Just got back from SF for our anniversary. Wasn't sure any biking was going to be part of it, but finally convinced my wife it could be fun. I knew that the only way she could/would handle any hills was if she didn't have to work too hard, I suggested we rent a tandem. Neither of us had ever ridden one, so I knew it was a gamble. I rode in front ("captain" and my wife rode behind (stoker, but actually CAPTAIN sitting in the stoker seat. Actually, it was more the "passenger" (or "complainer") seat, as I was almost singlehandedly getting us up some of the hills. It was a great bike weather day, 55 degrees or so. By the top of the second hill I was sweatin' and gasping, and had to take off a couple layers. And my wife got ticked off because I stopped to do this, and...well, let's just say she wasn't tired OR sweaty (and didn't really realize that it had anything to do with me doing the bulk of the work. She really thought she was riding just as hard.) It was one heck of a workout over the next 3-4 hours. But it was a great ride, with great views along the ocean and in Golden Gate Park. We've tried riding together before on separate bikes, which never works because she gets mad is because her idea of riding purely recreational, and rarely, if ever, involves sweating if it can be avoided. I thought maybe a tandem would allow us to ride together. Well, sort of. If I am willing to do the work part of it, while she pedals as hard as she feels like it at the moment, we're set for tandem riding The good news/bad news is that, all-in-all, she thought it was a lot of fun, and is kind of interested in it. But when she said, aren't those bikes pretty expensive? Maybe after the kids are through college. That gives me some room to maneuver. I did mention that $1000-$2000 for a bike compared to $100,000-$200,000 to put 2 kids through college isn't really all that much.

Voldemort,
Nice to hear that somebody tries out a tandem. We are just thinking about trying a tandem. I've read a lot about it, but have no real-life experience yet (we're waiting for some nice spring weather). That makes me the ideal arm-chair expert...
Head over to the tandem forum for some honest advise on what to do next. They talk about the risks involved with incompatible partners, cost of a tandem, the true roles of captain and stoker, etc. Questions I think are worth asking yourself before committing to spending a significant amount of money.
Duppie

First rule of tandeming: "The stoker is always right."

Seriously, though we (see "we" not "I") have a tandem and we have a lot of fun on it but my wife is perfectly happy to give up control to me, the captain. She enjoys being able to look around and not worry about the road or the gears or brakes. I have to admit that doing that takes a lot of trust in the person in front. I don't think I would be as comfortable back there. You should probably try it yourselft sometime. (I haven't!) We do have some issues with differences in riding habits, she like to coast when possible, I like to keep pedalling. We have different tastes in cadence too which makes selecting the right gear an absolute must. (The first thing that we changed on the tandem was her seat and then the 11-34 cassette to a 12-23.)

It was actually the tandem that convinced her that riding on the road was enough fun for to want to get a road bike of her own.

When the wife and I are on the tandem she is always in attack mode. As soon as she see's someone on a bike in front of us I can feel her legs kick into overdrive. I am so proud of her