Kids tag along bikes

[ishaw]

My youngest is now too big for the rack mounted rear seat so thinking of other options that will allow a family ride until he can have his own bike.

Why do we think of the tag along type bikes (no front wheel, mounted to the adults bike somewhere, I assume at the seat post)?

Are there any ones to avoid/seek out?

It shouldn't be too long before he inherits the eldest's bike, but I'm the meantime......

Cheers

 

[hamster]

There is always a feeling of the tail wagging the dog with seatpost-mounted couplings. If you can find the Islabikes version with the rack-mounted pivot it's much better. Tagalongs are generally heavy and horrible, definitely you need an MTB with stable steering and wide-ish bars. However the Trailgator thing is far nastier.

I bought an MTB tandem (Dawes Kickback Two) secondhand for £250 and fitted kiddycranks. It was lighter, faster, better-handling and simply nicer to ride than a tagalong. With the kids older we still use it for big rides and touring.

An alternative to consider is the Follow-Me: http://www.followmetandem.co.uk/ friends had one and really rated it. It's the best of both worlds: it handles OK and allows independent riding.

 

[ajm]

I used a tag-a-long (I think that was the actual make - haven't looked at it for years) when my son got a bit too big and heavy for the trailer - mostly because we were given it for free. I agree with hamster's assessment above - it's heavy and feels a bit weird, especially when out of the saddle. Also, don't expect any real assistance from your "stoker"! It's also surprisingly awkward to store.

That was a long time ago and he's a teenager now - his little sister is just old enough for the trailer but hated her first outing in it so for now cycling is a selfish guilty pleasure for me!

If I were spending my own money I suspect I'd be more interested in trying the follow-me route...

 

[ishaw]

I think I got lucky on ebay and got a very nice trek version for the princely sum of £10.50.

Just needs a clean and I'll take it and it's pilot for a spin and report back.

 

[M-Power]

Re:

I got a used Adams 7spd trail a bike off eBay. It's great but I was a bit paranoid about the clamp breaking as we go at it pretty hard offroad I used a jubilee clip and attached an emergency strap to the seat stay just in case the Adams clamp fails, so it can't detach.

At first my daughter tried to steer with the wide bars which made it a bit wobbly. Fitted some narrower straight bars, prob solved and told her to just push Very useful if you want to go for a decent ride as the kid can relax when tired. I imported an Adams seat back rest from Oz for 1/2 the price of the UK and it came in 3 days !

 

[Captain Stupido]

Just bought one (Adams) from the car boot for £20... not tried it yet, but pretty chuffed. Sorry that's not much help is it.

 

[ishaw]

Re:

What's all this Adams of which you speak?

 

[Captain Stupido]

Re: Re:

What's all this Adams of which you speak?

It's a canadian brand. Adams Trail-A-Bike

 

[ishaw]

Re:

I was thinking family guy and the Sam Adams beer for some reason.

 

[CTK]

Re:

LOCT child carriers sometimes come up on ebay. I have one its good. Basically like a weeride but better and for bigger kids.