I want a bicycle !

[cheeseandcoleslaw]

Can any recommend ? I'd love one of those vintage styles with a basket, does anyone have something like that ?
The idea is to get one of those trailers for the kids and get some exercise !

Ooh how come ? Are the vintage ones not any good then ?

Bumping !

I have one of the pretty looking vintage style. It's so heavy, and that's without a trailer full of kids! Mine only has 6 gears too, so going up hills was a right slog.

I have a hybrid bike that's much lighter with loads of gears and is much easier to ride. But not as pretty.

If you live in a flat place and just want to cycle into town then it will probably be fine. Can you get to a shop to test any out?

I don't think it's safe way to carry children.

Dawes are wonderful. I am on my third... The first was called Dolly, then Ruby and my current one who is very precious is a limited edition Penny Royalle bought by my late partner.
I always say that the Pashleys are the Rolls Royces of bicycles and Dawes are the Mercedes... ♥️ ♥️ ♥️Pashley equivalent. Dawes with Basket.

Where do you live? Is it flat, hilly, urban, cycle paths? Once you’ve figured out your terrain then look at the type of bike you need. One of the bikes you’ve described would be totally useless where I live.

The very pretty ones aren't great for transporting children! What's your budget? Liv is a female-specific range by Giant, and Whyte have ones where the geometry (the shape of the frame) is good for women.

The pretty ones are always on Facebook marketplace presumably because they are seemingly made of solid lead. They are so heavy!

I agree that if you want to tow kids, you need to buy a quality lightweight bike with that in mind, which a vintage style sit-up-and-beg affair is unlikely to work for. If your principal purpose will be to transport DC around, I'd consider a cargo bike - lots of places you can rent them to try. If not, then I'd get a good quality womens hybrid.

I am tiny and ride a Liv, which is the women-only range by Giant a PP referred to, and my bike and I are blissfully happy together and shoot around town in a very nippy fashion.

Get yourself a step through frame.
but don’t focus on getting a “vintage” look.
think about the type of terrains you want to cycle on.
and visit an independent bike shop and tell them what you need from a bike and let that be the starting point .

gazelles are a Dutch make that you can get in UK which might be the aesthetic you want, but with reliable functionality.

do you need to carry it up stairs (in house or at train stations)
do you have hills to climb?
you want to tow a child?
do you also want a child seat?
or to carry panniers or a basket?
a dynamo light is helpful.

Bobbin Bikes look nice and I think are modern traditional ones. I wanted one at one point. Then I saw the price!

Mainly flat and will just be to nip around on, to the park etc! I won't be going up any mountains with it, but saying they are heavy does put me off a little ! I used to ride my bmx in my 20's but think I'll look daft on one of those these days 😆

I have a Raleigh ebike (with a basket on the front!) and it’s my pride and joy 😂 if you’re wanting a trailer, I’d recommend one of the e pedal assist types, means no getting off when it’s heavy or up hills.

I had a Bobbins... They do an aluminium frame which is lighter but still hard work on anything other than pan flat. The upright position made it good for riding around town. The step through frame meant I could wear a dress so drivers thought "woman on a bike" rather than "cyclist" and gave me a lot more room.

But I swapped because of the weight.

The problem with the trailers is that the UK isn't set up for them. They're a bad idea to use on roads because they offer no protection, you might as well tow your dc on a skateboard behind you, and they are also at exhaust fume height. Most country paths are too narrow to use them.

I won't be going on roads ! I'll be going down the streets into town and back, it's only 15 mins away

How big are your kids? In nl we also have mama bikes that are shaped like and old fashioned bike and take a seat on front and back. They're heavy but they have gears and are much safer and easier than trailers or cargo bikes. They're good until 5ish. You can also get long-tail bikes that take loads of kids on the back seated safely with rollbars, up to age 10 or so.

I was "today" years old when I found out that "streets" in UK are not the same as "roads"

I loathe what others in thread call the pretty bikes, they are obviously so heavy, ugly & impractical (to me).

How old are your kids, OP? What kind of trailer did you mean?

An actual decent bike like a Liv Alight. The stylish retro ones are all heavy crap.

How is a street not a road?

I rode a speacilised with a bike seat for my dd to and from nursery but only good up to age 2-3yrs she got too heavy and would fall asleep sideways like a dead weight on the way home. We used a bike trailer in France where it was quieter that was fun for our then 3yr old as we could give her toys and the lunch bag in the trailer too but UK roads are not set up for them, bike paths were ok. I ride a Liv now and put a higher handlebar stem on it to raise up the bars to help my back into a better position. Best thing is to go to your local bike shop and try some. I bought mine via the cycle to work scheme saved £100s

Another thing you should consider is parking. Trailers take up a lot of space. Do you have a place at home where you can keep it, somewhere secure? And is there somewhere in town where you can park it safely?

I had a detachable fold-up one, but it was a huge faff getting it on and off the bike twice a day for the school run. It also didn't feel fantastically safe for the DCs.