Editors Pick: Trailer In A Bag

As a rider who is a woman, I like to be self-sufficient. I don’t want to rely on others for tasks related to owning a motorcycle like moving it, parking it, and trailering it if I have to. Is this self-sufficient attitude being pig-headed? I don’t think so. I just believe that if you know how to ride your own motorcycle, you should also be able to move it, park it, and trailer it without having to rely on others. OK, occasionally, Ill ask for help backing into a parking spot that’s on a steep incline, but mostly I probably wont park there.

You can imagine how happy I was when I discovered a trailer for my motorcycle that allowed me to do everything myself, put the trailer together, load my bike, tie it down, and unload it. The product is called Trailer in a Bag, and as much as I’ve moved around over the last few years, I don’t know where Id be without my Trailer in a Bag to transport my motorcycle.

The name says it all Trailer In A Bag a trailer that when broken down and fit into a heavy duty zippered bag. The single axle trailer can transport one motorcycle up to 1200 pounds with a 71-inch wheelbase. You can purchase an optional rail extension to fit a motorcycle with a longer wheelbase. The trailer is made of structural steel that when put together is light enough to lift up by myself on one end to position it where I need it for loading. The whole point of this compact trailer is that it is easily put together and taken apart, and then can fit in a duffel bag taking up minimal storage space. On the road, you can store the Trailer in a Bag in a hotel room.

I could easily lift each of the four sections of the axle (the heaviest piece is 33 pounds), plus the two small tires by myself. No tools are needed to secure the parts together. They are held together with 1/2-inch hardened steel pins. There are two taillights that get positioned on either side of the trailer with 1/4-inch steel pins. Wires are encased in a rubber housing that hooks to your trailer hitch. I did need to bungee the slack of the encased wires to the bike so it didn’t flop in the wind.

Your trailer hitch should have a two-inch ball. The straight hitch I had for my Chevy Blazer (the vehicle I had at the time I took these pictures) was too high for the trailer, so I had to buy a 2-inch drop hitch that cost about $50. The drop hitch also works on the Ford Explorer I own now.

After watching the video that comes with the trailer, I thought I could load the bike by myself the guy in the video did it easily but I was nervous the first few times to ride the motorcycle up the ramp alone. There is a metal step that sits to the side of the trailer where you can place down the kickstand to stabilize the loaded bike on the trailer. You can also use the step to stabilize yourself once you’re up the ramp. After several times of using the trailer, I was finally able to load the bike by myself without fear of falling over. That was the whole point of getting this thing in the first place.

Once the bike is on the ramp, you can put down the kickstand and secure the bike with tie-downs. Out on the road, towing is a breeze. I often forget the trailer is behind me. It was very stable and did not sway like some trailers can. Also, I have to say nearly every time I would stop at a gas station or rest stop, people would come over and ask me questions about the trailer. They were impressed how minimal it is considering its holding a motorcycle.

Unloading the bike is very easy. I can do that by myself, too. One thing I couldn’t do was lift the bag with the broken down trailer in it. The products Web site says it weighs 140 pounds. That’s a lot of weight for one woman to lift, or man for that matter. Its recommended you unload and load the bag where you plan to store it.

I love my Trailer In A Bag. The company is now offering a dual conversion kit to turn your single rail trailer into one that can hold two motorcycles. The single rail trailer costs: $1,195. Visit TrailerInABag.com for more info.