My family recently got the chance to review a Chariot trailer for our bikes - the kind of trailer that you can stick your kid in and ride down to the farmer's market, park, or just take a fun jaunt around town. Having never used a bike trailer before, my husband and I were really interested in the details; how does it rig up to the bike? Is it compact enough to fit in the car? How comfortable is it for our young son?

We reviewed a two-kid model, despite only having one child. My reasoning for this is that we wanted a lot of cargo space - for veggies from the market, groceries from the store, or just for blankets in the colder months. Moreover, we have lots of friends with similar aged children. So it seemed like a good way to have a double stroller when we are watching our friend's kid for the afternoon.

Below, details of our findings for this very high-quality and easy-to-use bike trailer, which is not without its flaws.

Setup and use

The bike hitch is easy to use and sturdy. Even someone who isn't interested in bike mechanics (like me) would find it simple. The rain fly, bug fly, sun cover, and safety flag also all attach and unattach (or store neatly with velcro tabs) cleanly and conveniently.




The Chariot provides a comfortable ride for our child. He falls asleep in it all the time (his typical seal of approval for anything) and at other times can be hear squealing with excitement at passing dogs, other bikes, etc. The tires seem sturdy and ride really smoothly, and the adjustable suspension is handy but also simple.

The large rear pocket is big enough for all sort of things. You can wedge a full frame pack for your child in there, plus stick a diaper bag deep in the pocket. Very useful! And despite overfilling this pocket, the trailer still felt well balanced. Unfortunately, the mechanism that holds the storage bag in place (two quick release levers) slowly tightens on one side, and loosens on the other, with use. After only a few times, the tightened side lever is extremely hard to release. This seems to be because of the direction of the screw threading on the connectors. It is very annoying. I wonder if they could use another connector (cotter pins?) in a future model that would alleviate this problem.

For a young small child (about 12-18 months), the helmet slot is not enough to keep the trailer's (very necessary) safety straps from pushing the kid's helmet forward onto their face. My son was really upset by his helmet falling onto his face, and it was unsafe because his helmet was sliding out of position. Then we figured out that if you take a nice thick blanket and pad the entire backrest of the seat (basically, extending the distance from the back of the child's head to the problem area about 2 inches) then the kid is still strapped in there securely, and they can wear their helmet in the right position and comfortably. In an interesting coincidence, I asked a friend if she had this same problem with her 1 child model Chariot and 18 month old daughter, and she said, "Yes, but lately we've been padding her forward a little with a blanket and it completely fixed it." So this is a common problem for other young toddlers, I'm guessing.

Storage and transport

Folding the trailer down for storage is quick and simple. Once folded, the trailer fits pretty well in small spaces. I'd expect that any non-compact car could accommodate it. For us, it fits in our larger car's storage area, but is a really awkward squeeze into our smaller car.


However, when you try to fold the Chariot down flat to store it, the folding releases get caught on the fabric of the body. It only takes a second to fix this, but it makes the folding process more challenging and if you were rushed, you might accidentally rip your fabric.

Jogging and strolling kits

You can remove and swap out the bike hitch for components that turn the trailer into a standard stroller or jogging stroller; the former features two castered wheels in front, the latter a single center tire. Each is sold separately for $60-$75.

We tested the jogging stroller kit; we loved how you can add the wheel and handlebar without the use of tools once you get to a strolling site. While this is a little challenging because the parts fit very precisely, it gets quicker with a few tries and is very well-engineered. A big bonus is that there are pre-fitted storage slots on the frame, making the whole system perfect for a bike-stroll-bike outing.

We did not test the unit for actual jogging, and it lacks some of the features one might expect in a fully-featured jogging stroller; for example, it has a foot-activated parking brake, but no hand brake. For $75, however, the conversion is far less expensive than most serious jogging strollers, which run anywhere from $150 on up. We love the convenience of being able to swap this out to combine biking and strolling (or jogging, if one was so inclined).

Summary

After testing out the Chariot Cougar 2 kid bike trailer, I'm glad I chose the two-child model. The single-child models are narrow and efficient pods to move kids, but they allow virtually no room for gear or other random items.The two-kid model is a posh paradise of space and comfort for a single child, with lots of leg room, space for a diaper bag, some lettuce, multiple toys, and a blanket. Lastly, believe it or not, in several years when my son is old enough to ride his own bike, my husband plans to use this trailer for deer hunting on his bike. While that might seem absurd to some, it is relatively common in this part of western Montana. A tarp could easily convert this trailer into a deer hauler, and it absolutely feels sturdy enough to use for this unconventional cargo.

We're also very interested in testing the company's skiing conversion kit (!), which will allow us to pull the trailer behind us while cross-country skiing.

After a month of taking it for test walks (in the stroller mode) and test rides (when rigged as a bike trailer) I can honestly say that our expectations, even for what we knew was a high-performance model of bike trailer, were exceeded. The Chariot Cougar 2 trailer is an excellent piece of family sporting gear, and one that we'd suggest to just about anyone who uses a bike.

The Chariot Cougar sells for $400 and $450 for the single and double models. You can find a dealer of Chariot bike trailers on the Chariot website, or purchase them from online sporting shops.

Wondering how to incorporate your baby into your cross-country skiing? For the tiniest kids, a front-pack or Moby wrap zipped half way under your own jacket is a great solution - warm, safe, and keeps your center of gravity over your feet. But once your child gets too big or too squirmy for those, you'll probably need something else. I think that while frame packs are great for snow shoeing, they are not a good choice for cross-country skiing because of the greater speed and increased chance of falling. Thus, you'll want to pull them along behind you for safety and comfort.

For this, my husband and I figured out an inexpensive and simple alternative to the glorious (and out of our current price range) "pulks" out there. (Many of the best brands of bike "chariots" for tots, like Chariot, offer ski conversion kits - you can see some fun photos of folks using Chariot brand pulks as ski sleds on the Chariot website.) We call it the "Super Sled." Here's how you can make your own. This sled design is adapted from the cargo sled design in Allen and Mike's Really Cool Backcountry Ski Book. An excellent resource!

Tools

• Power drill


• Lighter


• Old sandpaper

Materials to buy

• One sturdy plastic sled, preferably about 4 feet long (typically $12 - $20 at a hardware store)


• Two PVC poles, 1.5" diameter, 5 feet long (a dollar or two each)


• Roughly 30 feet of thick synthetic cord. It is usually called "P", or parachute, cord. (Cost varies greatly. Shouldn't exceed $10)

Materials to find around the house

• Something sturdy, insulating, and that folds in half (we use an old Crazy Creek camping chair)


• Large belt that will fit over all your winter clothing, around your waist


• Smaller belt that will be used to make a seat belt in the sled


• Double wide milk crate, high quality small laundry basket, or other sturdy and non-metal structure that your child will fit in

From here, it is simple to make yourself a sled that allows you to pull your child behind you comfortably and safely. Here's the concept, which you'll need to adapt as you go for your own kid, materials, and situation.

1. Center your milk crate on the sled, and drill four holes in the rim of the sled that line up cleanly with the corners of the crate


2. Use some of your cord to firmly tie the crate into place. Every time you use the cord, lightly singe the edges with the lighter (before you tie it to the sled) to prevent fraying)


3. Place your insulating chair into the crate, and affix it to the base of the crate with more cord as needed.


4. Attach safety belt into crate, as low as possible. You don't want your slumping child to feel tangled up!


5. Drill two holes in the front of the sled to attach poles. They should be about a foot apart and perhaps 8 to 10 inches from the front. See photo to clarify.


6. Sand these holes gently on both sides so that they don't have rough or sharp edges


7. Run cord through your two poles, and tie ends to the sled through your new holes, allowing ample cord to come out the other side (where you will stand and pull).


8. Affix the cord to the sides of your bigger belt, preferably in a way that is very tight to the belt, so that the poles attach on the edges of each of your hips. We used an old hip belt for an external frame pack, which is ideal. Other kinds of belts could work, too.


9. Flip the belt 180 degrees, so that the poles cross into an X. Tie a little scrap of cord around the center.


10. Stick your child in the crate and go for a short test drive.

This is age-appropriate for a baby that is very comfortable sitting up on their own (probably a threshold of six to twelve months, depending on the child). It is not appropriate for a smaller kid - they'll get very uncomfortable and you could strain their muscles.

Test drive your sled multiple times before using it on a real outing. We took ours for two separate ten-minute runs on skis, made some changes, and then a leisurely thirty-minute walk through the unplowed neighborhood early one morning. After that we started doing real trips of about an hour to an hour and a half. Know your child's limits, both for sitting still and for keeping warm.


Note the crossed poles and attachment positions.

The crazy creek chair provides your baby with both basic insulation and a headrest. But without any sort of guard from the wind, your baby will need to be very well dressed. When it is particularly cold, we dress our child in his full long underwear, sweater, warm pants, hat, two pairs of boots, snow suit, and then we place him in a child's sleeping bag. All in the crate, all with the seat belt around him. Remember - when you cross-country ski, you get hot because you are exercising. Your child, on the other hand, is sitting still and exposed to the wind. Be careful! Don't let the little sledder get miserable!

Larry Gilg has 27 rainbarrels stacked up against the side of his house. Over the rainy season, he's able to collect much of the water he needs to water his garden during the dry season. He could have used a standard electric pump to bring the water to his garden. But that's just not Larry's style.



Larry hooked a water pump to a bicycle trainer and uses it to pump water out of his rainwater system. He must get some funny looks when the neighbors walk by. But can you imagine a more refreshing way to exercise?

I found this story (and the images) on HarvestH20.com, a website dedicated to rainwater harvest. You can read an in-depth interview with Larry on that site, or get step-by-step instructions on how to build Larry's system.