*Moan* Oh God, the mud..

[purplepolly]

I never thought I would ever say this, but then I've not got a child to think about when cycling, why not give in occasionally? Whatever your reasons for cycling - health, environment or whatever - you'll still be doing a better job cycling say 80% of the time than driving all the time.

Or maybe the special interest people could think up something a bit more stable
http://www.kinetics.org.uk/html/roadster_trike.shtml

 

[Origamist]

Thanks Mickle...I've got big knobbly tyres on it which I'm sure are for mud etc.
Which ones would you recommend?
All help gratefully received..

There are knobblies and then there are knobblies. I run Maxxis High Rollers on my MTB - very good at cutting through the mud...

 

[ed_o_brain]

If you are riding on mud, sometimes dropping the pressure in your tyres can help a bit. What pressure are you running them at? Also, how old is your child?

A childseat on the bike will raise it's centre of gravity because it is a heavy load secured fairly high up, and thus make it more unstable and difficult to handle on mud.

I've transported my two sons along some very muddy by-ways using a cycle trailer. Obviously, you need sufficient width, but I think it's much safer as the trailer is much more stable than the bike and even if I end up coming off, the trailer stays nice and upright.

I was using an MTB to tow the trailer with mud tyres. I should add, I didn't find it at all tiring but it's hard to say how difficult someone else would find it.

The trailer has the added advantage of keeping the windchill off the boys and being quite waterproof.

I'm not sure that using the trailer on the road with the children is that dangerous either. I've cycled all over the place with the trailer empty or filled with shopping etc. including Manchester to Warrington (and back). I've never had a major problem.

I have used it on busy roads with the boys a few times and also once for a very short stretch of 40 mph dual carriageway where there was no other way to reach our destination.

The WTF and 'aww children' factors seems to wash down well with A. N. Moton.

It's also very easily seen at night with a couple of smart superflashes attached to the back of the trailer - other cyclists comment on how easily seen it is. For oncoming traffic, a smart superflash on the back of the bike makes the yellow cover of the trailer glow bright red.

If there really is no alternative route, how far would you be travelling along these kind of roads?

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't place my boys at these kinds of risks unnecessarily, but on the few occasions when I have had to, the concerns I've felt along the same lines as yours just have not come into being.

How and where you cycle is very personal and down to you - I just wanted to point out that I don't think using main roads is necessarily that dangerous.

I've never used a child seat on a bike and I've no idea how confident I'd feel using one with child on a muddy traffic free route. I'm not ruling it out yes either. If however I tried it and I felt that my bike handling skills were not upto it and the bike/child/myself could take a tumble, then I would be looking for alternatives.

I think it's really hard assessing what the risks really are and what the liklehood of them occuring is. I don't think there is a right or a wrong way. I think it's a personal decision and the important thing is that the situation has been given some thought.

If there really is an excess of mud and not other way you feel save and comfortable using, then is it possible to drive or use public transport? If not, then is walking the muddy section practical? I mean, that's one of the good things about cycling, it's easy to get off and walk ... and there's no shame in that.

 

[silverbow]

If you are riding on mud, sometimes dropping the pressure in your tyres can help a bit. What pressure are you running them at? Also, how old is your child?

A childseat on the bike will raise it's centre of gravity because it is a heavy load secured fairly high up, and thus make it more unstable and difficult to handle on mud.

Exactly how my bike handles on muddy or sandy terrain. I really like the idea of using a cycle trailer which is why I'm replying because I would like to know what trailer you used and if you could recommend it or others. I have a 3 year old who I transport via child seat, however I would like to transport him in a trailer on the colder days. Also like yourself I would like to be able to run errands with the trailer and transport my archery kit in it too.

Any info you can give me either here or via a pm would be gratefully received.

p.s. I'm not trying to railroad this discussion!

 

[BentMikey]

German child trailer safety review:

http://www.londonskaters.com/cycling/article-child-trailer-safety.htm

 

[silverbow]

German child trailer safety review:

http://www.londonskaters.com/cycling/article-child-trailer-safety.htm

Great article, thanks for posting.

 

[badkitty]

Thanks everyone for all the replies. Sorry I abandoned the thread - have spent the weekend throwing up... It seems that I caught the sickness bug going around my little ones school..Which may also explain why I was so tired and unable to cope with the mud on Friday...

However, you have given me much to think about and consider.

Summerdays - yes, have found every conceivable route between here and the school, plus a few inconceivable ones....and the muddy one is still the best option, but thanks for the idea anyway.

Purplepolly - It seems I have been forced to take your advice whether I wanted to or not! Today I have given in and let Daddy take daughter and my bike to school. And apparently, he says it's "do-able". So obviously all the mud has been washed away by the rain last night...yep that'll be it... Thanks for reminding me that sometimes it's ok to admit defeat. Temporarily...

Origamist - Ta for that. Am off to check out those tyres as soon as I finish this post..

ed_o_brain - Wow - thanks for such a detailed post. My tyres are at 60 psi and my daughter is 5 years old.

We looked at the trailer option when we first decided to bike her to school, and borrowed one to try it out. Sadly there was no way it could be done - lots of the route is just too narrow. Added to that was sprogs reluctance to be in trailer in the first place. She's been thrown onto bikes from very young age, and is used to being up where the action is - usually in front of Dad on his top tube. (which I just read in Bent Mikeys report as being particularly dangerous!)

Also another problem with trailers or anything longer than my mtb, is that the island at the crossing point isn't big enough for anything longer than a mtb. Daughters dad has an extracycle which overhangs both sides if he gets stuck on the island, which is a frequent event, because the road is so busy.
If I took the main road route to avoid mud altogether,I would have to travel on a 70 mph dual carriage way for 2 miles, and then either ride around a roundabout at rush hour to turn off right, or somehow cross 4 lanes of seriously fast traffic with bike trailer and strongwilled 5 year old.

I agree with you about trailers in general being pretty safe though (if i could trust her to stay put), and would have loved to have a trailer, but I'm not having any more kids so that's not going to happen.

As to sprog walking - absolutely.She is a brilliant kid and never ever complains about how she gets to school:it is very much a team effort with her hopping on and off as required. It's just that on Friday she seemed to spend nearly all her time walking, which seemed a bit harsh!
The seat I have is a Bobike Junior - very minamilist, folds flat when she's not on it, but is sturdy enough to take a child of her age, and allows her to move with me and the bike, instead of being held rigid behind me, which would be odd.

And yes, you are right. There is no shame in walking. Ah well-there goes my reputation..


Silverbow - thank you for keeping the thread going whilst I was ill! I'm glad that you could make use of the trailer info.

BentMikey - Thanks for posting the article. Most interesting.


So many thanks folk. Am taking a couple of days off to think about the school run and hopefully will be able to improve things - tyres etc and make it do-able once again.

 

[ed_o_brain]

The sprog-trailer I have came from ebay many moons ago. I think it was about £70 posted, seats two children, carries upto 45 kg in weight. It's made of steel and has a quick release hitch so it's easily attached to/detatched from the bike.

It hasn't worn so well though. The chrome wheels have started to rust, as has the steel frame. It all still works fine though for now, I've had it about three years and used it a lot. I have had some seriously heavy loads in it!

If money were no object, I would have looked at a Burley trailer for the children. Mine is of a very similar design, but the burley looks to be better made.

I've got a large carry freedom Y frame trailer that is stored in the loft. I managed to get it cheap on Wiggle price drop - it was superficially damaged. As soon as I get a big enough box to mount on it (cheap because funds are tight) that will be used for collecting the shopping.

[/OT]

badkitty,

If your child is five years old, does she have a bike of her own yet? When the mud has dried out a bit, you might want to look at a trailer bike or trail gaitor. I would attach some useful links to all the things I've mentioned, but I'm a little too busy right now.

Google should help.