Trail Gator Tow bar and Accessories

Our family doesn't have a car we walk or use bikes everywhere we go. Our son, 4yo, has reached the maximum weight for most child bike seats, except the bobike junior. We wanted him to start riding with us on his own bike so he would be able to learn to ride to get used to running errands as he grows up. The adult bike carries the bar when not in use without being obstructive to the bike's function. Both bikes are always read o ride together or apart.The problems with having him ride with us are that four year olds are VERY sloooow, lol! Also, they get tired very quickly, and also don't know the rules of the road. Before we got this Trail-Gator we had to drive exclusively on the sidewalks with him for his safety because our city's streets are very busy.We were about to get the boBike Junior child seat, but gave one more look into trailers for children because of the capacity of cargo they can hold. Then we found this!The trail behind bikes weren't an option for us because we needed a way to put our bikes on the city's bus's bike racks to get father across town.I'm very excited to have the Trail-Gator tow bar because it solves all of our current family biking problems. I'll list the problems and how the tow bar has helped them below:1. Slow riding of younger children- This tow bar is great because you are pulling your child behind you and they go as fast as you. They can help pedal and everything! Going up hills is easier because two people are pedaling. I'm a 5'4" non-athletic girl but I can barely tell a difference when he's attatched (unless he squeezes the breaks! But, we have talked about that now with him. lol) I don't think it affects how fast I ride very much at all.2. Tired children can't ride very far- With the tow bar the child doesn't need to pedal when he's tired, yet he still gets to bike like a big boy. Honestly, I can't tell when he's pedaling or not, except on very steep hills. This gives my son the grown-up feeling of running errands with the family, but without overwhelming him by needing to be able to make it all the way by himself. Also, my son LOVES riding together on it so he perks up anytime we do go for a ride.3. Small children can't safely drive on the road- For me it's hard to even have my son drive on the sidewalk knowing he could just pedal off into the road on accident. Also, it's much faster to drive on the road to get most places because roads are simply made to go places. Also, not everywhere has sidewalks. With the tow bar my son doesn't need to know the rules of the road because I already know them. Also, an added benefit here is that he gets to learn how to safely drive on the road firsthand.4. Most other child biking options that would work for bikes wouldn't work for buses and trains- The tow behind tandem style bike attachments, which only have one wheel, can't be put on a bus's bike rack. Child seats allow bikes to go on a bus's rack, but most have a 40lb weight limit. Big pull behind cargo style trailers need to be detached then pushed onto the bus, taking up a wheelchair spot, and the child doesn't get any riding experience. Since the Trail-Gator quick releases from the child's bike and has a storage clip for the adult bike so the bikes can be detached fairly easily and then put on a bus or trains racks separately.The biggest unforeseen benefits of the tow bar are that the kid can learn to ride without training wheels because the adult bike holds him up, but still allows a little wobble, and that the child can get first person instruction from the adult on how to navigate biking safely through the streets. Actually the child seat allowed for instruction, but not while my son was riding too.Also, people love seeing the bikes together in action. Lot's of questions of where we got it, "whoa, that's cool!", horn honking, etc. Hopefully, seeing us bike encourages people to bike more often to things nearby.If you are a worried caregiver who wonders about the child falling off while riding Amazon also has a child bike backrest with a seat belt for sale. As a preschool teacher I don't think a back rest is necessary for ages 3 and up because they can usually understand that adults provide them safety and they need to listen to them so they wont lose focus easily while riding. If you are wondering, get the bar first and test it out for 15 minutes or so before taking any itineraried adventures.We've had it for over a month now using it almost everyday and we haven't had any problems with it so far. Also, the bar is attached to a cheap walmart mountain bike so I'm confident it will work with most bikes.

PART 1: We haven't used this yet, and I will update the review in August after we get back from vacation and will have actually used it. I spent 3 hours yesterday going over the owner's manual, a YouTube installation video, the Trail-Gator website, the owner's manual on that site and the one supplied in the box, and putting together/attaching the tow bar. The owner's manual found on the website is a bit better than the one we received in the box. I understand the towing concept as we have always towed a camping trailer, but we have never towed a child's biking unit/trailer behind our bikes. I understand the child's bike needs to move slightly up and down over bumps and swing out a little while traveling in curves. I was unprepared for the large range of motion the tow bar is allowed before it is attached to the child's bike. I am now in the process of putting the "shims" on the child's receiver to raise the child's bike front wheel at least 3 inches off the ground as it is only 1 inch off the ground at this point. I have been very frustrated yesterday and today trying to get this right and safe before we leave on vacation 6 days from now.PART 2: Later this evening update: I installed all 3 shims on the top u-bolt on the child's bike receiver. In my enthusiasm to make sure all was tightened well, I sheared off one side of the u-bolt, so I'll be at Home Depot early tomorrow trying to find a replacement. The good news is that the 3 shims will raise the child's front tire to 3 inches above the ground.I went on to install the clamp with ball to the child's bike and adjust the clamp with the socket on the tow bar. These are the 2 items that hook the tow bar to the steering to keep the front wheel locked. I am disappointed with this. When very little pressure is put on the handle bars, the socket pops out of the ball. I think I will also buy a strap at Home Depot tomorrow to wrap around the child's front wheel and the tow bar, so my granddaughter won't pull the steering loose as she is being towed.Lastly, when I tightened the single bolt on the adult bike tow arm more than I already had, it DID decrease the amount of side to side movement of the tow bar. I think that will work better when it is used, but we'll see.PART III: Just boxed it up to send back for a refund. Using a few hours out of each of 4 days trying to tweak the installation and then giving it repeated trial runs before vacation, the Trail-gator was just not safe for our 6 year old granddaughter. It wanted to move out to the side on its own, and it tended to list to the side no matter how I kept tweaking it. Other reviewers have mentioned this is their posts. We really wanted this to work, but it wasn't worth all the frustration and time.