Delighted with the Burley D’Lite X

Ok, so the title is way too easy, and full disclosure- this is sort of sponsored post. Burley was generous enough to send me one of their new child bike trailers to review, The Burley D’Lite X, and I honestly can’t say enough nice things about it.

First off- we ride bikes a lot, as most of you know. My husband doubles as operations manager/bike-tech in the summer with Blue Sky/Canyon Bikes, and our property backs up to the Rio Grande rails to trails bike trail in the Roaring Fork Valley. Big H has been riding a pedal bike since he was three, and the Dude is likely to be on one in the next month or so. Little C watches them with envy, and the strider bike will be hers as soon as her feet reach the ground.

We are lucky that we can get everywhere we need to go with a bike in Glenwood Springs, as long as the roads are clear of snow.

Since I got the Burley D’Lite X in early March, I’ve probably put over 100 miles on it, commuting to the elementary school, library, rec center and all the parks now that the weather is nice. It is so nice to not have to deal with traffic and carseats, especially after the long winter we just had.

I’ll start by talking about the ‘lite’ part of the trailer. It is approximately 11 pounds lighter than the model I was previously hauling around, and every ounce counts when I am loading two kids and all the gear in for a day out. It pulls so smoothly behind our old grocery getter, and the heavy-duty shocks keep even our well pot-holed roads from jostling the kids too much.

The sunshield and screen slide into place very easily. This does two things for me- one, the sunshield keeps my children from screaming that special ‘sun in my eyes’ pitch, and two, the mesh screen prevents my one-year-old from throwing her shoes onto the road while still allowing for fresh air. The plastic cover keeps them warm on the early-morning drop off runs, and that protection means that I only have to worry about myself if the weather might turn bad.

Next, the ease of converting from bike trailer to double stroller is the stuff made of legends. The pin system is easy to remove, and then a gentle tug brings down the stroller wheel. This works so well for our family because we already have way too much gear sitting around the garage. Boat trailers, five bikes, then an assortment of strollers? The Burley D’Lite X doubles now as stroller and bike trailer, so we have freed up some much-needed real estate.

Recently I took this baby camping on my first mama-solo camping trip with all three kiddos. I knew I’d need a good stroller to contain little C (who is currently 20 months) while the boys were going to zip around on their bikes. After packing the whole van, I started to panic that I wouldn’t be able to fit it. However, it took less than two minutes for me to completely fold it down, pop off the trailer arm and both wheels and slide it into the back.

Around the campground, the D’Lite X was the perfect sag-wagon, bringing along baby sister, snacks, water bottles and any three-year-olds too tired to walk back. The large back wheels make it easy to maneuver over rough ground, and I’d lock the parking break with a quick side sweep of my foot, turning into Little C’s climbing gym.

I wasn’t expecting the versatility of a kids bike trailer to be such a great opportunity, but that has really shined through with the D’LiteX.

I do have one beef with the construction- While I love the comfy seats and easy-snap harnesses, I do not think they need to be individually reclining. The cross-bar necessary to facilitate that feature cuts in half the useable storage space in the back of the trailer, and constantly forces me to re position the omnipresent diaper bag.

Overall, the Burley D’lite X bike trailer has, quite literally, changed our lives. I get to go everywhere on the bike, and have a durable option for strollering on our many camping trips.