Bike advice, please!!

[Bimbil19]

I would be really grateful for some advice on what type of bike I should be getting and where best to get one (ideally secondhand) and what I'm looking for when I see them! I am competent on a bike but haven't really ridden in years. I want one now as my eldest son is absolutely passionate about cycling and would like to go on longer bike rides which would be easier if I had a bike too. I won't be on roads with him, we'll be on trails, but will likely use it to bike to the station and back (a mile-ish). I'd also like to be able to transport my youngest on the back (He's a very small two).

Any tips people could pass on would be great!

Don't buy a bike from anywhere without sitting on it and riding it a bit to get a feel for it. Bike frame geometries vary between manufacturers and styles, and different bikes will fit you differently.

Don't be tempted to get a massive squashy saddle. This will just absorb your energy. Saddle comfort is to do with the width of your pelvic bones, not the size of your bum.

Do get some good padded shorts - either Lycra shorts, or padded undershorts to go under loose shorts.

Don't believe that women can only ride "ladies frames" or women specific designs.

A good second hand bike will be much better than a cheap new bike. Have a Google, or ask on local FB pages, to see if you have a local bike CIC (community interest company) - these are not for profit places that take in bikes, refurbish them, and sell them at low cost. They are usually run by bike geeks (that's a compliment) who will be able to help find you one that fits, can carry a toddler, meet you needs etc etc etc. Here is an example of one in York]]

Please don't buy a bike from Halfords/Charlie Browns/Wilco /Argos etc - I've seen so many badly put together "Bicycle shaped objects" in my many decades of riding bikes and coaching cycling. Having said that, Decathlon are pretty good for a warehouse shop, and their bikes are good for the money.

If you can't find a CIC, see if you can find a local bike shop. Some do sell second hand. Local bike shops are wonderful to have on side for advice and servicing.

If you want to go down the eBay/FB marketplace etc route, see if you can give a friend, colleague or someone who knows about bikes to come with you. Look for decayed tyres, bent frames, wrinkled paint work, cracked tubing, buckled wheels (you don't want any of them); look for responsive brakes, smooth gears, smooth wheels, tight steering.

If you don't mind saying whereabouts in the country you are, I'll see if I can find you a good place to start.

All the above, and with any pre-loved bikes check to make sure the saddle height can be adjusted and that the seat post actually slides in the frame - sometimes the seatpost seizes in the frame and then there's really not much you can do to get the bike properly adjusted to fit you, which means you'll be miserable riding it. Have a look here: Cycling with your kids - Getting Started - Cycle Sprog loads and loads of helpful advice. There are lots of cycling clubs that take kids from around age 4 upwards; if this is something that your son might be interested in, you can find the nearest ones to you here: British Cycling Go-Ride. And enjoy - cycling with kids is great!

Good points made by @rzb

And if you get really into cycling, there's Breeze Rides too. Women's only led rides, organise by British Cycling volunteers.

I am so unbelievably grateful for this advice! Especially around the saddle because the last time I was on a bike I found it so uncomfortable and had been worried about that.

I live in Kent and am really happy to go anywhere in the county and even further afield to find something that will do the job. I would prefer to get a decent bike secondhand and am prepared to pay for something that's in good condition and will last. The bike CIC is a great idea; I'd felt totally lost on Facebook etc because I don't know the basics of the brands even!

What is a longer bike ride to you, OP? 30 minutes? 2 hours?

Considering the state of the roads these days, I'd recommend a mountain bike with front fork suspension.

@Bimbil19, picking somewhere in Kent at random The Canterbury Bike Project looks like is might be what you need.

At the moment, he could probably manage 45-60 minutes (he turns 5 in September) and it's only going to go up!

Personally for a hobby that's mostly about adding an activity to family time I'd go to a chain and just get a basic new model with some kind of repair plan. I know everyone says "ooh independent bike shops are so great" but my experience of them in three different parts of the country is very poor - they are like car dealers - not particularly interested unless you're spending a lot, prone to using your lack of knowledge to rip you off and repairs-wise more than happy to send you out on an unsafe bike. CICs are similar ime - not in terms of wanting you to spend loads of money but in the sense they'll happily bin you off with a pile of junk which may be cheaper than a basic Halfords but is in very poor condition. They don't care - they'll get their council grant and subsidised rent regardless.

If you've a child doing hour long rides off road and on small wheels at 4, you could be spending a fair bit of time in the saddle in the not-too-distant future if he continues to enjoy it ;-)

A good, preloved bike is likely to give you more enjoyment than an equivalent price new bike. As you may also want to use your bike to get to and from the station (and I guess leave it there and it still be there when you get back to it), something like a pre-loved touring bike might suit - likely to come with a pre-loved look to the paintwork (good for leaving at a station), a rack fitted on the back to keep your options open for carrying your younger one and/or carrying a load of stuff in panniers for family days out, and with carrying / towing weight likely having been a factor in the choice of brakes used. You'll also be able to tow, e.g. if you wanted to add a follow-me bracket to tow a small-wheeled bike (good for getting young kids safely across stretches of road on longer rides), or add a cargo trailer if you fancy doing some family camping by bike, or carting more stuff than you can fit in panniers around by bike.

If you're not already able to change inner tubes in the event of a puncture, it'd be useful to learn before you need to sort a puncture a few miles from anywhere. As you move onto longer distances, if you're not already then do consider carrying spare tubes in the right size for both your bike and your child's, and/or puncture repair patches, and a small pump when you're out and about on longer rides, so any minor mishaps don't leave you with a long walk back.

Most importantly, have fun.

Especially if you pay higher rate tax consider bike to work, you get the bike before tax.

Secondly if you have cycling kiddies look at the ride London Freecycle next year (it was yesterday) but they close an 8 mile loop of central London for (mainly) families to cycle. Plenty of 4&5 year olds, maybe even some 3 year olds on scooters. If you can get the bikes on a train it’s a magical (virtually free) day.

Thirdly and still barely answering your question to highlight the cycle Sprog blog as being brilliant for all things child cycling related.