We run down the best mountain bike tow ropes available and those that are almost available. Check out our website for where to purchase these game changing devices. thebikedads.co...
Great review. I tow my child using the retractable dog leash attached to the belt of a fanny pack. I really like having it attached to my waist rather than the bike. It allows me to feel every bump they are going over and lets me know when to stop if things don't go as planned. My son will remove the loop from the headset and let it go on the fly. Since the leash is offset to one side on my hip, it never gets tangled in the wheel or cassette.
Great to hear the Tow Whee is still leading the pack. I’ve got two for my kids and have been using them for a few years. I’ve got two extra tips for you. 1) I prefer to attach the towing end to my Camelbak rucksack because I find myself using a rucksack with first aid/snacks/spare clothing on kids rides and when not towing it’s easy to put over shoulder and attach to lap belt. Plus I find it less of a jolt when your kid inevitably topples over on trickier uphill terrain. 2) the whitewater kayaking industry make larger karabiners designed to fit round the shaft of a paddle. These are perfect for a child to be able to snap on to their handlebar themselves yet it still doesn’t affect their ability to steer round obstacles on technical uphill sections
Maybe the retractable line unit could be attached to the handlebars of the child's bike, and then the loop end pulled out and looped around the saddle of the tow bike. Might have to try this
I got a Tow Whee after seeing it on your page and it is perfect, helps me get my jnr girl who is now 7 up Fire roads and anything steep. I get a good solid workout too 😀
Towwhee work great, I've had a couple of them. Moved to an Airhead 6' bungee dockline, works the same and only $10-12. Perhaps not the same feel as the towwhee but for us it's uphill use only on Fromme, Seymour, Thornhill, woodlot, etc.
Great review! We love to double TowWhee as well. I’m intrigued by the TireVelo’s elasticity, self retraction and quick hooks, but it’s hard to buy if you don’t speak French. One thing I love about the non self retracting like TowWhee is I can toss the rope to my kid (because they don’t always pull up close enough to me) and they can install it.
You can get 5-10m of 8mm rubber rope for like 8-10 euro. Add a carabin and you can tow even adults on your ebike. Spending 40$ on this is not worth it.
This was super helpful. Looking at moving up from the strider to a Prevelo and this will be a must! On a side note, what model arc teryx jacket is that? Thanks!
I’ve towed double before and it’s only really possible on fairly straight sections of trail. Just make sure you start off with the ropes fairly taught, especially the one between the kids. You’ll find attaching the rope to the middle bikes saddle will likely be lower than yours and therefore more of a risk of the rope going to the last bike getting caught in the middle bikes back wheel. Also avoid switchbacks as they are tricky enough with just one rope - you really have to go wider and smoother than you normally would!
very dependant on the situation. I will tow 3 kids on my ebike no problem up fireroads or double track but everyone has to be concentrating especially on corners. Towing 2 with no motor works but is dependent on grade of climbing and how tricky corners are how skilled you are as a tower and the kids are as a towhee. For technical single track climbing only works with one and also requires some skill from both and constant communication.
@@whereismal Thanks. That is super helpful to know and consider. Sounds like pre-scouting the trails where this could work are in order and practicing on the dead end road by our house would be in order before trying it out on the trail.
very useful video, but is it safe to attach rope to dropper post? I need some solution to pull my son but I think its too much tension for dropper post which is not designed for that kind of load. Do you have longterm experience after using it on dropper post without damaging it?
I created a DIY rope out of bungee cord. After several years of use I have noticed the paint has worn off the back of my dropper stanchion and the dropper itself is very slow to extend. It may just be normal wear, but I wonder if I have actually bent my dropper by towing. Anyone else had such issues? I am thinking of trying something that goes around the seat post rather than the seat, but I then have issues with the rope getting caught in my rear wheel. Cheers
Thanks for the review! I tried dog joring years ago; ended up with the lead caught in my front wheel, fell, broke my pelvis... Have you have any issues with any of these tow ropes jamming either tower or towees' wheels?
Ouch! Nothing so far. Sometimes the bungee style will get caught in your rear wheel (tower) at slow speeds/slack but never a problem as you just pull out (no pun intended).
The two of us have never had a problem in the last 3 years towing up to 3 kids in a train nor know of anyone who ever has...we both have carbon mtb and emtb bikes.
