Question:
With the riding season nearly upon us in the midwest I find my thoughts
being drawn to daydreams of riding my FLHTC to new places. With a
larger area to roam, I will need to find a trailer to pull behind the
bike and carry my camping supplies. Can any kind soul direct to a good
place (within 200 miles of Chicago would be helpful) that sells trailers
and/or campers for motocycles. Most of the prices seem kinda high so
I'm hoping to find a good, reliable trailer. Please reply to my e-mail
address as I don't have the opportunity to read this newsgroup as often
as I would like. Thanks in advance.
Answer:
Because a bike can handle a trailer, it's an obvious option.
Unless you are really set on a trailer, there is another option.
I've been fine tuning my road gear over the past few years. The
best source of ideas for compact camping gear is used by back-country
hikers. There are similar ideas for long distance bicyclists.
I now have a roomy two person tent that fits_in_the tour-pak. My first
tent was too big, and got strapped to the rails on the saddle bag. The
rails on the other saddle bag held a ground mat. A rack on the tour-pak
makes room for one sleeping bag and a second ground mat. The other
sleeping bag was in the tour-pak. A back packer cook kit and stove,
clothing, and rain gear fill all the remaining spaces. I'm assuming
you're doing simple camping on the way, where you pick up groceries
at the end of the day. I pack sleeping bags in waterproof (mostly :))
bags; the ground mats don't matter. I also stuff in a large tarp for
drizzly days at the camp site, where I can be heard muttering *gee this
is fun*
BTW, the above is based on two-up riding; it does take some work. A
high maintenance passenger I don't know about, and probably wouldn't
try! For just me, I can't fill all the space on my Ultra.
There is one national chain called REI that has lots of on-point
camping gear; I'm not advertising, it's just the one near me, with
good products and service. There must be similar suppliers near you.
IMHO, I don't want a trailer distracting me from the twisties, like
Rt. 9 west of Berkley Springs, WV. It would be a waste of good road.
Works for me, anyway.
Good luck on your search; but if you want to compare notes on compact
gear, I'll be around here. It'd be a great thread, IMHO.
