Recreational & Family - Biking in Chicago

Hi-

I would appreciate any help and feedback about biking with a trailer vs. child seat in a big city. We live in Chicago and just bought a bike and bike trailer, as I am aware they are typically supposed to be safer. I feel that I am somewhat limited in terms of what streets I can ride on due to the size of the trailer behind me and feel I would be better able to navigate down the roads with a child seat. I would love to receive feedback from those of you who live in a big city and how you deal with this or if you just end up getting a child seat.

Thanks

Hi Amy,
I live south of Chicago and have biked downtown with my kids alot.
I agree that riding with a bike trailer limits the # of streets you can ride on...you are can be limited to wider, low traffic streets and you have to take care to make sure that you are highly visible -- flags, etc. My preference was always the trailer b/c I could pack lots of stuff in it and the kids were quite happy being pulled. Plus you can get them very cozy in there when it starts to get frigid outside.

For riding without a trailer, the only problem with the child seat is that the weight can shift you and make you both go down if you don't have lots of upper body strength. The trailer is significantly more stable. Plus, the kid's view is restricted in the back and if you are at all large, they can be rather scrunched back there.

You may want to check too into those "dutch-style" bike seats that mount in front of you instead of behind you -- they in front of the handlebars and sometimes have a little windshield. This could solve some problems if you are riding on narrow city streets where visibilty from a low trailer is limited.
I still like the trailer option, with flag...but pulling on the lakefront was like pulling a parachute full of bricks.

How old is your child?
We began riding with a "tagalong" or trail-a-bike with our kids when they were 3. We ride with the tagalongs and panniers to fit their stuff. They had the ability to balance and hang on and didn't have to pedal when they didn't feel like it. I love the Trek tagalong as it is one of the most stable steady tagalongs on the market and they can last til your kid is quite large (my son, now 8 still rides with me on one). Don't buy a cheap tagalong b/c it will tilt in the bracket and cause your child to ride tilting sideways...highly uncomfortable and potentially dangerous.

plus, don't forget the helmet...my kids, now ride religously with their helmets b/c they rode with them while they were babies and got used to it early.

Happy riding...
also, check out the Chicagoland Bike Federation website for maps...they post cycling specific routes that could be very useful for you.

j

When my daughter was young and my son was older, I would put her in the trailer -- attach the trailer to the tagalong and pull both train style...not done frequently, but it can be done.

Happy riding.

I'm not sure how suitable a bike with a trailer is for urban street riding. I'd probably stick to trails. Unfortunately many of the trails in the area are not a bargain either with overcrowding especially on the weekends and a dangerous mix of pedestrians, skaters, and bicylists of varying speeds/experience. What I like to do is pay $5 and take the metra way out into the countryside with my bike and ride there. There is some nice cycling and country roads/trails out in McHenry Harvard Round Lake and of course southern Wisconsin.

Thanks for your suggestions. My daughter is 19 months old so not old enough to ride yet. The feedback about the lakefront is great as that is mostly where we want to ride. I am just nervous about the child seat as many say it is quite unstable. I couldn't do the seat in front. I am pretty short.

Thanks again for the feedback.

i have a side by side traler and a trail a bike...
the ralier width is not much wider then the handelbars...
so if you can make with a few inches on either side so can the trailer.

Thanks for your suggestions. My daughter is 19 months old so not old enough to ride yet. The feedback about the lakefront is great as that is mostly where we want to ride. I am just nervous about the child seat as many say it is quite unstable. I couldn't do the seat in front. I am pretty short.

Thanks again for the feedback.

The child seats are not as bad as you might think from the posts. They work well enough. If I had a choice between the two I would opt for the trailer given all things equal. But if you are really concerned about clearances to traffic, cars, people, pathways, etc. then the child seat carrier would be a better choice. Just be aware that you will have to pay closer attention to stabilizing the bike while getting your child in and out. Additionally, they will affect the handling of the bike somewhat. In no way is it a deathtrap. Another positive about the bike seat is that they are generally easier to transport than trailers. I do not know if they can quick release from the bike, but that would be useful if you are transporting bikes via roof rack. I would not want the extra height or sail area of the child seat on the roof.

st0ut is correct on the width of trailers. That is usually not the issue, although it certainly feels like it (and I have a couple thousand miles with mine). The bigger problem is the extra length and making room for turns near curbs or other obstacles. It is similar to turning a tractor trailer, you have to make the turn a little wider to clear the trailer.