Burley

While Burley produces tandem bicycles and great raingear, it is perhaps best known for its leadership in the child bicycle trailer industry. Burley sponsored us by donating a Burley d’Lite trailer to our trip. While the d’Lite is designed to carry one or two children, we used it to carry all of our gear - computers, camping equipment, bicycle gear, etc. The d’Lite has an ample 100 pound carrying capacity, and is rated to work at speeds of up to 15 miles an hour. Those Burley engineers must have been working overtime, though. We had our trailer loaded to the limit, and went around corners traveling down hills at 50+ miles an hour, and the trailer didn’t tip or even sway. The trailer is attached to the bike with a special polymer joint that gives enough flex to allow the bike to lean without tipping the trailer, but not so much that the trailer sways or is even noticeable, whether speeding down a hill or trudging up a steep grade.

What’s impressive about the Burley d’Lite is that not only does it boast excellent handling characteristics, it’s incredibly well designed as well. The d’Lite comes 95% assembled out of the box. The "walls" flip up, and a pivoting bar holds the sides apart and forms the roof strength for the trailer. The wheels are high quality rims and have quick releases so putting them on and taking them off is a snap. In fact, we found that in less than a minute, we could collapse the d’Lite down to a suitcase sized package. Talk about convenience!

With the Walk ‘n Roller option (not pictured), the Burley d’Lite switches for a great bike trailer to the world’s most luxurious child stroller. The front wheel is mounted on a pivot - rotate it down to stroll, pivot and lock it up to reattach to a bicycle. The Walk ‘n Roller package also includes a padded push bar to make jogging with the d’Lite comfortable.

While the d’Lite comes with a breathable, insect screen cover, we knew we’d need something more robust for Virginia rainstorms. Burley also provided us with the 2-in-1 cover for the d’Lite, which has a plastic layer that snaps over the insect screen cover for waterproof protection.

The d’Lite was a joy to have a long. In fact, I don’t see how we could have done the trip without it. People complain about the additional weight and wind drag, but the d’Lite is fairly aerodynamic, and at only 20.8 pounds, towing it along is well worth the massive cargo capacity. Carry two kids, a dog, or a whole lot of gear - the d’Lite is right for you!

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