These days lots of folk are trying to be more "green" - lower their carbon footprint, live sustainably, etc. etc.
We all like our holidays (especially us Europeans who seem to get twice as much vacation time as most Americans - don't blame me, because you voted for the folks that made it so, not me!), so how can we combine our increasing environmental awareness with some much needed time away from the office and the home?
Here's an idea for you!
It's a Pathe new clip from 1939, and it shows two people pulling a small caravan by bike.
Not on a tandem - there are two regular bikes shackled to the caravan, much in the fashion that a pair of horses (or mules or ponies or oxen) would be.
The caravan looks pretty small, and I suspect that most things in it need to be folded up and the bed laid out on top of it all.
But, for all that it looks much more luxurious than a tent, and you could always hide in the caravan if you encountered a sudden heavy shower of rain!
Anyway, here it is, so enjoy!
1939 cycle caravan in Britain
And as a bonus, Pathe also has a clip about two men with a cycle caravan in Tasmania, also from 1939.
This one is a lot more aerodynamic, and is much less of a "shed on wheels" than the first.
But it is even smaller!
Very cosy is perhaps putting it optimistically.
Again it is towed by a pair of bikes in a similar fashion to a horse-drawn setup - the bikes look a bit more "sporty" though!
Enjoy!
1939 "aero" cycle caravan in Tasmania
Bringing us more up to date, "green" insurance company ETA commissioned a caravan for use with a cycle - this time a one person caravan. But it cost a whopping 5500 pounds to make! (that's US $8800, or 6600 Euro!)
Might give you a few ideas if you fancy a bit of extravagant D-I-Y :-)
modern ETA cycle caravan
There is also the IKEA Transportfiets, the base vehicle of which is the Vrachtfiets Cargo.
the Cargo is a bit like one of those 4-wheeled bikes that takes two riders that used to be found in sea-side resorts, except that the Cargo has a load box which is 2 metres long (6' 6"), 0.9m wide (3' 1"), and 1m high (3' 3"). It seems like a good basis for a mini-camper conversion.
Of course, being an all-in-one machine, it would be more of a "camper bike", than a cycle caravan.
If you are looking to build your own caravan, you might want to look at the Surly Bill trailer - it's rated at 300 lbs (136 kg), so that should be enoughto build a light trailer caravan AND still have enough weight capacity left to sleep in it without the wheels falling off!
If you would prefer something ready-made, how about the Teardrop Sleeper Standard, which is the lightest caravan I can find, and it weighs in at 145 kg unladen (that's a bit over 300 lbs), so that is going to be some decent haul behind 1 (or even 2) bikes! It costs about 3000 pounds (4800 US Dollars, 3600 Euros).
Other than that, it is a case of sourcing a trailer designed for a car, and adapting that (and some of those are HEAVY!!!) or building your own!
We all like our holidays (especially us Europeans who seem to get twice as much vacation time as most Americans - don't blame me, because you voted for the folks that made it so, not me!), so how can we combine our increasing environmental awareness with some much needed time away from the office and the home?
Here's an idea for you!
It's a Pathe new clip from 1939, and it shows two people pulling a small caravan by bike.
Not on a tandem - there are two regular bikes shackled to the caravan, much in the fashion that a pair of horses (or mules or ponies or oxen) would be.
The caravan looks pretty small, and I suspect that most things in it need to be folded up and the bed laid out on top of it all.
But, for all that it looks much more luxurious than a tent, and you could always hide in the caravan if you encountered a sudden heavy shower of rain!
Anyway, here it is, so enjoy!
1939 cycle caravan in Britain
And as a bonus, Pathe also has a clip about two men with a cycle caravan in Tasmania, also from 1939.
This one is a lot more aerodynamic, and is much less of a "shed on wheels" than the first.
But it is even smaller!
Very cosy is perhaps putting it optimistically.
Again it is towed by a pair of bikes in a similar fashion to a horse-drawn setup - the bikes look a bit more "sporty" though!
Enjoy!
1939 "aero" cycle caravan in Tasmania
Bringing us more up to date, "green" insurance company ETA commissioned a caravan for use with a cycle - this time a one person caravan. But it cost a whopping 5500 pounds to make! (that's US $8800, or 6600 Euro!)
Might give you a few ideas if you fancy a bit of extravagant D-I-Y :-)
modern ETA cycle caravan
There is also the IKEA Transportfiets, the base vehicle of which is the Vrachtfiets Cargo.
the Cargo is a bit like one of those 4-wheeled bikes that takes two riders that used to be found in sea-side resorts, except that the Cargo has a load box which is 2 metres long (6' 6"), 0.9m wide (3' 1"), and 1m high (3' 3"). It seems like a good basis for a mini-camper conversion.
Of course, being an all-in-one machine, it would be more of a "camper bike", than a cycle caravan.
If you are looking to build your own caravan, you might want to look at the Surly Bill trailer - it's rated at 300 lbs (136 kg), so that should be enoughto build a light trailer caravan AND still have enough weight capacity left to sleep in it without the wheels falling off!
If you would prefer something ready-made, how about the Teardrop Sleeper Standard, which is the lightest caravan I can find, and it weighs in at 145 kg unladen (that's a bit over 300 lbs), so that is going to be some decent haul behind 1 (or even 2) bikes! It costs about 3000 pounds (4800 US Dollars, 3600 Euros).
Other than that, it is a case of sourcing a trailer designed for a car, and adapting that (and some of those are HEAVY!!!) or building your own!
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