CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 15years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
@SRD: its not fancy (no light!)
Maybe you need one of these?
he does not seem as comfy in it as he is in the Copilot
Does it have the foam lining/cushion still intact or has that gone? If it has been lost, then maybe rigging up a bit of fleece or similar will make it a bit more snug?
nope or not so much. could be various things though. [my husband volunteers that he prefers using the hamax]
do you want to borrow our hamax and try it for a couple days?
Yes please SRD that would be good, if he doesn't get on with the hamax i'll have to invest in a rack that'll fit.
Although he complains going in to the car seat so he might just have to put up....
I too have a bairn seat that seemed plenty comfy for young spittly v1.0 and as V2.0 won't need it for a few years you can have a go if SRDseat doesn't suit
okay. PM me and we'll arrange. You could also borrow the copilot, but its a bit wonky after extended use.
Had him in the seat on Sunday just round the block a few times, he loved it. At one point he was hanging over the side with the wind in his hair grinning away. The springyness of the Hamax didn't seem to bother him.
Got a fancy Hamax one from Gumtree for £30, does the whole recline thing, not sure i'll use that but its nice to have. Now to fix the mountain bike not sure the single speed is really designed as a load carrier.
Four years ago I started this thread because eldest daughter was getting too big for her bikeseat, and her small brother was due to arrive at the end of the year.
This is the thread where the Circe Helios was first mentioned on the forum.
Amazingly, today, that small brother had his first go at stokering - admirably assisted by all at laidback bikes. After some practice rides, he and his Dad then rode out the canal to Wester Hailes to meet us (we'd been on a pilgramage to hermiston gait).
Many, many thanks to all of you on here who have assisted us in various ways, especially chdot helping get both kids riding independently and -- Laidback - bike dealer beyond compare. I know of no one else who always goes that extra mile for customers/friends.
Thanks guys - with your assistance it's been a great 4 years of family cycling.
As a committed rationalist I should have the same emotional response to this as I get from my fingernails growing, but....
Squeee! Micro-SRD's getting all growed up! Kudos to B!
:) good to see.
I will be reading this thread with diligence in a year or so once our sproglet emerges into daylight and starts to be bike-transportable.
@srd I had a feeling laidback would cut you a deal on that Helios.
What shrine were you worshipping at out hermiston gait way?
I pay my tithe to decathlon there. I appear to have five pounds free to spend dur to paying my tithes on such a regular basis.
We were checking out the carrera tdf jr, but unfortunately it's still a bit big.
The new stoker put in 14 miles today - said 'this is fun'! at the end.
Liberating to ride without a childseat/with panniers.
ps anyone want a somewhat used Hamax £25
"The new stoker put in 14 miles today - said 'this is fun'! at the end."
Spotted you all on Russell Road.
Excellent!
Does this mean you are now a two tandem family?
I loved the photo on Facebook - Mr SRD is quite tall and his new stoker is quite small...
Have debated the two tandem concept, but are hoping it means that big sister cycles on her own. Which is why we're looking to get her a new bike (any offers on a small purple Beinn , 20" wheels?)
any offers on a small purple Beinn , 20" wheels?
Find a friend who is a little behind in the child stakes, and offer it on long term loan - you'll need it for micro SRD in a bit!
Robert
I introduced myself to Mr SRD at Harrison Park this afternoon and I was able to quiz him about micro SRD's progression to stoker. Good work for the wee man.
I'm waiting to make the same move with micro Hankchief as she is getting too big/heavy for the child seat, although I'd be promoting mini Hankchief to a trailer bike at the same time as I don't think he is ready for riding the daily commute solo (and I don't think I'm ready for the added stress in the morning).
The joy of parenting is that nothing stays the same for long...
Oh and with me planning to ride a tandem with tag-a-long on the back shows why I'm fanatical on removing unnecessary chicanes.
Cool stuff. :-) Perhaps a Goodies bike would do the trick. ;-)
My child spacing strategy was not to have two in nappies or buggy at same time. Turns out it's even better in terms of bike riding :)
I've tried trawling through this topic but haven't been able to find something on the merits of tag-along vs. one of those bars that connects a kids bike to an adults bike.
Little one is currently v happy in her bike seat on the back of my bike but at some point we'd like to move her off my bike and onto her own.
At the moment I tend to cycle the small child to nursery, dump the child and then carry on my own merry way. If I'm running late this can include a rather bumpy ride up a farm track - am I likely to wreck a tagalong doing that? Do these tagalongs come off easily or will I have to cycle the rest of my journey with the tagalong attached?
As you can tell I'm completely clueless at the moment.
When my youngest grew out of the trailer, she went on a tag along.
It was easy and quick to hitch/unhitch, so could be left at e.g. her nursery.
Downside was she liked it so much I honestly think it put her off wanting to learn to cycle independently.
Upside was when that day came that I sold it on quickly and easily and for a tenner less than I'd originally paid (having bought it second hand) although I included a second hitch, as I'd bought one for Mrs Bikeability's bike.
All in, it did its job, was a lot of fun, got the family out together, was cheap!
Lezzles - here are a couple of good threads for reference
Darkerside ' s write up of last year family bike curious event
If you can wait to this year's event you should be able to pick up some good tips and see for yourself what the options are.
How I solved a similar problem
In answer to your specific question, I'd say you'd be best placed with a tagalong for the following reasons
1. You talk about the commute and running late. Makes me think there'll be limited opportunity for solo riding. Trailgators are best for when they can roam free.
2. Tagalongs tend to have 20" wheels compared to 14/16" wheels on starter bikes. There is a noticeable increase in rolling resistence from the smaller wheels - especially when you are riding it empty (& faster).
3. Trailgators require the towed bike to pull a small wheelie which puts the riders positioning slightly out from normal. Okay for short rides but gets them used to an odd position.
4. If you ride in all weathers the gunk from your rear wheel will spoil the towed bike and with the mileage on the rear hub it will aged pretty quickly.
The real problem comes when No2 arrives and you have to start looking at tandems...
Any further help needed just shout.
@HankChief
Good point on the TrailGator. Ordinary kids' bikes are engineered to survive no more than fifty miles of riding. Commuting will kill them dead.
I knew this forum would come up trumps. Thank you to all. Hoping I can make the bike curious event but got a funny feeling I might be in Ethiopia.
Good thing we've got the bike to work scheme as I can see some more expensive options for our future. The tandem plus child seat looks fun. I've been talking about selling my car for ages but thought until the small baby years are behind me it would be silly. With advice like this though I can see an advert on Autotrader coming up a lot sooner than I thought.
"
Before Islabikes, children had a raw deal when it came to bicycles. They were riding bikes that weighed half their body weight, struggling to reach the brakes, and generate enough power to use them even if they could.
And then Isla Rowntree came along, found a gap in the market, built a successful business and made a lot of children very happy in the process. We caught up with her to find out how she did it, and ask her for advice on buying a child's bike...
"
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