Tandem Cycling - Tandem Parking - How do YOU do it?

As a proud owner of a new Tandem fresh from the shop, I've got my first dilema, how do you park it when on a ride (i.e. rest stop)? I've got a stand for the garage so its only when we're on the road that this is an issue, the obvious thing is to lay it down on the grass somewhere. I've seen singles lean bikes against trees, use the pedal against a curb, etc, but now that I think of it I've never seen a parked tandem? Do you all just lay them down on the ground?

Do you all just lay them down on the ground?

In the absence of something upon which to lean it, yes... it gets laid on the ground but only on the left, non-drive side. In most cases, the only parts of the the bike that touch the ground are the handlebars, pedals and tires as everything else is kept way from the ground by the width of the handlebars.

I would note that if you routinely ride with another tandem team you can lean the tandems against each other and keep them from falling over using a Velcro strap or toe strap. You simply lash the stoker's handlebars together with the strap and, presto... you have a very stable four-wheel configuration. It seems to work best if the tandems are similar in size and placed facing in opposite directions (kinda like two police cruisers parked side-by-side so the officers can talk to each other through the open driver's side windows). The folks at the Southwest Tandem Rally back in 2005 were thoughful enough to actually put some monogrammed velcro straps for this very purpose in their give-a-way bags.

In the absence of something upon which to lean it, yes...
And in the presence of something against which to lean it I favour the stoker's bars as the part that touches the tree/post/whatever. With taped drop bars, they are soft and relatively high friction. We're considering adding a click-stand to our list of accessories, which takes care of the issue entirely. I'd be happy to hear others chime in with their evaluation of that option...

Confucius says: A bike laying on the ground cannot fall over in the wind.

I lay the tandem and my single on the ground on any group rides. I'll lean them on a solid wall if one is available. I've seen bikes hit the ground leaning on curbs, trees, other bikes and even while being held up by the ever so helpful "can I hold your bike" volunteers at centuries. Anyplace wind or somebody not paying attention can appear is suspect.

Or you can try one of these centerstands!

http://www.biketrailershop.com/catalog/images/esge_kickstand5.jpg

http://www.biketrailershop.com/catalog/images/esge_kickstand2.jpg
http://www.biketrailershop.com/catalog/270-esge-double-kickstand-p-53.html?gclid=CNTrqKSqy5kCFYVM5QodKXD7ug



:)


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I've seen singles lean bikes against trees, use the pedal against a curb, etc, but now that I think of it I've never seen a parked tandem?

Pedal on curb works as well or better on a tandem than a single bike. You have 2 pedals to put on the curb, and at least with our tandem the BB is lower than my single bike, so a lot more curbs are tall enough to hold the bike straight.

One advantage of the cow horn handlebars preferred by my stoker is that it makes working on the bike easy. Just flip it over and it rests on the bar ends and the stoker saddle.99426

Gave them to the Valet at George's at the Cove in La Jolla, CA.:D

http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/rallen94402/2008%20SoCal%20Vacation/PICT0012.jpg

Pedal on curb works as well or better on a tandem than a single bike. You have 2 pedals to put on the curb, and at least with our tandem the BB is lower than my single bike, so a lot more curbs are tall enough to hold the bike straight.

If you are running IP.

I use a click stand.....works quite well

http://click-stand.com/Click-Stand_Products.html

There are (at least) 3 different ways to park a tandem - other than laying it down. The first item required is a wooden clothes pin. Use it to hold the front brake in the applied position. This 'parking brake' prevents the front wheel from spontanious travelling.

Leaning the stoker handle bars against a tree or post is now a non-problem. If you park against a curb, that works best if the bike is in a higher gear, plus the parking brake. The 2-legged click stand has already been mentioned, and it works even better with the parking brake.

Lean tandem against immovable object. Laying it down is the next best choice.

Very uncool to lay the tandem down, but not quite as uncool as a centre stand. I have never needed to lay the bike down as there's always a hedge, car, fence post or similar.

I like to adjust the front brake so that if the barrel adjuster is tightened the front brake will go on. This stops the bike moving, preventing any scuffing. Then I lean the bike against something touching either the rear tyre or both handlebars. Neatest is to roll the bike backwards at 30 degrees to a wall then just lean the rear tyre against a wall.

The bike must be positioned so that it can't fall and have something hit a frame tube as this would be a nice easy way to get a dent in a tube.

Turning the bike upside down to fix it is also a no-no as it scratches the stem or worse totally trashes the bike computer if you forget to remove it. It has to be said though that I am impressed with the poster who brought a ground sheet for the bike.





Also works as a theft slower.

Do single legged kickstands work for tandems? I`ve seen pictures of tandems with those two legged ones and we`re geeky enough to use one, but I see single legged stands at our local bike graveyard and any doubles that might end up there must go before I make the rounds. I hate to spend $40 to $60 for something that may or may not work on our model and don`t like to hasle with returning stuff.

Nobody mentioned this tip: when you lean your bike against something, it helps to set the drag brake if you have one. Same idea as turning your barrel adjuster, I guess, but easy enough to be worth the trouble.

We have the two-legged kickstand on our tandem - and I love it. I can remove either wheel with the bike upright. It stands there while I put the panniers on it. I can turn the cranks and adjust the derailleurs without a workstand. It stands there while I clean it. I don't have to scuff up the handlebar tape or brake hoods leaning it against a wall. The only downside I can see is the added weight -otherwise, they're so convenient that I just don't understand the prejudice against them.

Usually the same way I park my single: I lean the back tire against a vertical stationary object (post, etc.) and turn the handlebars into the lean. Works fine as long as the bike is near vertical (say within 10 degrees).

Do single legged kickstands work for tandems?


Yep. :)

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=99569&stc=1&d=1238548085

Only bikes i have in the pack with stands are the Co Motion with a single stand in the rear, and a center stand on the triple. Love the center stand. When I lower the triple from the ceiling lift, i fold out the stand and after it's on the ground I can unhook it. Yea it's a little more weight, but these are tandems and triples. Won't see one on the TT bike!

Do single legged kickstands work for tandems? I`ve seen pictures of tandems with those two legged ones and we`re geeky enough to use one, but I see single legged stands at our local bike graveyard and any doubles that might end up there must go before I make the rounds. I hate to spend $40 to $60 for something that may or may not work on our model and don`t like to hasle with returning stuff.

Nobody mentioned this tip: when you lean your bike against something, it helps to set the drag brake if you have one. Same idea as turning your barrel adjuster, I guess, but easy enough to be worth the trouble.

They work great... but you have to install 3 of them...;)

We're new to this tandem business. But it only took a couple of rides for me to take the double legged kickstand, usually reserved for the touring bike, and put it on the tandem. But our tandem is a steel frame. I'm not sure I would use it for a CF or aluminum job.

I have the double legged kickstand on a single bicycle, and it usually works well - but be careful if the ground is uneven as the bicycle can tip over unexpectedly. YMMV

I also keep a couple of those thick vegetable rubber bands around the handle bars and use those to keep the brake levers pulled as a parking brake.

-Ken

I know I am a little late to this thread, but keep in mind that the answer you get depends on the type of rider:
The racier types might forgo a kickstand, because it does add a lot of weight (relatively speaking).
The touring types might not necessarily worry about the added weight and install a kickstand.
The vain types may forgo a kickstand because it destroys the clean lines of a tandem
The utilitarian types will have a kickstand by default
(Not sure how may tandem couples there are that fall in the last two categories, but there are a lot of them in commuting:))
Try to figure out where you belong and you can almost answer your own question
Duppie

Thought thats what the stoker was for, stoker thought thats what i was for!

SNIP
The racier types might forgo a kickstand, because it does add a lot of weight (relatively speaking).
The touring types might not necessarily worry about the added weight and install a kickstand.
SNIP

Ahem, I put a lot more weight on the tandem then any kickstand. I would say our kickstand is envied by a number of the social tandem folks we ride with on occasion. But realistically, if it works for your tandem, and the weight is a problem, put on the kickstand and forgo the bacon double cheeseburger with large fries the next time you go out to eat.

Like the man said, depends what type of tandem you own. I would not put a kickstand on our 30lb tandem