Remember the Ridekick? It’s a little bicycle trailer that carries things like groceries, but that also provides a power boost to the bike towing it, thanks to its integrated electric motor. Well, now there’s a new version of the Ridekick that carries kids, too.
The Ridekick Child Trailer contains a hub motor in one of its two wheels, which is powered by a swappable battery pack located in the back of the trailer. One battery should allow the rider to cover at least 15 miles (24 km) without pedaling, reaching a top speed of 19 mph (30.6 km/h). Of course, most riders would likely use the motor intermittently, relying on their own pedaling power for much of the ride. Recharge time for the battery is about three hours.
Speed is controlled using a handlebar-mounted throttle. The trailer reportedly works with any bicycle, which is one of the neat things about the system – you have an electric-assist bike when you need one, that converts back to a standard bike simply by unhooking the trailer.
Production funds for the Ridekick Child Trailer are currently being raised on Indiegogo. A pledge/deposit of US$249 will put you in line for a trailer of your own, at the reduced total price of $749. The planned retail price is $899.
The trailer can be seen in use in the video below.
Source: Indiegogo
It would be much better to have the power assistance on the bike itself, where it would be far less likely to cause stability issues. Plus, the electric assist is still there when the trailer is detached.
2% of 24 kilometers is .48 kilometer. Of course if some of the energy recovered was generated by the riders legs you will get greater boost range as well. For me half a click is worth the effort.
Regarding "torque steer", propelling the bike with a trailer works very well. The first generation Ridekick trailer has been ridden at demo events and used by customers for years with fabulous reports. Check out the customer posts on facebook.com/ridekick
It's not intuitively obvious why it works so well. The fact that the Ridekick trailer hitches to the bicycle axle is key to its success. Propelling the bike at the wheel eliminates the under-steer or over-steer. As highlighted in the video, it's stable even in rain or snow.
Electric bikes do work well. But the e-bike alternative Ridekick power trailer allows anyone to use their favorite bike to easily carry heavy loads, and then simply unhitch the trailer to ride without electric assist.