pathdoc

Just got into riding a tandem. My 7 year is my stoker and is a real champ. When riding through the neighborhoods I am amazed at the comments from other kids who see us. Most think its so cool. Some run along side of us just to get a glimpse of our machine. It really makes my daughter feel special and that's priceless to me.

First ride we ever took, went to our local park. Other kids wanted their picture taken.

https://home.swbell.net/hebert11/ipho...-30-09_315.jpg

phoran

i'm dreading the day when it becomes uncool to stoke for me. you are right, i pick my daughter up from school on our tandem, and she's as proud as can be! it seems that generally, a huge attraction of cycling for my lil one is the social aspect. she's way more excited for a group ride than simply chugging around the neighborhood with me.

rokudan

Make such goods things a positive impression now, while they are.... Impressionable.

clint262

My 9 yr old son loves the tandem, and picking him up from school on it always puts a huge smile on his face. We are gearing up for 2 big rides this summer. 1) Muskegon to Ludington, across the lake on the Badger to Manitowac, WI, then down to Milwaulkee, back across the lake on the Lake express to Muskegon, then home to Jenison from there. Trip 2 is the Dalmac (lansing to Mackinaw) He is so fired up for the adventures. Its great knowing that if i want to know what my son is up to this summer, all i have to do is look over my shoulder. Great times!!

DCwom

We recieve many more "cool" comments than "she's not pedaling" remarks, I'm surprised by the teens that say "cool" when we pass.

pathdoc

DCwon, me too. Many of the cool comments are from the 10-13 year olds. Keep on riding with your kids everyone. Builds lasting memories.

merlinextraligh

Happened at about age 13 for us. YMMV.

Stray8

Hmmm... Most all the kids that we meet have probably never actually laid eyes on a tandem bike in person before and they all clamor (and fight) for their turns riding laps as "rear gunner", but now that you mentioned it, I note that practically none of them are over 12... So, I guess we'll see what happens in a year or so...

But to be absolutely fair many of their parents have also ridden it (both as captain and stoker) and have marveled at just how much fun it is... Meaning way more than they had probably anticipated...


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professorbob

My 10yo son likes it because it's not only fun, but he sees it as a chance for us to talk and bond. I'm crossing my fingers that we can get a couple more seasons out of it before he starts seeing me as an embarrassment.

pathdoc

I see the tandem experience shared with your child as an model for parenting. We lead and steer them until they are ready to take the captain seat. I think our children will someday look back and cherish the time they sat in the stoker seat.

phoran

Pathdoc, that is deep! my daughter will just remember making fun of my "plumber's butt!"

justmealready

He LOVES the good comments and whenever we get someone who says he's not working hard enough I just pretend the person meant me and say
"SHHH!!! He's not supposed to know he's doing all the work!"

Of late I've been letting him pedal us in for the last block so long as it's a slight downhill or flat, I pull my feet up out of the way and put it in an easy gear. He gets so incredibly proud that he can bring great big ol' mama and the bike in all by himself- he says now he knows he really does help when we ride.

bobthib

My 6 yr old grandson loves the tandem. He can't reach the pedals yet, and I didn't want to put out the $ for a kid stoker so I fabricated a foot rest. Works great. Used wing nuts on C bolts which I covered with some plastic water tubing for a refer ice kit.

With the adjustable stoker stem I'm able to swap it out so my wife and I or my son and my wife can ride, in just a matter of minutes.

JohnKScott

I just picked up an '86 Nishiki tandem for $200. Functional and in decent shape. It's been sitting in a barn for 10+ years and the tires need replacing. Got some on order. My 9 y.o. daughter is excited to get on it and ride with her old man. I am also excited. I hope this gives us several years of great times!

Stray8

Excellent! You're all going to have a lot of fun!


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Retro Grouch 

My wife and I had a lot of kids and not much money. For years we rode a Schwinn Twinn tandem that I had modified and converted to 10-speed. At some point we accumulated a car that we didn't need so we sold it to a junk yard and used the proceeds to buy out first Santana.

As we proudly brought it home my 9 year old son told me "Dad, you did it backwards. You're supposed to sell your bike and buy a car."

pathdoc

We are still at it but not just as much as I wish. My little one has great intuition about when I'll start or stop pedaling/braking.

Stray8

All the friends and neighborhood kids practically fall over themselves (Me next! Me next!) lining up to swap seats with the stoker with their own bikes as we do laps. Too bad they're not big enough for me to use stoker power solo....



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Murf524

My daughter's been riding stoker for 5 or 6 years now. She's currently 15 and prefers the back seat of the tandem to a single since it lets her interact with the group. She may not ask to ride but she never says no when I tell her we're riding Saturday morning. Post-ride mexican lunches seem to help.

djembob02

Murf, that's awesome. I hope my little one will still ride with me when she's 15. My dream is to ride across America (or possible some other country) on the tandem. Jamie will be turning 8 on this year's MS 150 ride. Although I think she secretly enjoys the attention she gets from her friends/classmates, she still doesn't like being on a bike seat for hours. Perhaps her legs and butt will change their minds someday.

Murf524

MS150 is a great way to ride. My wife and I ridden them for the last 8 years. She was diagnosed in 1991. Our daughter has been stoker on the tandem for the last 3 MS rides and has raised $1000 each time. She really enjoys volunteering before and after the ride. This will be the first year that we're not taking part in a ride. Given the current economic climate we were not comfortable approaching friends, family and even small businesses that have contributed in the past. We're hoping to ride again in 2010.

Watch out for the legs and butt comments. I've had pilots in training eyeing my 15 year old. Its not a comfortable feeling.

The Golden Boy 

When I was a kid, my grandparents had a tandem bicycle. I remember thinking it was the cat's pajamas.

bobthib

Man' that must have been one big cat!

Wildwoodjy

My 9 yr old son likes it, but is now wanting his own road bike to ride. He does enjoy the
attention he gets when we are around other riders, tour de cure ect. We usually ride around Mom's
pace so its a family adventure. The tandem purchase was some of the best money I have ever spent.

Nachoman

From ages five to thirteen my kids were always on the back of our tandems. Now the big boy is sixteen, pedals to school every day, and could probably out cycle me, if he put any effort into it. The girl on the other hand, wants nothing to do with cycling.