The wobble is probably due to the telescoping arm design and the connection to the child bike, both of which are unique to the Trail Gator and introduce some additional instability. We’ve used a lot of tag along bikes and bike towing options. Like most things in life, their quality and ease-of-use are directly related to their price point. The Trail Gator is a bit wobbly, similar to the “wobble factor” we also found with the popular WeeRide Co-Pilot. But it’s also the most affordable towing option on the market. Ride attached or separately: almost every commercially available children´s bike can be attached to every commercially available adult´s bike!

Since the front wheel of the child bike is lifted off the ground and the handlebars of the child bike are secured by the handlebar stabilizer rod, the adult bike controls all steering. Family rides or commuting through city streets where it would be beneficial to keep your little out of traffic While the Trail Gator is certainly a fun and useful bike accessory for families, it’s not perfect. It’s important to understand some potential issues you may encounter before you decide to buy it. The “Wobble Factor” Training wheels are the norm and your child can’t ride long distances that way. Tow them without training wheels instead! The tow bar has a vertical and a horizontal pivot located at the adult bike seat post area, which allow for side to side and up and down movement only, and keeps the child bike in an up right position when being towed. The tow bar attachment to the child bike receiver is a rigid mount therefore restricting movement at that end.Attachment and detachment can be done at any time and only takes seconds. No tools are necessary and no parts need to be removed from either bike. The tow bar weights just 5 pounds and the high-strength steel construction make it virtually indestructible. The Trail-Gator Bicycle Tow Bar gives adults and children the option of riding together or separately for a fun, safe, and enjoyable bike ride. Whichever option you choose, the Trail-Gator makes it possible for you to enjoy the benefits of bicycling with your child. If you want to go on a family bike ride but don’t want your child to get too tired, then you should take a look at the Trail-Gator Tandem Tow Bar. In these instances, we like using a tow rope or tow bar to help assist our little riders.Here are some of the best options for bike towing. The Trail Gator is a unique bike towing solution to several common problem parents often have when biking with their kids. I have created an excellent and cheap design. I bought a retractable dog leash for 40-50lbs and then cut the rope down to a little smaller length and then tied a bungee cord on the end to create a loop (taped it on to secure a little more). This loop fits around the kids top stem. The retractable unit gets zip tied underneath the adults seat and seat post. The pros: it retracts when the kid pops it off with one hand from his stem, so neither parent or child needs to stop biking to unhook. I made a few of these to have on each parents bike so who ever is close can hook up very fast. We leave the leash on the parents bike all summer and doesn’t interfere with our riding. But zip ties are cheap if anyone wants it off for adult rides.

The wobble is exaggerated when just gaining momentum, but becomes much less noticeable as you gain speed. If you can get your child to stay relatively still while pedaling, that’s also a huge help! Weight also plays a factor – the wobble was more noticeable when towing our 48-pound 6-year-old tester. I didn’t notice a wobble at all when I was towing our 2.5-year-old. Child Bike Can Lean to the Side

The Trail-Gator is designed to work with 12"-20" bikes with riders weighing 70 pounds or less. Due to the receiver angle on the tow bar, bike frames larger than 20” will not be able to be set up to the proper wheel height clearance. Child riders more than 70 pounds also make it more difficult to tow.

In general, because every adult bike and every child bike is different, installation requires a lot of trial and error that just can’t be avoided based on the Trail Gator’s design. And there are so many steps. So get out your glass of patience, and take a big gulp! It’s worth it in the end! Attaching the Hitch to the Adult Bike The Trail-Gator Bicycle Tow Barconverts an ordinary child's bike into a safe, towable trailer bike, whenever desired. To ride attached, simply unclip the tow bar from the stored position on the adult bike, extend it, and connect it to the receiver, which is mounted on the child's bike. When the child's bike is connected, the front wheel is lifted off the ground and a stabilizing bar prevents the handlebars from turning, leaving the adult in control of steering. Children can choose to coast or pedal while they are being towed, making the ride much easier for them. Tow bar receiver fits child bikes with head tubes up to 45mm (1.77") wide in diameter and expans for bolting distance of 105mm (4.1") for top and bottom U-bolt spacing.

TRAIL GATOR

The Trail Gator does not affect the child bike’s rear brakes in any way, so the child rider can brake unexpectedly while riding. As the adult rider, you’ll feel the “drag” when this occurs, but it’s not a drastic jolt that would cause you to lose your balance. No Training Wheels Allowed!