Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Max on July 30, 2008 at 2:31pm

If you're riding with a trailer, you should be safer if you put a flag on the trailer so it's more visible to cars. But in my opinion, it's probably best to stay on the trails. Chicagoland bike federation actually has a lot of info on riding with kids - they recommend (from the site):

Lakefront bike path (beware of wind resistance with trailers . . .)
Burnham greenway (bonus: great bird watching during spring and fall migrations)
Palos/Tinley area
North Branch trail
Salt Creek trail
I and M Canal trail
Old Plank Road trail

They also recommend avoiding Wells (b/c of El posts), Armitage and Halsted (both too narrow).

If you want to check out the CBF article, it's at this link: http://www.biketraffic.org/content.php?id=27_0_6_0

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Permalink Reply by Leah on July 30, 2008 at 2:40pm

Hi Leigh - as part of the Boulevard Lakefront Tour, there's a special ride just for families! There are more details in the events section: http://www.thechainlink.org/events/event/show?id=2211490:Event:723

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Permalink Reply by John LaVere on September 19, 2008 at 5:54am

Sheridan Rd. from Plaza Del Lago in Wilmette up through all of the North Shore worked well for me with a bike trailer. Traffic is light, there are very few stops, and the lanes are quite wide. Traffic picks up in the mid to late afternoon.

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Permalink Reply by Julie Aberman (Hochstadter) on September 9, 2015 at 4:38am

Bumping this since it's a 7 year old thread and I'm preparing to take Eliana out and about soon!

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Permalink Reply by Gin on October 29, 2015 at 10:24am

We took Miguel everywhere in the trailer. Since we (and you) already have decent knowledge of good routes in general, you have a solid base to work from. Riding-with-trailer skill is more important than route selection. Some trailer tips are here. http://bikewinter.org/kids

People might honk and yell at you for "endangering" your child, but if they are yelling, that means they see you. No one* wants to hit someone, esp someone carrying a child.

Start with low stake trips (ie, ones where you don't have to be somewhere at a certain time) and have someone ride behind you to give you feedback on your roadway positioning. You need to get used to having a slightly "wider load" ie less clearance.

You need to take corners a little more carefully 1) to make sure you are visible and have enough clearance and 2) so you don't hit a curb cut which can lead to the trailer tipping

Just pretend you are driving a flatbed truck and make lots of eye contact. :) Good luck!
*Well, almost no one and anyone that does transcends questions of biking set up. I posted this in another forum recently, but it is relevant.
http://velobaby.blogspot.com/2009/04/yes-bikes-belong-even-at-830-p...

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