Advice on good bike to commute with child

Willesdenmum

Hi
I'm a total fresher. I'm looking to buy a bike so that I can start cycling with my kids to school (5 yr old is ok to cycle alone with me) so I'm looking for a bike for me so that I can carry my 2 year old daugher on the back (or front, haven't worked that bit out yet).

Had pretty sketchy advice from a couple of shops in London so thought I'd come to the real experts instead. Hope you can help. I have a budget of around £350, I think I want some some or hybrid (good high handle bars).

It's all new to me so I just want a good all rounder. Something that can carry some sort of kids seat.

All advice welcome (including advice on whether I should go for front or back kid seat).

Thanks in advance

AndyManc

If you are totally new to cycling then I wouldn't advise carrying a child on your bike until you have become more proficient.

Child seats ( with child )can completely unbalance a bike.

If the roads where you will be travelling on are quiet then it might be worth investigating a child carrying trailer, though this will add to your costs.

http://www.whycycle.co.uk/cycling_with_children/child_trailers/

You can pick up a decent hybrid for your money, if you are female , this one for example.

http://www.ukcyclestore.com/acatalog/Specialized_Globe_D4W_Sport_2008.html

Willesdenmum

Hi
I've actually been riding for years on and off but no particular bike as such.

Thanks for your advice. Yeah, I know all the issues with riding with kids. Safety is key but I just want advice on the bike itself and then I can practice with the extra weight issues!

I'm keen to get out there and the lack of bike frustrating!

AndyManc

Specialized bikes ( esp their globe series ) have got a great reputation , in fact I have got 2 Specialized bikes and a Trek hybrid .

The link I posted for the Globe D4W Sport 2008 is a quality bike that will last years , well worth a look.

hamstercp

Personally I'd pick a trailer - my kids have absolutely loved theirs. It also allows you to add in all the extra stuff for them easily - some food and a toy to keep them happy plus the usual spare nappies etc in the back.

mtbcommuter

I'd go along with the trailer, I use ours to pick the 4 yr old up from school and nip around the local places. The biggest difference I've noticed is that it seems more car drivers see the trailer and actually give us a wide berth. I find that they are also a lot more courteous at junctions and actually stop and wave me out :shock: The trailer I use is designed for 2 kids so the dog can come along too. It has a fair sized area where a carrier bag of shopping can go (or spare clothing etc.) it has small internal pockets where the bairn puts her juice etc. and she thinks she's the bees knees.

There is obviously a weight implication but I find it a lot more stable than the child seat. If the child is so light that the weight up high would be manageable and the cost of the trailer is out of reach I'm sure a well fitted seat would do. I used a seat when the eldest was young and the only concern I had was that he kept falling asleep and ended up leaning over (I was always sure that the harness and foot straps would keep him out of harms way though)

cycledad2

If your going for a child seat, the heavier the bike and the longer the wheelbase the more stable you'll be.

If your in London, consider an european style city bike it works for the rest of Europe and they are soooooo practical.

urban_winter

We bought a Giant Expression N7 for the same job:
http://www.bike-shed.com/products.php?p ... 5s204p2435

Advantages:
- It's a long Dutch-style bike so is very stable even with childseat on the back
- it has very low step-over height which makes it much easier to get on and off once you have a child on the childseat
- it has hub gears and a chainguard so is low maintenance and clean
- it has hub brakes which work in the wet

Disadvantages:
- The gearing has a low range compared to usual hybrid gearing so it would not be great in hilly terrain

U.

Arfa

Recently my wife was in the same situation. I got her a ladies Scott Sportster P5, which a very nice hybrid bike which we're very happy with. For carrying the little 'un we went for the Hamax Plus system, as we wanted to fit seat and panniers (for carrying nappies etc) to the bike. Can definitely recommend the combo. At first I was unsure whether there was much gain going for the P5 over the P6, the difference being the front shock. But I think the extra weight (1Kg) at the front helps balance against the seat.
Specialized make good bikes too and were our second choice. You tend to find their models from last year heavily discounted, which can be good to take advantage of.

We paid £253 for the Scott P5 - ladies night at Evans got us 10% off you see.
The seat was £60 from Merlin, the seat rack was £17 from Rutland Cycles and the two panniers were £65 from Activesport. Yep some good savings if you shop around.

As your a new rider, set aside some cash for helmets, mud guards, lock, pump, bell etc. It all mounts up.

cycledad2

To pick up the last point about your budget for accessories for the little one. You'll need to put aside money for:
seat + fittings
helmet
waterproofs (if you dont have em already)
luggage carrying device (basket\panniers) for all that kiddy stuff.
good tyres (fixing punctures with a 2 year old floating around is not easy! And is plain undesirable)

For simplicity i can recomend the hamax plus system, but as its newish on the market and is the best generic system out there its quite pricey.

However, I found the inidivdual components of the hamaxplus to be quite variable in price. I'd recomend trying to do a deal with the same place you buy your bike(if buying from a shop) to get all of as cheap as possible. Most local bike shops will be up for this as they know you might come back for other kids stuff as they grow up.

PS theres a review (and piccies) of the hamax plus system on my blog

kieranb

If you're cycling in London, I'd go against the traile advice. I have used trailers, child seats and tag-alongs in london (luckily they are now getting to the age where they both want to cycle their own bikes). Traffic in london is often squeezed by the number of lanes so you will have cars going very close to the trailer - also you will get stuck in the jams, and hard to turn etc. Parts of london are quite hilly and pulling the trailer up the hills was hard! For carrying a child seat I used an old mountain bike with fat tyres to give some comfort to the child as the seat (rhode gear limo) didn't have suspension., also the MTB will have very low gearing for going up those hills when you're tired.