Hello, Bike Trailer Blog readers!
Im Eric Hanson, and Im a sales dude at Burley Design in Eugene, OR. Josh and the team at the Bike Trailer Shop offered me the chance to introduce Burley Trailers to their readers and I thought it would be a great chance to show off some of the cool things Burley has been up to lately.
But first, allow me to share a little history. In the beginning, there was a farmers market and a dream. From a humble beginning manufacturing ways to haul arts and crafts, Burley quickly grew into one of the foremost builders of bike trailers for children and cargo. Since 1978, weve built millions of trailers and a whole generation of kids has grown up envious of the other moms and dads in the neighborhood who loved their kids enough to buy a Burley. For 32 years weve stuck to what we know best: cycling and figuring out how to have the most fun and get the most use out of a bike.
Were also known for our long-term commitment to safe child products. Weve worked with the American Society for the Testing of Materials over the years to develop their safety standards for child bicycle carriers. All of our trailers are ASTM-certified and free of harmful substances such as lead and phthalates.
One of the most interesting things about working at Burley is the dedicated fan base weve tried to earn over the years. Every day, people call us with questions about their old trailers, or to brag about how far theyve ridden. Ive seen pictures of Burleys on treks across at least six continents, and I have faith that there are biologists or geologists using a Flatbed in Antarctica. If you know anyone like this, let them know we have a map here just waiting for a final bike-shaped pushpin.
Today, were confident that we have the best trailers on the market. We like them so much that we use them ourselves. In fact, if you ever flip through one of our catalogs, youll see a lot of Burley folk and their extended families. Heres the Burley front office crew last month, showing off our new Travoy trailers.
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The Burley Travoy is a new bike commuter trailer that weve been working on for two years and finally released to wide acclaim last month. We sent one down a Burley Travoy to the Campfire Cycling team for testing around Christmastime, and they liked it enough to bring some into the shop for their customers.
The Travoy hitches to the seat post of your bike and lifts off in seconds to wheel down the street and right inside with you. Because of its ease of use, it solves one of the principle objections we hear to using your bicycle for daily utility trips: how to carry things and/or lock them up. Since you can take the new Burley inside with you, there’s no need to worry about locking up what’s in your pannier bag or leaving anything outside. And if you don’t want to stand the trailer up in your office or a restaurant, it folds down to briefcase-size to fit under your desk or in your cramped downtown apartment.
Weve had the new Travoy out and about for reviews around the country and its received a lot of praise. So far, weve seen it used to haul all manner of gear:
Computers
Golf clubs
A mini-fridge
3 cases of microbrew beer
Bike shop employees (who clearly disregarded the manuals prohibition against loads of more than 60 pounds)
Skis
Dog food
But were on the lookout for more. Stay tuned to this space to learn more about our Travoy contests. We know that you have something cooler to haul on a Travoy and we want to know what it is. It can haul up to 60 pounds worth of anything you can imagine. If you send us a picture, we may even send some swag.
That about does it for my inaugural guest post here at Bike Trailer Blog. Feel free to share your ideas of what you would haul on a Travoy, or any other Burley Child Trailers or Burley Cargo Trailers, in the comments.