A Tandem For Us (Finally)
05-03-09, 07:41 AM
#1
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A Tandem For Us (Finally)
It took a long time, but we finally ordered a tandem, it arrived (only 11 days after ordering), it's been assembled, picked up, and we've even ridden it without falling off!
We're trying to gradually rebuild our bike riding muscles (after a winter hibernation) as we learn the required tandem skills. Tiny rides... Picked up our tandem Thursday (3 days ago) after work, stopped at an easy trail around a park, with a goal of about a mile, just to see what happened.
You see, we are not expert bike riders, though we did a bit of riding last summer. I have a Trek Navigator, and my wife rides a Trek Three Wheeler. She has a balance problem, or so she thinks, and doesn't ride a two wheeled bike.
Sounds like potential tandem riding problems?
Amazingly, the first ride (2 miles, instead of the planned "about a mile") went much much better than expected. Yesterday we did 4+ miles, and had fun, though we had mechanical problems, the front chain came loose and fell off. Luckily for us a rider stopped by with the tools and knowledge and did a bit of adjusting and tightening, and he said it should get us back to our car, and recommended a trip back to the bike shop for the proper settings.
Anyhow, the bike shop took good care of our tandem, though we haven't taken it back out since we were at the bike shop/store yesterday. While at the bike shop, my wife complained about her handlebars width and height, and the service manager swapped them out for a new pair that fit her better. That's her "old" handlebars in the picture.
What took us so long to actually get a tandem? Mainly it was tandem size. We're short, and we finally decided on the pictured Cannondale Street Tandem, in a Medium/Small. Transporting the tandem on our car was a big concern, too. We finally decided not to let that stop us, and here is a picture showing the tandem on our car.
After our grand total of 6 miles on our new tandem, we have discovered that we are a pretty good team for brand new tandem riders, it turns out our main concerns are building up our stamina, and either adapting to the seats,or replacing them.
The expected problems of not working as a team and my wife balance problems just didn't happen! I do wish I was a bit more limber, getting my leg over the frame when mounting (and getting off) is a bit of a stretch, but the ride is worth it.
We're trying to gradually rebuild our bike riding muscles (after a winter hibernation) as we learn the required tandem skills. Tiny rides... Picked up our tandem Thursday (3 days ago) after work, stopped at an easy trail around a park, with a goal of about a mile, just to see what happened.
You see, we are not expert bike riders, though we did a bit of riding last summer. I have a Trek Navigator, and my wife rides a Trek Three Wheeler. She has a balance problem, or so she thinks, and doesn't ride a two wheeled bike.
Sounds like potential tandem riding problems?
Amazingly, the first ride (2 miles, instead of the planned "about a mile") went much much better than expected. Yesterday we did 4+ miles, and had fun, though we had mechanical problems, the front chain came loose and fell off. Luckily for us a rider stopped by with the tools and knowledge and did a bit of adjusting and tightening, and he said it should get us back to our car, and recommended a trip back to the bike shop for the proper settings.
Anyhow, the bike shop took good care of our tandem, though we haven't taken it back out since we were at the bike shop/store yesterday. While at the bike shop, my wife complained about her handlebars width and height, and the service manager swapped them out for a new pair that fit her better. That's her "old" handlebars in the picture.
What took us so long to actually get a tandem? Mainly it was tandem size. We're short, and we finally decided on the pictured Cannondale Street Tandem, in a Medium/Small. Transporting the tandem on our car was a big concern, too. We finally decided not to let that stop us, and here is a picture showing the tandem on our car.
After our grand total of 6 miles on our new tandem, we have discovered that we are a pretty good team for brand new tandem riders, it turns out our main concerns are building up our stamina, and either adapting to the seats,or replacing them.
The expected problems of not working as a team and my wife balance problems just didn't happen! I do wish I was a bit more limber, getting my leg over the frame when mounting (and getting off) is a bit of a stretch, but the ride is worth it.
05-03-09, 08:30 AM
#2
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Congratulations on starting your tandem journey! My wife and I are embarking on the same journey in a few days and really looking forward to twogetherness. We've maybe ridden 40 miles on tandems and my greatest concern has been that of dropping the bike (and my wife) when stopping; I'll get over it. Just takes practice.
05-03-09, 09:35 AM
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Congrats to both of you on the new Tandems. Just go easy as you are and the adaptation will come along just fine. Short rides will get longer and your comfort level and fitness will develope too...all of that is just part of the fun. If you haven't read any of the articles on riding technique mentioned many times on this forum then check them out because they can help.
Have fun,
Bill J.
Have fun,
Bill J.
Last edited by specbill; 05-03-09 at 09:35 AM. Reason: Typo
05-03-09, 10:48 AM
#4
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We bought our first tandem in January, and now have 400 miles together. We love it.
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05-03-09, 05:10 PM
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Welcome to you new tandemistas!
Love the unique photo of wife/tandem on back of the car!
Stoker Kay is 'on the height impaired' list at 4 ft 10 1/2 inches tall; hasnt' stopped her from riding TWOgether!
Most of the things we tend to worry about never happen.
Enjoy!
Love the unique photo of wife/tandem on back of the car!
Stoker Kay is 'on the height impaired' list at 4 ft 10 1/2 inches tall; hasnt' stopped her from riding TWOgether!
Most of the things we tend to worry about never happen.
Enjoy!
05-03-09, 05:20 PM
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Smackdab, if you choose to put the bike on the back of the car, why not remove the wheels for longer trips - that will shorten things up a bit. Even if you just remove the front tire that should help. We bought our used Trek 200 (older model) with a roof rack about 5 years ago (used - paid less than $1000 for everything) - since I was not a big fan of tandeming, we now have it set up for my husband and son. They've put on over 2000 miles in less a year and a half. Since the tandem slows them up a bit it actually brings our speeds to a more comparable level. On a single, I can't even hold a candle to my husband!
05-03-09, 08:48 PM
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Great story Smackdb! My wife and I bought our first tandem last summer. She never learned to ride a bike but really enjoys our motorcycle so the captain stoker trust thing was a given. After about 4 weeks of daily rides on the tandem with ever increasing distances.. starting with 4 miles jaunts around our familiar neighborhood we were soon taking 20 mile rides... by the end of the summer we thought nothing of a 40 mile round trip to Whole Foods for a light shopping trip complete with back packs full of food. Best thing is to keep the initial trips local, learn the communication that works best for you both.. my wife complains when I don't call out bumps, nothing else bothers her( I might be lucky!). Most important find a route where you both have fun while you are learning the nuisances of your tandem bike. We found by the end of last summer it was a hard choice on our time off to take a ride on the tandem or the motorcycle...
Regards - Scott & Arlene
Regards - Scott & Arlene
