Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

I can now pop my child on and go for longer time/miles. On her regular bike it would be 20 minutes and she would be done. It did seem a little jerky left to right but I taught my kid to relax and pedal smooth. I also taught her to sit still do not shake around. That helped a lot. I taught her to lean into the turn slightly when I am leaning. I also had to tighten up the attachment bolts (x2) and that got it to almost 100% stable. Anytime you have any amount of weight hooked high on the lead bike (seat post about 30 inches high) it is going to have great leverage. The lead rider has to practice and get used to the extra leverage/pull/weight side to side. After a couple of uses, any rider can handle this unless you are small and weak? My wife prefers to have me use this bike. I have ridden 20 MPH and my kids just giggles all the way! I also taught her how to hand signal so when she is riding alone she can be safer. I would suggest that the lead bike rider practice without a kid on so you can get a feel for it. Do not ride close to objects or turn close to object (fence, car, wall etc...) the handle bars can hit the objects.

P.S. This bike can easily attach to any bike without tools. I have 9 bikes and it is nice to be able to use any one of them with this bike. Other brands can only be attached to one bike at a time using allen wrenches etc...

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

I bought this for my 4 year old daughter. She loves it and so do the neighborhood kids. I 'have to' give them all rides all day.

Very safe and secure, they wont fall off unless you do.

Attachment is very secure and it's very fun riding around with the young one. She loves it!!

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

My 17 pound road bike easily supports my 175 pound frame. Proportionally therefore, my 45 pound 4 year old son only needs a bike / trailer around 5 pounds. If that is the case why does this bike trailer tip the scales at well over 20 pounds? Apparently it is way overbilt. Another quibble is that a rubber pad could be supplied to prevent scratching the seatpost on my bike where this trailer attaches. All that aside however my son loves riding this thing and I guess his judgment is the bottom line here.

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

My daughter is 2 1/2 years old and I need a bike for here to ride since I have 10 month old twins. So I decided on this bike for her to try. She loves it!!!! Easy for her to sit and pedal when she wants. Another nice thing is I was able to attach the trailer to this bike so I can pull all three of the girls. Love it!!!!

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

We have an earlier version and it leans to the side no matter how we adjust it. We took it back to REI and the cycling service staff said that it was fine. This results in a very unstable ride - so unstable that I won't risk using it and losing control. Only my husband, who is an extremely strong rider, uses it. As we ride, our child (an excellent, well balanced rider on his own bike) whips from tilt left to tilt right resulting in a loss of control for the lead bike. We see lots of other trailers on the bike trails, and none lean like this. We won't take it on roads and only use it on the bike trails.

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

Compared to the other trailer bikes available on the market, this bike is the BEST. I currently own two of these bikes and we use them all the time. My girls are small, (4 & 7) They can ride a regular bike by themselves, but not at bike path speeds. This makes them a hazard on the path and very dangerous. Therefore with the trailer bike, we can control the speed and distance we ride. One problem that I've encountered with the trailer bike. In the manufacturing process, the mounting quick-release was not welded square to the bike. Therefore the bike would lean to one side. MAKE SURE it's square. (I've returned two) Other than that, It's great!. Imagine riding 15 miles with a 4 year old on her own bike, It couldn't be done!

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

I purchased this product for my three and a half year old daughter. It took minutes to install and was much more stable then I thought. I attached it to my commuter bike. My daughter, who was a little nervous loved it so much she made me ride around the block several times on the first trip out. I researched a lot of different bike trailers before selecting this one. This one appeared to have the highest ratings. It is heavy, but not as heavy as burley or trek bike trailer. Before my daughter outgrew it we previously used an Ibert safety seat, which is a front mounted child bike seat. I love this tag along just as much as the front mounted bike seat, and my daughter does too. I can't wait to go riding again.

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

Let's start with the most important thing: my son and I *LOVE* going for bike rides together, and a trail-a-bike is wonderful for this. We can go faster, further, and longer than if he rode on a separate bike. After using the Afterburner for over a year, and a different brand before that, I feel that Novara didn't live up to the design quality I expect from REI.

You'll note that everyone's review says these are heavy. They are *way* too overbuilt: the Afterburner actually weighs more than the vintage steel bike I pull it with. At least some other brands are significantly lighter in weight without being flimsy.

The reason we got the Afterburner was so that it would be easy to use with different bikes without needing tools. (Other brands require you to attach a "hitch" to your seat post and then you attache the trailer to the hitch. Additional hitches are available, so you could put them on different bikes. The Burley Picolo attached to a rear rack, but it isn't made anymore.) In retrospect, we should not have prioritized this at all, though it seemed like a great idea at the time.

The Afterburner is not what I would call stable; there is too much play between the parts of the hitch, so it can flop around somewhat startlingly. I've gotten used to it, and I'm not sure I'd call it dangerous, but it is definitely unpleasant. Also, the hitch parts have been squeaking mercilessly, like the worst playground equipment you can imagine. Oiling it has helped, but it's still noisy.

The Afterburner does not come with a fender for it's own wheel, or with an easy way to attach one. The flag that came with it tore off immediately and the cheap replacements at the bike stores all use a larger size rod, so we had to tape and glue a flag back onto what is essentially a proprietary safety flag pole.

The positive things I can say about the Afterburner are things that don't really set it out from the competition: many are fairly smooth, and many offer as much room to grow into. Many others have parts that are strong enough, and are no easier or harder to attach. Several others also fold so you can fit them in a trunk.

I'm saying I would not recommend the Afterburner to a friend, but in fact I would suggest that they look carefully at the others on the market also, and then if they still like the Afterburner they will have made an informed decision. I would consider replacing the Afterburner we have with another brand, but am unlikely to actually do so.

Overall I would say I am disappointed with the Afterburner as a product compared to other brands, but a trail-a-bike of one sort or another is a fabulous thing to have, and riding with it is still a lot of fun.

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

My son loves his trailer bike. We bike to preschool most mornings. He loves that he is up high and can pedal like Momma. My complaints are the bike itself is heavy (heavier than our Burley Solo) and the pedals scrap the ground when I turn. We have the 2008 model. Our friends purchased the 2009 model after seeing ours. The pedals on the 2009 are higher off the ground than on the 2008 models. It is annoying that the pedals scrape with every turn. I wish there was some way REI could fix it or maybe do a recall.

Comments about Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike - 2009:

I purchased the Novara Afterburner Single-Speed Trailer Bike on-line with in store pick up (came very quickly btw). I was hopeful that this would be a purchase that I didn't regret. My daughter (5) was excited & apprehensive (she is still in the training wheel stage).
It came fully assembled & with a quick overview by the associate at the bike shop in REI, I was headed home to get started. The assembly is quick (although I did have to remove the rack from my previous Topeak baby/toddler seat; which was merely 4 Allen wrench nuts).
No special hardware, just attaches to the seat post of the adult bike. We were off and riding in no time.
The only downside, which I saw in other reviews was that the pedals do scrape the ground when making sharp leaning turns. Not too heavy (for me), it's a nice sturdy trailer.
I asked her if she liked it and she said "I don't like it, I LOVE IT." Enough said, I/we're happy all the way around!