Hiya!

[Dom85]

Hi everyone

I've just given up my job in the City for something local and will now no longer be at the mercy of South East trains

My new place is a bit far for walking but perfect for riding so I'm getting back into it, just now really regretting getting rid of my bike when I moved last year.

I now also have an 8 month old little boy to join me and I'm currently trying to decide on whether to get the WeeRide for him or a traditional rear child seat, if anyone has experience I would love to hear it.

I'm also looking around for a new bike, although I kind of have my heart set on the ladies Marin Redwood.

Looking forward to chatting to you all!

 

[HJ]

Hallo and welcome

 

[Bond]

Hello and welcome

I have no experiance with the baby carrying things sorry, but the ladies Marin Redwood seems like a very nice bike.

 

[arallsopp]

Hello and welcome!

Tunk (just turned two) has spent a fair bit of this summer pootling around in a trailer behind me, and he loves it. We try to stick to low traffic routes, but cars generally give us a nice wide berth anyway.

The year before (just turned one) he was in a baby seat atop my other half's MTB. The position of the rack and general design of the unit put his weight very high on the bike, with the result that it was quite hard for her to keep him upright at times.

The increased weight meant that stopping needed a little more planning, and pulling away was generally slower. For urban pootling, a bike with a hub gear can be very handy (as it lets you change down gears whilst you're stopped, waiting for the unexpected obstruction to move). No standing up and mashing for us.

I like the trailer. Rollcage keeps him safe. Harness is better designed. He can move about a bit, and his advancing years mean he can keep his head supported. Its hard going on the neck if the littl'un is, well, only little, as the head is still comparatively heavy. Add in that Tunk falls asleep as soon as he's on the bike, and you've got a lolling drooly baby in a breeze.

 

[Dom85]

Hello and welcome!

Tunk (just turned two) has spent a fair bit of this summer pootling around in a trailer behind me, and he loves it. We try to stick to low traffic routes, but cars generally give us a nice wide berth anyway.

The year before (just turned one) he was in a baby seat atop my other half's MTB. The position of the rack and general design of the unit put his weight very high on the bike, with the result that it was quite hard for her to keep him upright at times.

The increased weight meant that stopping needed a little more planning, and pulling away was generally slower. For urban pootling, a bike with a hub gear can be very handy (as it lets you change down gears whilst you're stopped, waiting for the unexpected obstruction to move). No standing up and mashing for us.

I like the trailer. Rollcage keeps him safe. Harness is better designed. He can move about a bit, and his advancing years mean he can keep his head supported. Its hard going on the neck if the littl'un is, well, only little, as the head is still comparatively heavy. Add in that Tunk falls asleep as soon as he's on the bike, and you've got a lolling drooly baby in a breeze.

Thanks for that. Was the carrier rear mounted?

 

[arallsopp]

It was. A co-pilot Limo, or equivalent, I believe.

Major things to watch out for are:
- dropping the bike in the moment when you're stepping through the frame.
- forgetting its a step through, and giving poor kid a roundhouse.

Whereabouts in Kent are you? We're in Bromley, so possibly not that far away.

 

[Dom85]

It was. A co-pilot Limo, or equivalent, I believe.

Major things to watch out for are:
- dropping the bike in the moment when you're stepping through the frame.
- forgetting its a step through, and giving poor kid a roundhouse.

Whereabouts in Kent are you? We're in Bromley, so possibly not that far away.

I'm in Gravesend, so pretty close.

Those are the things that I thought about which is why I'm leaning more towards the WeeRide as it's centre mounted so seems like it would be easier to get on and off the bike without injury!

As I havn't cycled for a long time I want to get back into the swing of things first, and I've never ridden on the road so I'm looking for road training around Gravesend at the mo so I wont have him with me much at the start but eventually my plan is to cycle to work and drop him off at my Mum's on the way so ideally I want a child seat that can come off quickly so I can leave it there.

Do you know of any decent cycle groups in the Kent area? Something that's good for a real novice?

 

[bauldbairn]

Hello Dom85 and Welcome to the CC forums.