Trailer Wanted
Moderator: MK
-
pat taylor
- Posts: 78
- Joined: Fri Nov 29, 2002 12:01 pm
Trailer Wanted
Does anyone have some knowldge on what kind of trailer I should get to haul my gear in. Probablly should be something like 5 x 10 feet. Should it be open/enclosed? Does anyone know where I could get a trailer for my purposes?
Trailer
U can get a cheapo @ Northern Tool & Eqp. and put your own rack on it...I'm trying to recall the guy along on the Costa Rica trip...he has a nice enclosed 10 x 5' for around $1500(he's a friend of Dean Rizer)...Try Hill Top Trailers for a new one...Also consider weight and the wear and tear on your tranny...especially a front WD like your VW...jrn P.S. wind on Wed? 
I have an enclosed 6x10 trailer for all my windsurfing gear. After two seasons of use I see the following advantages and disadvantages:
+ we bring everything every session. No more "if only I had my xxx" I could be having a great time. Since I sail with my wife and three kids, this is many boards and sails. I personally wouldn't go smaller than 6x10. The extra size over 5x9 doesn't cost much incrementally, and doesn't make much of a difference in towing, and any extra space will fill!
+ we use the trailer to store our gear all year. It's like a separate garage -- which is useful since our regular garage holds cars all winter and bikes all summer. In the winter we load the bikes into the trailer, too.
+ All the gear is always loaded and ready to go whenever we want. Just swing by home, hitch up the trailer (5 mins), and off we go. No worries about forgetting anything.
- we have to pay to store the trailer in the winter, since we don't have a driveway.
- the trailer is a hassle to park. Not an issue in the spring and fall, but when the parking lots are full, it's one more thing to park.
- a big enclosed trailer is expensive. Also: it kills our gas mileage. We go from about 20 mpg to about 12 mpg when we pull the trailer behind our minivan. (We also usually have a kayak and canoe on top, so that contributes too.)
Overall, the trailer was the only solution for my family. My kids were getting grouchy about sailing since they didn't want to be crammed into the minivan with all the gear, and we were running out of room to take enough stuff for more than one sailor at a time. Now we take the trailer every driving vacation we do. It makes luggage packing trivial ... and you never know when you'll pass a lake on a windy day!
John
+ we bring everything every session. No more "if only I had my xxx" I could be having a great time. Since I sail with my wife and three kids, this is many boards and sails. I personally wouldn't go smaller than 6x10. The extra size over 5x9 doesn't cost much incrementally, and doesn't make much of a difference in towing, and any extra space will fill!
+ we use the trailer to store our gear all year. It's like a separate garage -- which is useful since our regular garage holds cars all winter and bikes all summer. In the winter we load the bikes into the trailer, too.
+ All the gear is always loaded and ready to go whenever we want. Just swing by home, hitch up the trailer (5 mins), and off we go. No worries about forgetting anything.
- we have to pay to store the trailer in the winter, since we don't have a driveway.
- the trailer is a hassle to park. Not an issue in the spring and fall, but when the parking lots are full, it's one more thing to park.
- a big enclosed trailer is expensive. Also: it kills our gas mileage. We go from about 20 mpg to about 12 mpg when we pull the trailer behind our minivan. (We also usually have a kayak and canoe on top, so that contributes too.)
Overall, the trailer was the only solution for my family. My kids were getting grouchy about sailing since they didn't want to be crammed into the minivan with all the gear, and we were running out of room to take enough stuff for more than one sailor at a time. Now we take the trailer every driving vacation we do. It makes luggage packing trivial ... and you never know when you'll pass a lake on a windy day!
John