No way! Can't do it! NEVER!... These are words I've said to myself... maybe you have, too. I always loved the freedom.. the two-wheeled ride... the lean and mean way to travel! "Less is more!"

Then I had an opportunity to support my motorcycle habit by being a vendor. All I had to do was find a way to get my goods from one rally to the next and I was free! Most vendors drive a truck or motor home and trailer their bike. Pretty soon they are whining and complaining about never having a chance to ride. Not for me!

So what to do?...Well, I guess I could pull a trailer behind the bike for my booth, inventory, and camping gear.    Before choosing the trailer route, first seriously consider your motives. Do you want your honey to come along, but don't have enough carrying capacity? Do you want to lose weight in your rear end (don't we all!) without leaving essential camping gear at home? Planning on being on the road for a long time and hate to be dependent on finding the nearest Wally-world? Maybe you find your age, your bones and sleeping on the ground don't get along well together? If the answer to any of the above questions is a resounding YES, consider pulling a trailer behind the bike.  

Fred and Kathy Anderson enjoy their Kwik-Kamp

Cargo or Camper?

There are many types and brands of trailers. Without making specific recommendations, here are some guidelines for you. While not an expert by any means, I have logged more than 120K miles pulling one trailer or another. 

Basically there are two types of trailers: Cargo and Camper.  The Cargo type is great if you just need extra space to carry your gear. You will be able to carry a larger tent, more cooking gear, perhaps an inflatable air mattress... even chairs and tables. If you don't mind sleeping on the ground by all means pull a cargo trailer. They come standard single axle and two wheels or in a nifty single wheel model. I don't have any personal experience with the single wheel variety, the cargo space is too limited for my application, but they look cool and are supposed to handle nicely. 

The "pop-up" Camper will give you varying amounts of additional cargo space AND a bed above ground!

When Phillip and Martha Warren arrive, heads turn to see their beautiful color-matched Bushtec/K1200LT Combo

The following table provides a quick look at the specifications for cargo trailers only. And like any list, as soon as you commit to a particular format, you’ve either not included enough information or the information changes. And the list of options and accessories for some trailer manufacturers can add another dozen or so columns! But this should give you a good summary/quick hit of what you might want to know. (This table was grabbed off the web from