Pannier, pannier.

[uhhuhlex]

So, I've been pondering panniers for Doolittle for, like, ages. With a folding bike, a kindly and more knowledgeable man told me, they have to be small enough to avoid catching your foot as you pedal. I've looked at all sorts of options but yesterday I finally stopped dithering and ordered a double rear pannier. It was advertised on a folding bike site, so I crossed my fingers and hoped it would do the job. It was also rather cheap considering the prices I've seen for some types, coming in under £20.

I thought this might be a good opportunity to ask about if other people's experience of cycle luggage. Do you have panniers? What kind? Do you love or loathe them? I notice a lot of people park up with the pannier still attached - have you ever had anything pilfered, including the luggage itself?

I took a ride to the library with panniers full of books and was pleased to see that not only was my back not sweaty and gross, but my upper body felt better when twisting to check for traffic when overtaking those pesky cars parked blocking a whole lane (like, seriously, people think bikes are a menace on the road?). I then headed into the city to get some shopping - and cycling back with loads of market goods certainly felt a lot better - especially with no plastic bags hanging from the handlebars for once


The only problem is that for lugging it up the stairs, panniers are *not* handy. So I probably won't use them all the time.



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Comments

[sara]

I have a paid of Jandds, and yeah, I like them quite a bit.

I do take them off the bike whenever I go in anywhere, and I wish they had better carry-straps.

I have a backpack, too, and sometimes that's actually nice to wear on the bike because it keeps my back warm and it's easier to carry in and out of places. I am expecting that for tandem-camping this summer I will have to put the panniers on the rack and wear the backpack, unless I want to put a front rack on the tandem (which I don't think I do).

[rivenwanderer]

Here are mine:
http://flickr.com/photos/riv/3993791782/sizes/m/

I'm experimenting with leaving them on my bike by default rather than just strapping them on when I know I'll need to carry lots of things. They don't get in the way too much, and there have been enough spontaneous errand afternoons for it to seem like it's been worth it.

I leave them on all the time because it's a huge pain to take them off and put them on again. I'm hoping that and their clashes-with-everything color scheme is enough to deter theft.

[sara]

Ah, see, here in the bike-theft capital of western North America, I have literally had people break my headlights into pieces to rip them off my bike. Cute bags like those would last, er, about 20 minutes downtown. *G*

(Every year, someone comes through here on a bike tour and gets their gear stolen because they leave their bike propped up against a post and go in to use the bathroom without locking it to something. Every year.)