Biking with Kids

Pedals pumping, wind on my cheeks, sounds of the outdoors surrounding me, and my children singing and pointing out the sights while we ride to school. As we arrive, parents comment, "Cool bike!" and ask questions about where I got it, if it's safe. We talk about the benefits to the environment, health, and well-being—how burning calories is better for the earth and the body than burning fossil fuel. They shake their heads in amazement as I try to encourage them to try it out. The selfish reasons? It's fun. The kids love it. On your way to work, you exercise (scratch that off your list!) and arrive to work fresh-faced and energetic. On your way home, you meditate, think about your day, unwind in the evening air, and stop to pick up a bottle of wine, finding parking right outside the store. When you get home, you take a long drink of water and catch your breath. Your kids and spouse ask you, "How was your ride?" (instead of "How was the traffic?") and you answer, "It was awesome."

I didn't always have this life. I used to commute by bike only in the summer, when my husband (a teacher) took care of the chauffeuring. Otherwise, it was me, in the car, driving the kids to school and daycare, then to work. But then I heard about a family I knew going "car free"—and though that life seemed too extreme for me, going "car light" seemed like a possibility. So I started asking Google about my predicament, and I found blog after blog after blog describing families biking with their kids. I followed links to Dutch and Japanese bicycles, and gazed longingly at their lovely and practical designs. For more than six months, I agonized over which bike to buy. I created folders on my computer collecting images of bikes, made spreadsheets, and dragged my family to New York and Boston to test ride unusual specimens that weren't for sale at my local bike shop. I even contacted local frame builders to see how much it would cost to build my own bike from scratch. Answer: too much.

Why did I go to all this trouble? I guess you could say I was obsessed, but at the time it seemed reasonable to figure out exactly what I wanted. The problem was there were so many choices, but none of them were perfect and many of them were a chimera—beautiful pictures online but many miles away, unavailable to test out. Early on, I crossed a few types off my list: box bikes (the traditional bakfiets and the amazing Bullitt) because wasn't sure I could steer them; the Surly Big Dummy and the Kona Ute, because the top tube was so high, I would have to tip the bike low to get off it; and the Madsen, because I was skeptical about riding around with a wide plastic tub behind me in city traffic.

Sure, people cobble together kid-toting setups using an ordinary bike, a trailer, snap-on lights, and an orange flag. But I couldn't bring myself to ride on the streets with a trailer—at below the eye-level of drivers on the road, it seemed like an easy-to-overlook obstacle. I couldn't talk to my kids in a trailer; they would be too far behind me. And turning tight corners with a wide load behind the bike would be impossible. (And pretty soon, my preschooler would grow out of his child seat.)

Besides, if I was going to commute every day by bike, I wanted a new bike—and I wanted it to be beautiful. A bike I would look forward to riding, would be proud to own and tinker with...

To be specific, these were my criteria:
• step-through frame
• upright geometry, swept-back handlebars
• 8+ gears
• good brakes (not necessarily disc brakes, but they have to be strong)
• low maintenance (good components)
• easy to ride, to walk uphill, to load and unload (no squirrely front wheel when loaded, no struggling up mild hills, no rattling over bumps and potholes, no tipping over while I get stuff/kid on board)
• fenders
• double kickstand
• chain guard or full chain case
• child seat or rear deck with handlebars (40-90 lbs of kid(s))
• bag for work stuff (would like to use my own pannier/messenger bag, if possible)
• basket (for last-minute stuff)
• wide tires (my route is so full of potholes and bumps!)
• dynamo lights (for those late fall, early spring days that are warm enough to ride but getting dark early)
• sprung saddle (something comfortable but not ridiculous)

And here is the list of bikes I was seriously considering (including the mamachari, which was too far away to try out):
1. Yuba Mundo (disc brakes, stand alone kickstand, bags, running boards, stoker bar) + Peanut Shell (up to 48 lbs) = $1,500
2. Yuba Boda Boda Crusier—add custom dynamo lighting, basket, fenders, stoker bars = $1,700
3. Breezer Uptown 8 (or other step through) + Xtracycle Free Radical = $1,500 (or more depending on the donor bike)
4. Workcycles Fr8 (with child saddle up front and Bobike Junior on rear) = $2,800
5. Workcycles Gr8 (with child saddle up front and Bobike Junior on rear) = $2,400
6. Brompton ($1,900) + IT chair ($300) = $2,100
7. Bridgestone Angelino Posh Assista (has electric assist + 3 gears...but only available in Japan!) = $1,800? + $1,070 to ship = $3,000?

I chose the Yuba Boda Boda Cargo Cruiser.
I liked its classic Schwinn-ish looks, its light (for a cargo bike!) frame, its maneuverability and handling, its gearing (so I can climb the two big hills on my commute), and the fact that I can carry kids, groceries, work stuff, kids' stuff, and STILL not get up to the 200-pound + rider weight limit.

It's not perfect, and I was disappointed that I had to request several customizations (some of which should really have come standard): double kickstand, front-wheel stabilizer ("deflopilator"), dynamo lighting, fenders, front basket, and longer handlebars for my little passengers. I'm also getting custom (crocheted by a seller on Etsy!) rear-wheel guards, basket liner, and pillow for my little passengers on the deck.

Needless to say, all this customization made this the coolest bike I've ever owned, and I got used to insomnia as I continued to have to imagine what this amazing vehicle would look and feel like when it finally arrived at the shop. The only Yuba dealer in the area is Ferris Wheels in Jamaica Plain, so that's where it was all happening, and they estimated the bike will be ready for me to take home in a week or so.


When I got it, I rode it home, and it was fast! Then, all the neighborhood kids (and parents) wanted a ride. I spent at least an hour toting around kids of all sizes and letting the grownups have a go. I was thrilled. This was my dream bike! I have been riding it two or three times a week since I got it. My commute is a quarter of a mile to the public school down the hill with my older son, 3.5 miles (and one big uphill) to preschool, 4 miles to work, and 5 miles (with another grinding hill) home.

I still refrain from biking with the kids on board when it's below freezing, raining hard, or snowing out. I won't ride with them when there's snow on the ground, and since I live in the northeast, that means I'm not giving up my car—yet. Since the bicycle is the most sustainable transportation option out there, and since I love to ride, I'm considering selling my car someday. Perhaps when both kids are going to the public elementary school down the street, or maybe when I don't have to cart them around to lessons and activities all winter...

I have that gleam in my eye: it'll happen...someday.

Comments

  1. Do you have details on what you did to construct the handle bars? Are there close up photos of the mount?

    I have a Boda Boda that I use with my six year old and I'm too short to use the hold-on bars. I've been trying to figure out a way to create a set-up similar to yours! My daughter would be thrilled.

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    1. Unfortunately, I was forced to buy the Yuba hold-on bars just so that the stem (the part connecting the bars to the seat post) would fit the seat post diameter. I bought some handlebars that the shop had hanging on their wall -- I wanted them to be very long and somewhat wide. I had the shop mechanic saw off a couple of inches on each side, though, because the ones I selected were slightly TOO wide! Then I picked out grips and the project was complete.

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    2. Thanks so much for this information! I'm currently trying to come up with a similar solution since Yuba just told me the Monkey Bars I ordered (which I'll have to cut down for the Boda Boda anyway) won't be in until next week. (Fortunately my bike came with the Yuba stokers, but I, too, am short.) I gotta get my kid on this bike while the weather is awesome, and I'm pretty sure she can handle (ha) the concept of handlebars. Do you know offhand what the cut-down width and rise of your apehanger is?

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  2. hey. Great set up and bike. *think* you may live near me. I'd love to meet up some way. You can find me on FB or online at Suburban BIke Mama. My blog is slowly dying. But I have a new FB page that I am trying to use. PM me- would love to meet at Keltic Krust for a cuppa. I ride a Christiania...

    V- aka Suburban Bike Mama

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  3. Hi Josette. It's been a while. You seem satisfied with the family bike. Congrats. I thought that you had bought Bullitt or something, but Yuba Boda Boda was.

    It's very natural for Japanese mothers to ride their family bikes in Japan. But many mothers don't think it's so natural. You already wrote about the reason why you selected your family bike ride. Now, I would like to know why you prefer the family bike to your car (when there is no snow). :)

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  4. I am curious why you don't use a peanut shell for any of your children. Are they too big for it or do you just go without? I am considering this bike. I was wondering if you think a peanut shell for my 10 mo old pushed to the back of the deck with my 3.5 yr old (40 inch) daughter on the front of the deck with a squished soft spot would work?

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    1. Great question, Megan! I seriously considered using the peanut shell for my three-year-old, but decided that it would be too tight a fit for my six-year-old to get on the deck with the child seat on there. Enough occasions arise where I need to carry both kids on the deck that I thought that would be a deal-breaker. My three-year-old seemed to love the idea of holding onto the handlebars in back and has no trouble actually holding on for the half-hour ride to preschool. What I can't do is take him for long rides, ride with him after lunch (he'll fall asleep), or leave him on the bike while I get something in the house. But I decided that if I had really wanted to do these things, I'd get a Bakfiets or a Bullitt (a kind of cargo bike that has a big box up front) where he could sleep comfortably and the whole bike would be on a really stable kickstand with a four-point stance. I wanted a bike I could use as a "city bike" for myself most of the time, and as a child-carrying bike some of the time -- not an easy combo. If you have a way to test ride the Boda Boda -- see if your bike shop will let you set it up the way you think you'd want to ride (with the peanut shell for the 10 mo old) and then you can see if it'll work. Another option might be a front child seat (like the Yepp mini) for the 10 mo old.

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  5. I am considering getting this bike too and I am in the same situation as you, my older kid usually rides her bike but may need to occasionally ride on the back with her 4 year old brother. Their weight would be 95 pounds together. How do you find it handles when the two kids are on the back seat? Do you feel like its pretty safe? When I tried it it seemed pretty hard to handle but maybe I would get used to it. Does the front wheel stabilizer help with this? Also, what do you think if I modified the deck on the back to be a little longer so it hangs off the back a little and then fabricated hoop bars around the deck for them to hang on to. That way it would be a couple inches more space. Think this would be a possibility or would it throw the balance all off. Sorry for all the questions but thanks in advance!

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    1. My kids weigh 95 lbs together, too! Yes, with them both on the bike it's a little harder to handle, but not that much harder! They can both hold onto the big chopper bars I put on the bike (the "hold on bars" that Yuba sells didn't work for my purposes). It took a bit of practice to handle the bike with a lot of weight on it. I found the Boda Boda much easier to handle than the Mundo, which has a longer deck and is a heavier bike with a higher top tube. As my kids get older, though, I don't think they'll both fit on the Boda Boda deck. My older one, who is now 7, should be able to ride on his own most of the time.

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    2. Josette, I don't know if you're still live on this post, but I was interested in a picture I saw on your blog that appears to show a trail-along attached to the Boda Boda. I am thinking this solution would be ideal for me, with a 4 yr old and a 6 yr old, to carry them both on the bike without resorting to a long-tail or to a trailer. Thanks!

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    3. It's not a trail-along, but just my older son's bike attached to the Boda Boda with bungee cords. I would LOVE to find a trail-along that would attach to the Boda Boda, but it does not exist yet, though somebody did hack one onto a Mundo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/markstos/8636714338/in/pool-758540@N23

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    4. Hi Josette. I'm looking into the boda boda. We have 2 children 3 and 4 years old. We want a bike for the school run. Can you fit a child on with their bike attached? We may even have short distances where we want to fit both children on with their bikes attached. Do you think this is possible? I'm in the UK so can't test ride one before purchasing. Our friends have a mundo which would be able to do that but we don't really have the space at home for a Munro.

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    5. Yes, it's possible if your kids don't mind squishing together. You can squeeze two kids on the back of the Boda Boda. You can attach one kid bike on either side of the rear wheel, with straps. The kids' legs will drape over the side of the attached-bikes' tires.

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  6. Hi Josette,

    I'm curious who the etsy seller is who is making your custom accessories. I have a white Boda Boda andI have a lead for the basket liner, but I can't bear to use the stock wheel skirts.

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    1. The seller is Just Do: http://www.etsy.com/shop/JustDo

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  7. This is such a helpful blog, as I contemplate the Boda Boda for my two kids. Thank you!

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