Bobike/weeride and tag along on my bike - am I mad?

[zimzam]

Hi. This is my first time so please be gentle!
I have 4.4 dd starting reception in September and a 2.3 ds. I'd like to avoid the car for the school run so have been considering:

1. Nihola/Kangaroo - think they're great but v. v. pricey.
   
2. Tricycle with seats - not too keen to have them behind me especially ds on his own after dropping off dd.
   
3. Getting a bike for me and attaching both kids front and back - I'm not an experienced cyclist and wonder if I'd be too unstable.
   
   DD is just ok on her own bike but with stabilisers. Its a 15-20 min walk to school and then I need to take ds another 15mins to nursery on 3 days.
   
   Any advice/opinions? Tx.

[Steph18931]

Try www.amieandgracie.com for twin trikes

[zimzam]

Takver, NotQuiteCockney, How many gears will I need on my bike if I have the weeride and tag along? There are only small hills around here.

[zimzam]

I'm in Epsom. We have a little local bike shop across the road and an Action Bikes on the high st. Agree about Halfords.

[Anchovy]

I had a Ridgeback ladies town bike (nicked) and now have a Giant (I think). Both of these do a standard ladies low step bike which fits what you are asking for. But in any event get yourself to Evans and throw yourself on their mercy. I think for each I paid in the region of £250, rising to just under £300 with bits - mudguards, lights and fittings etc.

Where are you based? (I just noticed the Richmond Park bit as I am in SW London. We have a couple of good independent bike shops near us as well).

It goes without saying that you shouldn't touch the ghastly Halfords or BikeHut with a bargepole...

[zimzam]

Am going to rent the tag along at Richmond Park this weekend (weather permitting).

Any recommendations for a good ladies' bike, preferably, low step, several gears, covered chain, comfy seat, room for weeride, poss basket...not asking too much am I?!

[nannyL]

just to add... at work we have a trailgator

(a thing that turn childs norml bike into a tag along)
also have a bike seat at the back....

BUT at least on my MBs and DBs bike you cant use back seat and trailgator together...

its one or the other...

(thought its worth bearing that in mind )

[zimzam]

Btw, Anchovy, Velorution also has the follow-me fixed gizmo for rent/sale.

What make is your tag-along and is it fixed to the seat post or pannier rack?

[zimzam]

iheartdusty, Velorution (central London) normally has them to rent. I called yesterday but they didn't have them in stock and was told to try next week.

They do look like they could fit the bill and you get your money's worth as bigger kids can use them too. My only doubt is that the smaller child's seat is actually just an extra saddle with no seat belts etc so not totally secure. I thought perhaps you could attach a weeride seat instead.

My problem is that there'll be a window when ds is too big for the weeride but too small for the tag along or front of tandem (around 3-4yrs old)so will have to resort to a back seat which I've been trying to avoid all this time!

Thanks for the reassurance about the tag along Anchovy.

[scotsgirl]

sorry didn't reply yesterday re islabike tagalong. My DS is 6.5 and yes, can go without stabilisers. He sometimes wriggles a bit which makes a bit of a wobble. This doesn't DH, but he's a v. experienced cyclist. For me, it's a bit annoying, but I can cope IYKWIM. Hope this helps.

[iheartdusty]

zimzam I LOOOOVE the Onderwater family tandem

Does anyone have one? How could I try one out?

I have been puzzling over how to transport both DCs, as DS (4) is too big for a seat but too dozy to trust behind me on the tagalong, and DD (6) is not quite up to cycling by herself even on the pavement.

[RuffleTheAnimal]

check this out. scroll down for pics

[Anchovy]

By the way, I have a 4 year old who cannot ride her own bike without stabilisers but she is absolutely fine on the tag along and very stable. So I'm not sure that I agree with your Bloke in a Bike Shop (although I do concede they do know most things!)

Although tag-alongs are expensive, I think they are good value, particularly if you have more than one child.

We have had 2+ years of DS on it - he is now 6 and rides without stabilisers but not fully confident/competent in traffic and will still sometimes go on the tag-along, eg with DS up to school or over to his football lesson, which is a longer ride. For weekend/quieter/shorrter trips he goes on his bike and 4 year old DD has just graduated from seat to tag along. If we get 3 years more use out of it and then sell it on ebay it will more than have paid for itself (they seem to hold their value pretty well).

We've absolutely loved having one - have all had a lot of enjoyment out of it.

(I am interested in the "fixed pull-along" thing if anyone has any ideas - might be what we need for DS for longer trips when DD is on the tag-along)

[zimzam]

Tx scotsgirl. How old is your lo and does he/she ride already i.e. without stabilisers? Does he/she lean much?

[scotsgirl]

Haven't read the whole post, but I also have the islabikes tagalong, and give it the thumbs up for both stability and ease (taking on and off).

[zimzam]

anyone bought a "follow-me" attachment to pull your dc's bike? Are these more rigis and therefore sturdier than a regular trailgator/tag along?

[overthemill]

not 100% ceratin which make it was
i think it may have been trailgator
try this link

here
to see what kinds there are

[thehairybabysmum]

Just read thte last bit of your message....yes you can push bike easily with one in a seat (i have one day where my 2 are at different nurseries so on those days i have ds2 in a sling and walk the bike with ds1 sat in seat or walking next to me, then cycle once ds2 dropped off). However as you are holding the bike you arent able to run after walking one if needs be so i would say it depends on how sensible your eldest is plus how busy roadds are etc.

Could you have a bike with back bike seat for your youngest then you push the bike to school with the eldest just sat on your saddle, then cycle to your 2nd destination? I see people doing this on school run.

[thehairybabysmum]

Ive just strated using a trailer (£90 from Halfords) and its fab...i was duboius and was originally going to go for a bike seat at teh front and one at the back but thte bike shop i went to for advice said this is not ideal as the front mounted seats are only really good whern they are smaller and not as they get big...my 2.5 yr old ds was too big for front.

The trailer is fab...easy to ride with, plus space for bags in the bag... my boys love being in it too...plus in wet weather they stay dry.

[zimzam]

Vacaloca, yes I had thought of that option too but figure if ds sees dd scooting along, he will want to do the same (tho not quite as able obviously) and I'll be stuck trying to control him and the bike while supervising dd! Not a pleasant scenario on the school run! could try it for just the park bit...

[vacaloca]

How about DD on a scooter? It's amazing how much further DD1 was willing to go once we got her a scooter and now it's me trying to catch up with her rather than the other way round. It also did wonders for her balance and she has now learned to ride her bike in one afternoon, having hardly used it with stabilisers before. We are assuming this is due to the fact that she already learned to balance and turn the handlebars on the scooter. You could then just push your bike with DS on it. A much cheaper option than all the others, especially when she might start being quite confident on her bike in just a few months.

[zimzam]

which makes of tag along do you recommend (other than islabikes and burley, tx Takver)? I'd like one that detaches easily and quickly to leave it at the school.

[overthemill]

we had a tagalong for my dh's bike and it was fab!! realy improved dd's ability to understand roadsafety and they went everywhere together until she was big enough to ride alongside on her own bike

was expensive so if anyone is thinking of it i'd suggest getting one second hand

[zimzam]

Spoke with the local bike shop man yesterday and he thinks it may all be a bit wobbly since dd hasn't learned to balance on a bike yet.
So I went home and started thinking about tandems! Anyone seen the Onderwater Tandem where the child(ren) sits on the front? see this.
I assume the rigidity of the whole bike makes it more stable than with a tag along/trailgator. And when dd rides her own bike, ds can upgrade to the front seat.
Reality check required perhaps ...

[NotQuiteCockney]

DS2 is over 15kg (think limit is 40lbs, whatever that is in kg), but it seems ok. His knees are a bit of a problem, he complains about the handlebars bumping them if I make a tight turn.

[zimzam]

Thanks every one. I think I'll go buy myself a bike and practise with a weeride.

I hear the weeride has a max weight of 15kg (or was it 18kg?) but what about height? Don't the LO's knees start touching the handlebars after a certain length?

Any good tips on how to buy a bike for me?