Tandem Cycling - Recommendation for a new Tandem for road

Hi,

I am thinking to buy a new Tandem for my wife and myself.
So far I did checked on Cannondale Road Tandem Bike 2010 and as well Lapierre TANDEM X2 RACE FIT - 2011.
The Laperre Tandem is to small ( I am 1,93m and my wife is 1,73 ).

Any recommendation which buy to buy would be very helpful.

Regards,

lisawi61

Pick a price point and go from there. We've had a few tandems the last 23 years. Were riding steel at the moment. One day we will give carbon a try.

... but at your height(s) I can be pretty sure you can't fit on a "one size fits some" tandem. You'll need one that comes in sizes, which all but the very entry-level, and department store grade tandems do.

Yes, and that makes it difficult. So far I think Santana Tandems have the biggest selections for combinations. Cannondale has some but since I am not sure what to do I think I will go for a test drive.

The largest Cannondale would probably work. Check to see how the top tube length compares to what you normally ride.

I'm the same height as you and my bride/stoker is about 3cm less than yours, so our experience may be helpful.
Our Cannondale (enduro) is the largest size they made at the time we bought it. Though the frame is shorter, the captain's handlebar stem is about 130mm which allows me to fit the cockpit comfortably. The stoker stem is adjustable for height & reach which works for my wife.
We recently acquired an older Santana. The frame is taller than the Cannondale, though not the largest frame that Santana makes. It could use a longer handlebar stem for a more comfortable fit, but it works okay.

If you're buying new, you'll do well with the largest frame size available from the 'quality' tandem manufacturers, and you will be able to fine tune the fit with little problem.
At 1.93m, you're probably used to having fewer options when looking for bicycles, or feeling cramped. At least that's been my experience. I'm quite pleased with both of our tandems, and the roomy cockpits for the stokers, with adjustable stems, makes that fit very easy to accomplish.

Enjoy your shopping experience and the fun of riding together!

You'd likely fit well on a Co-Motion large. www.co-motion.com

Here are a couple of sizing guides:

http://santanatandem.com/Started/TandemSize.html

http://co-motion.com/index.php/tandems/general/tandem_sizing

Find the nearest tandem-speciality bike shop, go there and test-ride several different brands/sizes of tandems. Can't see in which area you are, but even if the tandem-speciality shop is few hours drive from your house, it will be worth to pay them a visit. Dealers in such shops ride tandems themselves and they will be able to give you a wealth of advice on correct sizing and fitting the tandem to your needs. For us such a visit was an eye-opener and we believe it is a must for anyone looking for their first tandem, even if in the end you could decide to buy at another bike shop that is closer to your place or on the second-hand market.

So far I did checked on Cannondale Road Tandem Bike 2010 and as well Lapierre TANDEM X2 RACE FIT - 2011.
The Laperre Tandem is to small ( I am 1,93m and my wife is 1,73 ).


[1.93 and 1.73 meters is 6'4" and 5' 8" respectively]

The Lapierre is an interesting tandem, that we don't often see in the U.S.. It is alloy, with a CroMo fork. It is listed under Tandem, road, and is called a Race Fit, but has 26" wheels and straight bars. It is more race fit for the Roc d'Azur (http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/absalon-hermida-expected-for-roc-dazur) than the road. There is only one size, so it isn't going to work for you.

TANDEM ROUTE 2 RACE FIT (http://www.lapierre-bikes.co.uk/lapierre/fitness-bike/2011/tandem-route-2-race-fit-2011/specifications)

http://www.lapierre-bikes.co.uk/upload/lapierre/2011/fp550/1510.jpg

Find the nearest tandem-speciality bike shop, go there and test-ride several different brands/sizes of tandems. Can't see in which area you are, but even if the tandem-speciality shop is few hours drive from your house, it will be worth to pay them a visit. Dealers in such shops ride tandems themselves and they will be able to give you a wealth of advice on correct sizing and fitting the tandem to your needs. For us such a visit was an eye-opener and we believe it is a must for anyone looking for their first tandem, even if in the end you could decide to buy at another bike shop that is closer to your place or on the second-hand market.

I can't agree more with this. The #1 thing to do first. Wish we had done it this way around - would have saved a lot of money/time. T

I think Santana Tandems have the biggest selections for combinations. ...I am not sure what to do I think I will go for a test drive.
Test drives on multiple brands is a good thing to do. Santana can build you a custom frame if you can't find the right fit.

Find the nearest tandem-speciality bike shop, go there and test-ride several different brands/sizes of tandems. Can't see in which area you are, but even if the tandem-speciality shop is few hours drive from your house, it will be worth to pay them a visit. Dealers in such shops ride tandems themselves and they will be able to give you a wealth of advice on correct sizing and fitting the tandem to your needs. For us such a visit was an eye-opener and we believe it is a must for anyone looking for their first tandem, even if in the end you could decide to buy at another bike shop that is closer to your place or on the second-hand market.

We just ordered our first tandem. Had to drive over 60 miles to a bike shop that featured tandems. It was well worth the drive. We learned a lot, received personalized instructions, was allowed to take a test ride, and received some good advice on size and what to buy. Can't wait for our new machine to arrive.

We just ordered our first tandem. Had to drive over 60 miles to a bike shop that featured tandems. It was well worth the drive. We learned a lot, received personalized instructions, was allowed to take a test ride, and received some good advice on size and what to buy. Can't wait for our new machine to arrive.

Congratulations on your first tandem!
What did you buy? (brand/model)

Guys,

I finally went to a bike shop and test drove a Santana Tandem. This was a good exercise since it gave us a great experience into Tandem biking.
I will go for a Santana. The only which I am still struggling is whether I go for an Aluminum or CrMo.
Any suggestion would be helpful.
Thank you very much for all the helpful inputs.

I have had Aluminum and CrMo tandems and I prefer the CrMo. The CrMo weighs two pounds more but we did not notice the weight. The average speeds were too close to call, we climbed the same hills with the same gearing, and the CrMo derailleur hanger did easily bend like the Santana aluminum tandem.

Depends on what you like. Get what feels best to you. We prefer aluminum on a tandem.

Congratulations on your first tandem!
What did you buy? (brand/model)


Co-Motion Mocha, medium frame, 26 inch wheels. Still waiting for delivery. Co-Motion shut down during the bicycle expo in Las Vegas. Just heard that our machine is ready and waiting for the shipping crew to return. Hopefully it will be here some time next week. Hard to wait this long, especially at my age.

Whichever bike you buy, and try out MANY, make sure both you and your stoker are comfortable on it. Listen to your stoker, as the stoker position often takes more of the brunt of the bumps. If one of you isn't comfortable, you're going to end up not riding it.

Co-Motion Mocha, medium frame, 26 inch wheels. Still waiting for delivery. Co-Motion shut down during the bicycle expo in Las Vegas. Just heard that our machine is ready and waiting for the shipping crew to return. Hopefully it will be here some time next week. Hard to wait this long, especially at my age.

In the words of Tom Petty: The Waiting is the Hardest Part.

Have fun!

Clarabelle, I think we may go for a small frame 26" wheel Co-Motion Mocha. We still have to find one to test drive. I will be working on that this week, as I have not found anything used that will work.

Let us know how you like (love) the bike.

WE used to ride a Santana Sovereign which is aluminum and really enjoyed it.
It had a really smooth ride for aluminum, lighter and probably stiffer than steel.

Clarabelle, I think we may go for a small frame 26" wheel Co-Motion Mocha. We still have to find one to test drive. I will be working on that this week, as I have not found anything used that will work.

Let us know how you like (love) the bike.

Picked up our Mocha this weekend and took it for its maiden voyage today. We both really enjoyed the ride, and the bike is wonderful. I still have a lot to learn, but after a late start, we got in 13 miles with no mishaps. The new style shifters (Shimano 105 STI Triple) are certainly a lot different than the bar end shifters on my old touring bike, so I'll need to work on developing some new shifting habits. My stoker/wife (who does not make mistakes) was wonderful today. She did not complain about my shaky starts, nor did she stress out about my periodic failures in communication.

Speaking of unannounced bumps, we ordered the Thudbuster seat post, and Sharon loved it. Said her ride was smoother than her half bike with its gel seat.
Tomorrow, we plan on practicing maneuvering at slow speeds down in the church parking lot.

I received my Santana Arriva Tandem last week. We did our first ride today and I must say it is a lot of fun. Thanks for all the advices for which Tandem to chosse.

lisawi61

I received my Santana Arriva Tandem last week. We did our first ride today and I must say it is a lot of fun. Thanks for all the advices for which Tandem to chosse.

lisawi61


The Arriva is a good choice. Have fun.

Wayne
Two riders. Two wheels, One ride.

I've got an Arriva as well. It's a well made bike, good parts and a very comfortable ride! Enjoy!

Hey, welcome to the tandem world. Most of these other great folks are all Lilliputians, so take their opinions regarding components, bikes, and gear with a grain of salt.

If you can afford a custom tandem, I'd wholeheartedly recommend a Zinn. Zinn specializes in designing bikes for taller cyclists, and works hand in hand with Paketa on singles/tandems (magnesium ones anyway, titanium also available).

I live less than fifteen miles from Zinn, but can't currently afford a Zinn custom. I'm a little closer to 2m than you, but we've made do on a Cannondale. You can find a used Cannondale with a 25" captain's compartment. It essentially is a 63.5cm. My Dad is your height and I also bought one of these for him. The seat collar will measure out somewhere near 66cm from the center of the BB (crank bolt) to the top of the collar, but it is a 25"/63.5cm. You can find it with a stoker's compartment of 23" or 21" with the 25" Captain's size. Look for a 1 1/8" fork and pass on anything with a 1" fork.

Cadence on a tandem tends to be a bit slower than on a single. I use 205mm cranks on my singles, but on the tandem I use 200mm captain's cranks because that is what I found used from another big cyclist locally.

Avoid anything steel. Lots of tiny people will espouse the benefits of a steel frame. They cannot begin to comprehend the wattage a larger cyclist can generate, and with the leverage of proportional cranks this only gets exacerbated. The Cannondale tandem is amongst the strongest and stiffest tandem frames ever made. A noodly tandem is not an enjoyable tandem.

My Cannondale looks ridiculous, as I'm essentially building up a 63.5cm bike to be more of a 68~69cm bike. We use a ridikulous hi-rise frankenstem and then obviously a ton of seatpost. I equate it with trying to fit to the bike above the bike. You should be able to get a slightly better fit. Remember to size fit to the drops, not the hoods. Somehow, somewhere the art of bicycle fit has been lost and every other fool on the road can't comfortably pedal a single mile in their drops. Which begs the question as to why they own "that" bike, and why they wanted a drop bar style bike in the first place.

Avoid making any compromises with smaller frames. It makes it all but impossible for a taller captain to get the handlebars to the proper height without resorting to inanity. You can always show more post, it is very difficult to properly raise handlebars, and on a tandem there are fewer "safe" stems.

In a perfect world, a Paketa magnesium custom, or a Co-Motion aluminum custom would probably be your best bet. I'm not sold on titanium tandems for tall captain's due to frame flex. Zinn could pull it off, I woudn't trust any other builder.

You can source proportional tandem cranks through Zinn or High Sierra. Also da Vinci offers 200mm cranks now.

Enjoy, and remember the tandem is your relationship in microcosm. If you communicate well and get along it will be a great endeavor. Our (read my) communication is terrible, so our tandem experience is a lot like our relationship, that is I could do better to make my stoker happier.

Mtnbke, he said in a previous post that he already has got a Santana Arriva and is enjoying it.
Also rigidity isn't everything, even in a tandem. We have C'dales, a Co-Mo speedster which is a bit more flexi, and a 1970's Bob Jackson which is what you would define as very noodly even for a Lilliputian team like us. Sure they move a bit more at the BB but it doesn't bother us (as long as it springs back) and I wouldn't say it isn't necessarily detrimental to the performance, handling, or enjoyment of the ride. BTW you might be surprised how much power a good "lilliputian" cyclist can crank out.

We are not large, team weight 290 or so team height captain 5' 9", stoker 5'6". We like to feel a a tandem flex when we put the power to it. We like it so much that I paid a local frame builder to remove the lateral from a stock Arriva. While I agree that outlier sizes need special frames sometimes there is room for personal preferences and adaptability and skill. Look back when aluminum singles first came out and had skiiny tubes like steel bikes. There were guys pumping out really big watts winning sprints at the TDF on wippy little aluminum frames. Skill can go a long way.

Wayne