is stolen, the hitch goes along with it, so Burley might want to consider re-engineering it to include a quick release mechanism for attaching it to the stem so it could be taken along with the trailer when the bike is locked. That is my only suggestion for what I otherwise consider a terrific product. Parts are sold separately, so if virtually anything on the trailer breaks or is lost or stolen, a replacement may be ordered. I plan to order a spare set of tubes to have on hand.
Not surprisingly, there is no warranty on the tires, but the rest of the parts have a warranty that ranges from three to five years. A small thing, but I appreciated that on the enclosed warranty registration card a bar code containing the serial number for the trailer is pre-printed so the owner doesn’t need to hunt around for it.
I am impressed with this bike trailer and see endless uses for it. It looks smart, is well designed and user friendly, requires very little storage space and the available accessories add versatility and a level of customization. Now that I own the trailer, I will use my bike more often, particularly in situations where in the past using a car might have looked like my only option.
Burley Travoy Bike Commuter Trailer RelateItems
update Aug 23, 2010 07:48:29
