Practical Load Testing June 20 2012, 0 Comments
With load testing the bag support in mind I put all the juice, milk, liquids and potatoes in the rear bag, just over 30lbs. There are a couple of observations. The saddle bag support held the load fantastically without transmitting any twist to the saddle the way a Bagman has in the past. This load did push the upper limit, where the handling of the bike was diminished. I could feel excessive flex in the rear of the bike, and while nothing broke, after a mile or so I stopped to redistribute the load. The sensation was more of a tail wagging the dog, with twisting of the frame from the rear as the load swayed. I moved roughly half of the rear load to the panniers and everything went back to normal for the 10 miles remaining. I could even ride well enough with no hands.
This confirmed my design optimization of keeping the front end stiff enough for stability with moderate loads and the rear end compliant for both pedaling and road quality comfort. With or without load, I am ecstatic with the handling of the bike, and managed to hit 98% of my design goals on the first pass. While not wanting to put a weight limit on the bikes, rides like this help me to clarify the outer boundaries, and are fun too. There is something primal yet fun about pushing the limits of our creations and having it work.