Sometimes the right tool for the job is my car. We’re moving offices and my new window cube won’t have wall space for framed art. While I’ve carried some crazy things on my bike, large frames with glass is not on the list.
About the Bike Commute Diaries: Launched in May 2012 for National Bike Month, this series explores the unexpected and surprising things I’ve learned about bicycling for transportation.
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Adventures in city cycling
Excursions of a biking and hiking homeschool family
How and where to shop by bike in Silicon Valley, California
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Bikes, brevets, commutes, runs. Washington, D.C.
Exploring the urban environment through fun human-powered adventures, riding bicycles, and gawking at bicycles in and around Portland, Oregon, Cascadia
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Exploring Europe by water
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a look at societal and economic influences on human systems.
Endurance Cycle for Macular Disease
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musings on life as a university professor
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Tackling The Reasons You Don't Bike
Save San Jose's Famed Faber's Bicycle Shop
gasstationwithoutpumps
August 21, 2013 at 12:52 pm
For those occasional large, fragile objects, I’ve found a bike trailer very useful. You have to pack things well (in bubble-wrap or blankets), but you can carry surprisingly large objects without too much trouble. (Probably the largest object I’ve carried this way is a 4-drawer wooden filing cabinet, and the heaviest about 200lbs of fruit for a bike-to-work breakfast.)
I have 2 trailers: an old Burley cargo trailer that is quite light, and a custom-made steel trailer that can handle heavier loads. I don’t need them often (a couple of times a year), but they’ve pretty much eliminated the need for a car.
ladyfleur
August 21, 2013 at 2:07 pm
I have a bike trailer that I’ve used to haul a Christmas tree, propane tank, and the fragile and heavy supplies for a tea party last weekend. But there are a couple of reasons it wouldn’t work for bringing the picture frames home from work.
First, my office is 11-14 miles from home so I usually take Caltrain with my bike instead of riding the whole way and I can’t do that with a trailer. Even the best route involves some traffic merges that would be tough with my 8-10 mph pace with the trailer.
Second, panes of glass need to be transported vertically, which I could probably do, but the route is pretty rough in a few sections. I wouldn’t want to risk the damage.
Besides, my car needs to be driven every once in a while or the battery will go dead. :)
gasstationwithoutpumps
August 21, 2013 at 3:32 pm
You’re right that trailers don’t work well with multimodal travel. I could do glass panes vertically in my steel trailer (if they’re not too big), but I’d want a *lot* of padding since it does shake things up a lot. I can see how a car would be tempting if one had one available.