Tandem Cycling - First Tandem Advice

I have been mostly a runner until this summer. I was a bit burned out and looking for something new. I started riding and did the Dalmac here in Michigan over Labor Day weekend. I have had so much fun with the bike this year i dont want to stop. I have a 9 yr old son who wants to be in dads "back pocket" all the time. I would like to keep him there as long as i can, so i am looking into a tandem for the 2 of us. Working with a limited budget to see how this goes i am looking for any advice on bikes. What to look for, what to avoid and so forth. I have found a Burley Rumba with Softride Beam that is a nice looking bike, but i have never seen one of these on the road. Is this a good bike for the 2 of us to get started with?? thanks

What is your budget? What type of riding do you plan to do?

I started riding with my 9 year old son this summer as well. I've got a Santana Arriva SE and with a kid's seat and a non suspension post adjusted all the way down, he *just* fits. The Burley will probably be good-make sure it's in good shape and all the components work smoothly especially, but not limited to shifting. Also, make sure you son can fit on the bike. Have a ball!

I think the softride might not be the right thing for highly-variable (as in growing 9-year-old) seat post heights, but I have never owned one.

I would recommend following the used market or looking at a KHS Milano for something new. Unless you have lots of money to spend, of course.

I am working with about $1000.00...

I missed out on a nice one. I hadnt had full approval from my wife. I stopped and looked at a 2000 in nice shape. they were asking $1000.00. i went home to think about it over night and the next guy coming to look bought it for full price....live and learn

sorry i forgot to add this in the last post..road riding. Would like to get out on some multi day touring.

The Softride beam is fully adjustable: up/down, forward/backward. Have ridden several Burleys; biggest bang for the buck!
Pedal on TWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

I have also just come across a 4 year old Burley Tamburello. 500 miles on the bike. any suggestions as to what would be a good price on this? The Burley Rumba w/Softride is very clean and 2000 model. I rode the Softride model this afternoon rides nice will need to put some pedal blocks inthe back for my son for a year or so. So perhaps one of these 2 will be the one. Any thoughts or suggestions on either of these would be great

Youll not get a Tamburello for the budget you have.

i am looking at a 2004 Tamburello with 475 miles with an asking price of $1000.00. I thought i sounded like a pretty good deal...what do you think?

If it fits you... new sold for about 1900...

i am looking at a 2004 Tamburello with 475 miles with an asking price of $1000.00. I thought i sounded like a pretty good deal...what do you think?

Aassuming it fits and is in like-new condition $1k is probably not a bad deal; however I'd probably offer $900 just to see how motivated the seller is.

Again, I wouldn't sweat dropping $1k as the components are "fair" to "good" (Tiagra, house-brand hubs, etc.), but the frame is excellent and that's where the valued resides in this particular tandem vs. others you might find at this price point.

I am hoping it fits well. It was riden by the wife who is 1" taller than I am and used with their 10 yr old son. My son will be 9 next month...so hoping it fits...The bike looks great from the pics...Hopefully tomorrow we can post good news..thanks everyone

I am excited. I will be picking up the 2004 Tamburello on Friday. Had to pay the 1k...but it seems nicer than all the other bikes i have looked at. Quite a bit newer also. I had looked at a 92 Santana Arriva they were asking $1200.00 for, and a 2000 Arriva for $1000.00 that need a malfunctioning shifter replaced. I also looked at the Burley with the Softride....All in all i am excited and feel i got a great deal and am now ready to complete my intro to Tandems....hoping for nice weather this weekend....

Where in Michigan are you located? i ride with my 9 yr old daughter in the detroit area on our Burley tandem, and she loves it. if you'd like to meet, Stony creek or kensington metroparks are great for getting started. we are planning to ride the blue water ramble again this year, i believe it's oct 5. last june we had a great time on GOBA, the ohio week-long tour.
i don't have my daughter this weekend, so i'm riding the solo bike up north on biketemberfest.
if you are in the detroit area, i highly recommend a fitting on the tandem by john at contintntal bike shop in hazel park.

I am in Grand Rapids here on the West side of the state. I do intend to go the the LBS here and get set up with proper fit. I would love to get in on a couple of end of the season rides. I am thinking of doing Apple Cider later in September. Then next year possibly the P.A.L.M (pedal across lower Michigan) this is a 5 day ride. Then my son wants to join me on Dalmac next year also. I am also looking into a self contained ride (not sure how many days) going from Grand Rapids up to Ludington, crossing Lake Michigan on the Badger ,then riding down through Wisconsin to Milwalkee and taking the Lake Express back across to Muskegon then back to GR. Lots of details to work out with daily mileages and camping locations, but it will be an adventure for sure. Lots of fun ahead.....

The reason i rode GOBA rather than PALM was because it sold out so darn fast! Apple cider was fun, i rode that on a solo bike. i'm thinking of a ride in Lowell by you in october. i think it's the colorburst or something?

I will look into the Colorbusrt. have heard good things. I have 2 weekends tied up with being on staff for the Grand Rapids Marathon. I will have to investigate PALM more. I am also thinking of going from Marne to Ludington, across the lake on the "Badger", down to Milwaulkee, back across on the "Lake Express" and back into Marne. 4 to 5 days self contained. Perhaps we will need company.

phoran, the colorburst is Oct. 11, 2008. Going to see how Apple Cider goes. If we do 50 there we will go for 62 at colorburst. Let me know if you are heading over to this side of the state. Perhaps we can meet up out there...

whoa! ease the lil' feller into it! 50 is a long way for a kid. make sure there are options to "bail" on a ride that long. (and don't forget the ice cream reward!). if i go to colorburst, i'll be solo, i don't have my daughter that weekend, and my girlfriend has done her one ride of the year :(

We are all about ice cream when we ride for sure. My son is a bit of a go getter without being pushed. He thinks he can ride 50 on his Allez jr.. He has done 35 miles with a couple of ice creams along the way. He is funny...wants the butt butter, his bike, and his speedometer so he knows how fast he is going all the time. I let him go as he wishes and ride along and laugh.

Today was awesome weather here in Michigan, so my son and I on the tandem and my wife on my single headed out. We rode 20 miles, stopped for ice cream around 12 miles in. My son was having as much fun as I. He kept saying "lets pedal faster Dad, we are leaving mom in the dust". I could actually feel his little legs putting in some effort. Next weekend it will be the 50 miler at Apple Cider. Thats his choice as he says he is having a blast back there. although he keeps reminding me to tell him when i am going to shift. I am learning, but not used to telling someone i want to shift. It is great as now my wife will join us for rides...lots of family fun ahead.

Sounds like you got a great thing going on (Mrs Jones)

My 8 year old daughter and I started cycling in December last year and have cycled almost every weekend since. We ride with a group from Temecula run by JanB. Group rides are great for kids and I highly recommend it. We did the Cool Breeze century earlier this summer, have done an 85 mile version of the Amtrak and numerous 50-70 mile rides. Distance is not a real issue provided you are OK with the hours in the saddle and we were careful to `ramp up' to ensure this wasnt a limiter. However the hills can be a pain... Although the concerned weight weenies amongst us are predominantly racers or wannabe racers, with a pair of little legs on the back, I am sure weight is more significant to us than for most teams.

At the risk of being a bore....
The biggest issue we have is to make sure she eats and drinks regularly. As a parent `bike time' is often `down time' and its easy to forget that the biggest job is to ensure that your team is eating and drinking enough. Kids have less in reserve and have not yet learnt to listen to, or understand what their body is telling them. They can crash very easily if not fed often. Likewise they typically dont drink until they are thirsty and in So. Cal. in summer this is an issue. Generally she is a sociable individual, so when it goes quiet I start nudging her to eat and drink.

Get this right and everything else is soluble.
Have fun
mike

Hey Clint, Rick here, my wife and I meet you at your ice cream stop on Sunday. From the posts above and having seen you tandem first hand I'd say you got a good deal. FYI on the Colorburst if you have not riden it before, its what I would call rolling hills. As it may be you providing the majority of the power you'll need to be ready for that. then again maybe when I did it, it was me that was not prepared.

Cummication is the key when you are starting out. Take advantage of the good weather we are having this year. We'll keep an eye out for you when we are out.

- Rick

Rick, it was nice to meet you guys out on Sunday. I was just going to call Kelly and tell him I had met you. I kind of expected Colorburst to be full of hills. We will see how it goes this weekend at Apple Cider, and then ride the appropriate distance at Colorburst. If you guys are ever looking for riding companions drop me a line and perhaps we can hook up. Hope to see you out on a ride again...thanks...

Rick, it was nice to meet you guys out on Sunday. I was just going to call Kelly and tell him I had met you. I kind of expected Colorburst to be full of hills. We will see how it goes this weekend at Apple Cider, and then ride the appropriate distance at Colorburst. If you guys are ever looking for riding companions drop me a line and perhaps we can hook up. Hope to see you out on a ride again...thanks...

sounds like you and your daughter are having a blast. From my background i understand the nutrition/fuel philosophy. I eat cliff bars like mad. Getting my son to keep eating is more of a challenge. I actually get hungry more often biking the same amount of time then i would if i ran for the same amount of time. Not sure why that is, but after the first couple rides i learned that i needed cliff bars along for the ride. Hopefully we will have a great report after this weekends ride.

sounds like you and your daughter are having a blast. From my background i understand the nutrition/fuel philosophy. I eat cliff bars like mad. Getting my son to keep eating is more of a challenge. I actually get hungry more often biking the same amount of time then i would if i ran for the same amount of time. Not sure why that is, but after the first couple rides i learned that i needed cliff bars along for the ride. Hopefully we will have a great report after this weekends ride.