I'm not worried either...my husband's has the discs...but he only got the upgraded DS 8.3 because they wouldn't have the 8.2 for another month in the size he needed. We both rode a little today when we got home (it was too cold for much more!) and we love the bikes. For our purposes (rail trails...mostly flat, neighborhood) I think these are more than fine for us and I feel comfortable pulling the baby in the trailer we got also. I'm not going to be pulling her up or down any steep hills (I wouldn't feel comfortable with that even WITH disc brakes).

I remember years ago there was a place on Angel Island that rented Marin Bobcat Trails and two-wheeled trailers to go with them. Those bikes were fairly low end, mix of AceraX and Alivio, and Angel Island is not flat at all. I think your Neko and 8.3 will be fine regardless who does the towing.

How did the Neko and 8.3 compare to the Trek 7100 for you?

It looks like in the photo that the fork on the Neko has protrusions for disc brake caliper so it is possible to add it to the front at least in the future. I don't know whether you have the requisite mounts on the front wheel for the rotor though.

I was wondering that myself...after people were getting me worried about not having disc brakes, I was wondering if the bike was capable of adding them later if I chose to. But I don't know how to find that out (without asking the bike shop)?
Both the Neko and 8.3 seemed more versatile than the 7100, and I think better suited for our needs in the long run. Although, I did think the 7100 rode very nicely. I liked the seat better on the 7100, more cushion. But I'm sure I'll get used to the Neko's seat. People are telling me that wearing padded bike shorts will help with comfort, but I don't have those yet.

If the hub on the front wheel has one of the following things on it then you can put a rotor for disc brakes on easily. If the wheel doesn't have 6-bolt holes or Centerlock splines, then you'll need a new wheel. The caliper will go on protrusions on the fork on the non-drive side (the side that doesn't have the gears and chains). The same will apply for the rear.

Note the 6 bolt holes


Note the splines on this Centerlock type hub


These are the protrusions required on the fork or frame for disc brakes:



You could always try riding your bike and trailer around with a bag of rice or flour or something like that to see how it goes. That way you won't have to worry about endangering your child first.

As far as upgrading brakes, even if it's possible, you're looking at $50-60 for the caliper and rotor not including labor. This is for a Avid BB7 disc brake. If you need a new wheel then that will be maybe $60-100 so it can get expensive. Replacing the hub is probably just as much, maybe even more, because it requires rebuilding the wheel which take a bit of work. The spokes have to be tensioned so that the wheel doesn't wobble side to side and such as it rotates. Wheel building is one of the more more difficult tasks when it comes to bicycles.

You can always wear bike shorts under other shorts or pants if you don't want to ride around in tights. Mountain bike shorts tend to have a tight liner with or without padding and come with baggie shorts outside sometimes as a two piece arrangement. Oh and you don't wear underwear under bike shorts.

In San Francisco people ride around in just about anything because bicycling is used for transportation despite the hills. They wear bike specific clothes, suits, jeans and t-shirt, and even nude sometimes.

OMG, you do NOT need disc brakes to pull your kids around! That's horrible advice, ignore it! Leave the bike as is, ride as much and as often as you can as a family, and enjoy yourselves. You bought a perfectly good bike from a company that is passionate about making good bicycles, the components will hold up and you have a warranty in case something doesn't. End of story.

I will look at the bike in detail tomorrow morning when it's light...just so I know, for the future. Thank you so much for the pics and details, it's easy to understand this way. I had no way of knowing what to look for otherwise.
Yes, I might get some bike shorts and wear them under my pants. And yes, I heard about the no-underwear under the shorts..I don't understand it, but that's ok. lol Thanks so much for all the info. I'm sure I won't change the brakes - I think it's fine the way it is, but good to know just in case.
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jsdavis wasn't telling me to change the brakes, just letting me know how to find out if my bike is capable to taking disc brakes IF I should want to in the future. But I agree, I think my bike is fine the way it is. Some of the posters were getting me worried with their comments to my post (if you read all of them above, you'll see what I'm talking about). The owner of the bike shop seemed very knowledgeable, and was very aware of what our needs were. I'm sure they wouldn't have steered me toward something that wasn't safe for the baby. Supposed to be 50 and sunny tomorrow, so I might try out the trailer for the first time with my daughter!

and yes, after some of the people were talking about the components on my bike compared to some others...I was worried

Go have some fun. Just be sure you go slowly since you haven't it done it before. You don't want this to happen:


Admittedly I have a dark sense of humor and I was waiting for the thing to flip the whole time.

Awesome ! Neat little video clip.

OMG!!!! Uh yeah...I'm going WAY slow...wow, that's crazy.

she loved it!