This is an Odd One...

[naked indian]

Thinking about going bike packing and taking my ten year old on a 70 to 80 ish mile trip, mix of road, single track, bike path and double track over a one to two night trip.

Got the kits all set up, no questions there.

My question comes from knowing full well he may tire and wondering if any of you guys have any experience using a tow rope while cycling.  I figure if he does tire I can use the tow rope loop on my Osprey pack tie to it to his bars and let him rest his legs while still making productive forward motion.

Myself having no experience with tow ropes was wondering what I could use that would be lightweight and strong enough?

Suggestions are appreciated,

thanks,

[DaveH]

I've got a good bit of experience towing - it used to be legal in multi-day stage races like Trans Rockies and Trans Alps.

It is not as simple as you might imagine, and if the towed person is not sharp, paying attention and "on it" then a tangled crash can happen.  The way we did it was to have a pvc pipe extending from the saddle rails with a piece of bungie cord going through it with a carabiner on the end.  The 'biner was attached to a loop/biner on the head tube of the towed rider.

In general I'd think that if your little guy was getting tired towing would be a bit risky.  Practicing with the towing system before needing it is super helpful.  It is probably feasible on long, steady slow climbs (wait - aren't you in Florida?).  Rolling terrain with lots of speed changes is not feasible towing terrain.

As far as what to use...short of the above described dedicated towing system something like a retractable dog leash with a section of elastic bungee could do the trick.

Bikepacking with kids!  Sounds like tons of fun, it's in my near future as well.  Have fun and I'd love to hear how it goes!

[naked indian]

Good info.  We will practice, If I do tow him it would be on pavement, not off road.  The off road chunk, single track is like 10 to 15 miles and we would pound it out first thing in the morning.  Then we would be in a downtown area heading towards the bike path and we I can get him food and ice cream and that will easily carry him another 10 to 15 miles.

I will totally post up the story when we go.

So Ya, I will practice, I was already thinking carabiner clips.

[DaveH]

Awesome.  I'm sure you already have this part figured out but my little guy can burn through his energy stores in a hurry.  He actually has a ton of endurance so long as we keep the hummingbird fed.

Looking forward to hearing how it goes!  We are looking to do our first bikepack next summer, we have this really sweet high elevation lake in mind.  Who knows, it could be just a local sub 24, the options are endless in Utah.

[FeloniousDunk]

A few of my buddies regularly tow their kids simply with a 4 foot bungee cord with the hooks on the ends.  They loop one end around their seatpost using the hook to connect the bungee to itself and the same thing around their kids headtube.  I've only seen them do it on long steady climbs here in western NC and seems to work really well.

[naked indian]

Thanks for the tips...

Im  thinking of hitting the hardware store, asking the gentleman for something that can handle about 100lbs towing capacity and is lightweight, then rig it with carabiner clips.

Spoke with the boy yesterday about the trip, gave him the low down, he is "thinking about it" but seemed pretty positive and excited about camping out and fires and such.

I have two hammocks, but Im wondering if I should just tarp camp in sleeping bags...

[Mike Brown]

ni- The best thing I've used is heavyweight surgical tubing and carabiners. This is standard in adventure races.

[Done]

I've got a buddy who's been towing his kid for years on gravel roads and even some easy singletrack. He uses a Flexi leash so that the cord retracts when the two bikes get close together. When I asked about "bounce" when the leash hits the end, he said that the cord is stretchy enough that it's not a problem.

The only tow-induced crash occurred a couple of years ago when his kid was still riding a bike with a coaster brake. The kid's chain came off, so he couldn't stop on a downhill--and he zipped past until the leash caught him. Probably would have crashed either way though! In any case, this isn't a problem with hand brakes.

Safety-wise, it's probably a good idea to make sure that anything stretchy (bungee cords, surgical tubing) or spring-loaded (Flexi leashes), is very well attached at both ends--and isn't likely to snap. Catching a loose hook or something in the face wouldn't be good. I'm speaking from experience here: While walking my dog, I had an old Flexi break (due to cord wear, purely my fault for not checking it), and it whipped back into my face, ouch; fortunately I was wearing sunglasses.

[naked indian]

Ya, thats my concern with the flexy bouncy stuff as well, a Snap an an injury to him and his face, me not so much as my back will be protected by my pack.

Imma go for it, hope he's all In to do it, Im not gonna force it, but I will offer incentives such as pizza, ice cream, movies, LOL.

[Done]

If you go with a Flexi leash, you could attach the handle to your bike (my buddy has his tied to his seat post). That way if anything breaks, the cord and/or clips will head toward your back--not your son's face.