Review: Burley D’Lite Child Trailer
I’ll keep you from reading my rant of why I feel that child bike seats are unsafe and can lead to danger for the child and adult. That will be saved for another day.
Earlier in the summer Burley sent out a D’Lite Child Trailer for review purposes. Walking into the review I knew from my experience in the past with Burley, their trailers and the quality they take around design and development – I would be pleased with the results of their D’Lite trailer. As my children are grown to 10 and 11 years old, I borrowed and stole children of all sizes for the review and testing. At the bottom of this is a ton of photos to hopefully document all the details that the D’Lite has to offer.
My Burley Trailer History
My first experience with Burley outside of selling them was back in 2005. The shop I was managing outside of Boston had a few rental Burley trailers to use on the local rail to trail. During the early spring before our rental period picked up I adopted a puppy. I used a kids trailer with a couple blankets and a short leash to transport my new puppy to the shop and back. She loved it, I loved it and it was perfect. Since then Burley has actually released the Tail Wagon which is a trailer designed for your dog!
My next experience with Burley was as a bike line. My small shop in Charlotte, NC stocked and sold their road line. Beautiful steel bikes, a dying breed. Since then Burley has restructured and really going after the trailer and pull behind niche.
My latest experience was with the Burley Travoy. An urban trailer I reviewed over at Commute By Bike. The review is also reposted on Bike Shop Girl with more photos.
Details of the Burley D’Lite Child Trailer
Rear Window Unzipped
Details pulled right from Burley.com
- Available in Green or Orange
- Replacement covers available in Yellow, Blue or Red
- Bowed-out sides for increased interior width/shoulder room
- Elastomer suspension system
- Exclusive height-adjustable handlebar that doubles as roll bar
- All weather cover with waterproof zippers
- Deluxe reclining padded seats
- Five-point harness and padded shoulder harness
- Removable, washable seat pad and shoulder harness
- Tinted side windows
- Adjustable sunshade
- Parking brake
D’Lite Specifications
| Number of children | 2 |
| Capacity | 100.0 lb/ 45.4 kg |
| Weight | 28.0 lb/ 12.7 kg |
| Interior height | 25.2 in/ 64.0 cm |
| Interior width | 26.4 in/ 67.1 cm |
| Interior seat width | 20.0 in/ 50.8 cm |
| Cargo space | 35.0 liters |
| Wheel size | 20.0 in/ 50.8 cm |
Key Features
The things I found unique and completely Burley:
- Tinted side windows
- Rear window that zips down for airflow and the child can see around
- Drink and snack holders on both sides the seats
- Reflective piping and logos all around the shell
- Easy to use
- Push button wheels
- Standard 20″ wheels, not the plastic kind
- Did I mention easy to use?
- Adaptable to all types of bikes
My Overall Feelings
The D’Lite delivered as I expected it to. The trailer isn’t the cheapest out there, but if you purchase an accessory kit this could become your do all stroller, running jogger and kid hauler. The ability to completely flatten, pull the wheels off and stow it in the back of your vehicle is irreplaceable for the family on the go. Why not have one killer trailer/stroller/hauler instead of 3 that do 3 different things?
In the end I do believe that trailers are safer, allow you to bring two kids, clothing, and they are tucked behind UV windows, rain fly’s mesh, and a roll bar. 5 point harness system will keep every kid in place. Extra room allows you to put snacks and toys in with them, without the ability of them throwing it overboard.
I hope to explore how parents can get their children interested in riding in the trailer, how to do it safely and tips/ideas of how to get out with your family. In the end it is completely how the parent handles taking the their child, how they encourage healthy living and being outside.
Disclaimer: This product was provided at no charge. I was not paid or bribed for the review and was completely as judgmental as I am with everything else in my life.
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- Nice and Compact
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- Beer Carrier
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- 5 Point Harnesses
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- On the Go
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- Drink and Snack Holders
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- Tinted Side Windows
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- Bike Hitch into Trailer
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- Bike Hitch with Pin
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- Rainfly
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- Reflective Piping
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- Rear Window Unzipped
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- Foot Brake Lever
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- Rear Brake on Wheel
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- Taped Zippers
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- Sunshade on Mesh Fly
My Evolution from Biking Girl to Biking Mom
Being a first-time mom comes with its challenges, but integrating your family with your biking hobby doesn’t have to be. This weeks guest post is from Megan of BikeShopHub.com where she talks about her steps from being a bicycling girl to a bicycling mom.
Open Forum : Balance Bicycles for Kids
Over at Bike Shop Hub, a site supporter and a darn near close name, the talk of balance bikes was brought back up. Many thoughts are racing between my ears currently, but before I say anything outlandish or make claims I can’t support by test data, I want to ask you all some questions.
Burley Travoy : For Women and Parents
Over at Commute By Bike I have been reviewing a Burley Travoy, a cargo trailer system. While we are still going through the review process and haven’t put it fully through its paces, I can the trailer does all it says it does and more.
nuun : A Hydration Review
Nutrition is an under used term for the novice cyclist or athlete. For the professional, it is the way of life. They run their engine like NASCAR builds their cars, with precision. For the past few months I’ve put my family in some sort of science experiment with various types of nutrition supplements and varieties.
nuun is a electrolyte replacement, with a little flare. These little tablets come in 8 flavors, and are kept in plastic tube to keep them readily available on long rides. With available flavors like Kona Cola, which tastes exactly like Coca Cola, and Lemon+Lime, tastes like Sprite, or Banananuun. My personal favorites will always be the fruity styles like Citrus Fruit or Tri-Berry.
The flavor isn’t the only unique feature of Nuun.
Do You Wear Sunscreen When You Ride?
A valid question was asked over on Twitter, “Do You Wear Sunscreen When You Ride?”
My answer is yes, and well… no. Up until this year I have always worn short sleeve jerseys when riding. Maybe it is the roadie in me where sleeveless jerseys are banned from racing. I often have freaky tan lines from gloves, helmet strap and short sleeve jerseys.
At the bike shop and at home I have now invested in KINeSYS sunscreen, in the spray bottle! It is the least we can do for our skin, but in the long term it probably isn’t enough.
Next step is SPF clothing, but that will be another time.
Bike Commuting with Children
Over at CommuteByBike.com I posted an article this morning about the various ways to carry your smaller child on a bike. It is a good article to read for the basics of child bike seats, trailers and the Xtracycle. Many commentors have added their own ways of carrying children which I hope to touch on soon.
How do you ride with your smaller children? Do you commute with them to places like school or the library, by bike?
Join the conversation on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @BikeShopGirlcom.
Child Bike Rental Program
Over at Velorution they talked about a program that rents the small push/glide bikes by the week.
This triggered many thoughts in my head as I love the push bikes instead of training wheels. It allows a child to learn relying on themselves only, and not training wheels. The learning curve is gentle and quickly conquered. My shop sells the Strider running bike, light weight and under $100.
The biggest concern I’ve had with these Striders are once the child learns to ride it, they are ready for the next bike with pedals. The purchase is very short lived if the child progresses quickly. Unless the parent has another smaller child, or perhaps a friend they could pass it on to. Yes, these little things hold their value and could sell on Craigslist quickly, but why bother?
Now, what about a rental program to allow the child to try it? A week for $20 seems fair to me.
Parents : What are your thoughts?