Have a bike moving party - All us dudes with trailers that made waht turned out to be a completely symbolic flock ride to deliver good to the homeless a few months ago can come and help you move.
For real.
2011-01-24 23:44:04
37
Moving by bike
So I am moving into a new place as of march 1st. The nice thing is that I am able to move stuff there beginning this week. I plan on trying to move at least 85-90% of my stuff by bike since im only going from Bloomfield to Larryville. I will be using a BOB trailer and a child/dog trailer also. Most of my stuff can fit into boxes or rubbermaid containers except for my dressers, bed and cats. Probably wouldn't be bad to put the cats in a carrier and put that in the dog trailer though.
So if anyone has any advice and or tips please feel free to chime in. Or if you wanna just cheer me on or throw snowballs at me, I will be pulling a load with me on my way to work most weekdays going through the Allegheny cemetery.
2011-01-24 23:20:31
That's a good idea Mick. If it's on the weekend I'd be willing to help. My trailer is as rickety as my bike, but it would still be fun. Bike trailer moving caravan would be pretty awesome
2011-01-24 23:49:04
If schedule permits, I'd be down with this. Aside from my NashBOB cargo trailer, I've got a spare child hauler that could be employed for the cause as well.
2011-01-25 00:10:08
This could be really fun. I will be getting the keys sometime in the next two weeks. So sometime between then and march 1st I'll pick a good saturday or sunday to have a trailer convoy. I'm gonna have to leave enough room in the trailer for some pizza and beer though.
2011-01-25 04:47:51
Pulling a loaded trailer downhill is harder than pulling one uphill.
2011-01-25 14:41:03
If you were willing to invest the time into a bit of construction, you might be able to make contraptions to transport the bed and dressers by bike, but I am not sure it would be worth it.
2011-01-25 15:51:20
If you were willing to invest the time into a bit of construction, you might be able to make contraptions to transport the bed and dressers by bike, but I am not sure it would be worth it.
Hmmm...make a couple of heavy cargo trailers from aluminum ladders or some such, donate to FreeRide, and rent for a nominal fee?
Some form of remote-actuated braking on the trailer would be highly recommended, if hauling furniture or appliances down any significant hill.
2011-01-25 16:04:36
A pedicab would be very helpfull.
2011-01-25 16:29:38
Here is two really cool videos I found on the subject
http://www.streetfilms.org/nyc-bike-move/
http://www.streetfilms.org/bike-move/
2011-01-25 16:30:46
This sounds like a lot of fun, I'll help if I can.
I have a question about using a trailer in the city though. I have a kid trailer a friend gave me a few years ago but I've been reluctant to use it for 'on street' trips because of how wide it makes me feel. I'd have to take the lane for some long stretches and I'm sure the motoring public would be their normal doucheness. Am I just being paranoid? How have drivers treated you?
2011-01-25 17:18:16
I've found that motorists will assume there are kids in it and give you more room and honk less than expected.
2011-01-25 17:20:43
Ditto. I recommend pulling a kiddy trailer to anyone who feels nervous about riding on the roads. It helps you "ride big" and teaches you to stay out of the gutter.
2011-01-25 17:33:35
kind of like having a big plastic bumper?
2011-01-25 19:54:21
Thanks for the trailer comments. I'm gonna just have to do it and stop worring I guess.
2011-01-25 20:49:50
I have a "kid trailer" (in bright primary colors) and I second the comments above. I use it to carry beer and groceries, but people think there is a child in there. It is obviously wider than a bike itself, but not much wider than an average set of handlebars.
2011-01-25 22:50:50
So as it stands now I will be signing the lease later this week. The only problem is the landlord is gonna be working in there longer then I thought, meaning I cant get the keys in till about feb 25th. That means less time to move my stuff. Looks like I will be working on this on sat feb 26th and sun feb 27. Lets hope the weather works with me here.
As far as riding with a trailer I've noticed people are somewhat nicer when they think I have a kid behind me. I don't remember where i read it but i remember a story about someone pulling a empty propane tank in a trailer and commenting about how much more room the passing cars gave to them.
2011-01-26 22:34:57
Well the time is here. Starting tomorrow I will be bringing stuff down to my new place. Saturday and sunday will be the days when the most will get moved, I think. If anyone wants to help out please feel free to stop by.
2011-02-22 23:25:51
Willie, I'll come by with a BOB trailer on one of those days.
2011-02-23 00:07:37
I am at 365 s pacific ave in Bloomfield. I need to come up with a way to let people know if we are there or on route to the new place.
2011-02-23 00:23:16
My wife insists that it's really all about knowing how to pack (which, apparently, I don't).
Using a trike doesn't hurt either...
2011-02-23 01:07:56
Somewhat more seriously, I wonder if there's a market for a U-Bike service that rents serious cargo bikes.
Importing those from China would make a whole lot more sense that importing Flying Pigeons.
2011-02-23 01:12:45
@Willie, Maybe you could set a time on Saturday for people to meet at your place. Make it a party.
2011-02-23 01:18:09
You gonna borrow the new thick cargo trike? You could move a piano with that thing.
2011-02-23 03:02:35
We are hoping chris stops by with his crazy cargo bike. He did tell sheryl that its ready to test and hopes that the day we move the weather is nice, probably so he could go mountain biking haha.
Mick and anyone else interested. I'm gonna start at 12:30 on Saturday. By that time I should have a bunch of boxes brought down from the 3rd floor ready to load right up.
The address is 365 s pacific ave, bloomfield, Its the road right on the side of family dollar on penn ave. There will be some food and beer at the end also.
2011-02-23 03:51:48
So far the forecast is upper 30s and cloudy. I don't have a trailer - do you just need people with trailers or any and all pedal power?
2011-02-23 11:23:11
I'm in with a kiddy trailer.
2011-02-23 13:30:39
@willie I'm gonna start at 12:30 on Saturday.
Me an' my buddy B.O.B. will be there!
2011-02-23 15:47:05
yeah anyone can help, even if you dont have a trialer I have some smaller boxes and items. It would also be really cool if someone took a few pictures of the action. I have 2 cameras, if someone wants to snap a few shots.
2011-02-23 16:32:24
Saw this late, am attempting to move a 12:30 in order to be there. This is a great idea.
2011-02-25 22:41:41
Moving day on the YouTubes
2011-02-26 20:18:36
Wow! That was really cool to watch. Thanks for posting it.
2011-02-27 02:10:06
Ha ha, that was the first trip with the cat on top of the dresser. (no animals were hurt during the making of this move)
2011-02-27 02:29:08
I really want to thank every one for their help. This went fantastic today. I am completely blown away at how much stuff we moved on bikes. The only things I have left are My bed, computers and a few bikes. I would like to invite all of you guys to breakfast. Come by maura mori cafe at 5201 butler any day and have something on sheryl and I. Or once the weather breaks some more I'll fire up the grills out back and invite everyone by for cookout. What a great experience I had today. Everybody should try moving by bike at least once.
2011-02-27 02:43:23
Wow! I love the videos. How did it go for the cats? I've thought about bringing my (indoor) cat to the vet on my bike before but haven't tried it. I wasn't sure if it would be any more or less traumatic than a trip to the vet is in the first place.
Nice work everyone!
2011-02-27 04:29:43
With the constant meowing, the cat seemed stressed, though no more than if traveling by car.
2011-02-27 15:05:37
That cat in the video is about ten years old and his whole life anytime he has gone places in a car he throws up all over after about 5 minutes. This has been the first time he hasn't. I guess I know the best way to get him to the vet now.
2011-02-27 18:53:46