One for the parents out there

I was pretty set on a Christiana, even got a quote made up for my preferred set-up. Mrs Smallfurry was less than impressed with the lack of head support for the children though. Ended up just getting a trailer.......

Do you feel they are safe behind you when you can't see what is going on?

Do you feel they are safe behind you when you can't see what is going on?

There are a few things I keep in mind when using it...

• I always make sure that bike+trailer can clear sideroads/driveways etc before crossing them (ie. if there is a obsticle in front).
  
• Remember that the trailer is wider than the bike when riding near edges (this is less of an issue than I expected).
  
• Keep the cover down, even in good weather, so he cant suddenly climb out (mine has a mesh window under the rainproof removable window)
  
  

Other than that I tend to find that I meet hazards from the front and am therefore grateful that its me an not the kids up front.

Also the trailer seems really stable even under pretty heavy braking.

The best bit is arriving at his nursery on my mongrel bike, pulling him in a dirt covered trailer, and then having toddlers arriving in BMW X5's voice jealuosy to their parents :)

My next plan is to attach a light to inside of the roof, so the nippa can look at his books during the increasingly dark mornings.

[quote=atomic.a;953638]Well they are cheaper than a car, and if I buy my mates Christiana it will be cheaper than shop price...

My daughter is 5 months old and just starting to sit up quite well which is why I was thinking now is the time to go for one of these. Initially I was thinking about bolting a car seat to the base of the boxes. I don't think a trailer is really safe enough, which is why I was looking at this style of bike.[/quote]I tried one out for an afternoon with my 2 kids and whilst fun it made me realise they weigh a ton, can be unstable and really only have one functional use-to carry kids.
To spend that amount of money on a bike just to carry kids you'd have to be pretty dedicated and use it almost continually.
It's really only useful for a couple of years.
At 5 months you'd need a car seat with some sort of strap to hold them in place. A forward facing car seat needs a seat belt!
Putting a car seat in it is only adding to the weight!
You would never voluntarily use it as a normal bike to nip over to your mates, it's just too unweildy/impractical compared to a regular bike.
There's little safety difference between a rear trailer and a "front" trailer.
I still believe a regular bike/kid seat/trailer is much more flexible.

I want to be three years old and I want Smallfury to be my dad. That trailer sounds awesome. I've got an image of me kicking back with a cuppa, a lamp and some comics while Smallfury struggles to drag me to school.

I used to get taken to school on the back of a Pashley trike. I guess that only lasted for a few years, but I made good use of it after that by doing loops of the garden on two wheels, over and over and over. I loved that thing. Pedaling as fast as I could, then climbing on the back and coasting, then trying to scramble back to crank again before it stopped...

I wonder if the Bakfiet is much more practical, it look like the kind of bike that you'll be able to use more often that just carrying your kids.

I wonder if the Bakfiet is much more practical, it look like the kind of bike that you'll be able to use more often that just carrying your kids.

Bingo!
I think both can be modified to cargo bike after the kids have grown out of it (simply remove seats). The trailer option doesnt really allow for this (as far as I'm aware), which is why I thought the cost of the cargo bikes was defendable.

I want to be three years old and I want Smallfury to be my dad. That trailer sounds awesome. I've got an image of me kicking back with a cuppa, a lamp and some comics while Smallfury struggles to drag me to school.

:)

Congrats!
Best decision IMHO.
We have our trailer for 6-1/2 now. Great thing.
Enjoy!

I wonder if the Bakfiet is much more practical, it look like the kind of bike that you'll be able to use more often that just carrying your kids.

love those bikes.

these are pretty ballar, but might be hard to get outside of the states
http://www.metrofiets.com/

velcro ! thoughtful use of this wonderous material will solve any problem.

the triobike is shit, don't get it. it's a combined bike, child carrier and hybrid. This means that none of them will work very well.
Christiania bikes on the other hand, one of the best cargo bikes I've ever ridden. I hear that the bilenkys may be better, but for fragile cargo (young'uns), i'd prefer two wheels up front.
Or consider the Long John, those things are fucking indestructible.

A few more Yehuda magic;

I am defintely convinced that a child whose parents take to school on those kind of bike are fucking spoilt.

Anyone know where I can get 12" (small) kids' bike wheels? Preferably cheap.
Something like the ones you find on either of these would do fine:

Extensive Google searching (and lfgss searches) has not yielded a retailer for small bike wheels (admit my searching skills may not be sufficiently good).

The best I have found so far is replacement wheels for a bugaboo stroller, but they are very expensive (even on ebay) so just not worth it for the project I want to do (making a balance bike for my son - have plenty of spare wood and think it will be fun to do).

Thanks

3 wheels EUR 15.- excl P&P
http://link.marktplaats.nl/301098046

Or look for a complete scooter (?), keep the wheels, ditch the rest.
http://link.marktplaats.nl/301654517
http://link.marktplaats.nl/301639787
http://link.marktplaats.nl/301630506
http://link.marktplaats.nl/301588385
http://link.marktplaats.nl/301579234
etc...

When I was in Decathlon two weeks ago they had balance bikes on special offer.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/b-bip-34963413/

Awesome, thanks guys!

^^ Dutch Cheese: regarding those being sold on marktplaats, I wonder why they are selling 3 wheels... Given that one is a rear, perhaps I should build my toddler a tri-recumbent too!

As it happens, following my post I just did one last quick check on ebay, and a new item had come up since my last search: a pair of 11" plastic wheels complete with tyre and (I believe) foam core - £6 each. So looks like I am sorted!

Still quite tempted by the idea of a baby-recumbent... Although I have no welding skills (something I seriously need to develop) and I am not convinced about building a wooden recumbent...

^^ Decathlon balance bike: very little rake on those forks - not convinced about the handling ;-)

Edit: OK, so looks like the other balance bikes have no rake either, so my point about the Decathlon one is pretty lame.

I've sold and used both these bikes. I think the christiania is a superior bike, its more stable and I was more confident on it. I didn't cary people in either only product so I assume wiggly kiddies would make stability a priority. Also unlike bikefiets the Christiania is legally allowed to take a parking space on the road.
I have had Christiania's modified to allow a door in the front for a couple who had dogs, moved house twice with one and totally love them.

For when they're a little older...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbfe2_2DDc0

Dutch Cheese: regarding those being sold on marktplaats, I wonder why they are selling 3 wheels... Given that one is a rear, perhaps I should build my toddler a tri-recumbent too!

Scooters, 12" child bikes and many baby buggies have the same wheel and tyre size, 12.5"
Possible that these wheels are from a child bike: front, rear, spare front.

I have shown this to my son and told him in no uncertain terms he needs to raise the bar swiftish, none of this wobbling around enjoying himself riding in straight lines, we want air!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1O80xTs0Jg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4uI1RrFg3U

I am defintely convinced that a child whose parents take to school on those kind of bike are fucking spoilt.

A friend of mine did that with his kids in a Pashley trike (box on the back). The other kids were extremely jealous.

I've tried utfs and drawn a blank - can anyone remind me of the details for the company, based in the midlands from memory, who make decent/light kids bikes... thanks in advance

http://www.islabikes.co.uk/