The bikes and gear that actually work for riding with kids aged 0-7, tested over 10,000 miles.
Caley Fretz, Escape staff
I have a business idea. We’re going to bottle pure joy.
Step one, strap a microphone to your two-and-a-half-year-old. Then stick him on a little seat bolted over your top tube, the top of his helmet bobbing a few inches from your chin. Simply let him do what he does, which is narrate the world at full volume. The ducks in the river that say quack. The clouds, which are puffy, not dark, mostly white, like milk, but in the air. Do firemen toot? The crucial question of our time. He sees what you see and you talk, have a real conversation, with your barely-talking child. Joy. Bottle it, sell it, we can all retire.
What’s the best way to move your kids around by bike? Specifically, the little ones, too young yet to ride on their own or at least to ride particularly far or fast. This question came up in our Forum in recent weeks. It also hits close to home here, as the father of a five-year-old and a two-year-old who has put over 10,000 miles on our front-loader cargo bike and a plethora of other kid-moving options since our first was born. I’ve got tips; our members have tips; our staff have tips. We have, dare we say, cycling tips.
I’ve learned that marketing rarely matches reality when it comes to riding with kids. The most important question isn’t what’s safest or what’s cheapest, though those are important, it’s what makes both you and your kids actually want to get on the bike. It’s the vehicle that sparks the most joy in you, and your child. Because the cheapest, safest bike in the world isn’t doing you a lot of good if you get in the car instead.
With that in mind, I’ve collated my own thoughts along with those of the parents of both Escape members and staff. Here are the setups that have proven their worth in real-world family cycling, from newborn car seat compatibility to toddler conversation machines. Plus, some thoughts on how to go about thinking through your own needs.
Buckle up, this is a big one. All listed pricing is US$, and options vary by market; what’s available in the US may not be in Europe or Australia and vice versa. To jump straight to the bike/seat type that interests you, click below.
Front-Loader Cargo Bikes
Best for: If you want to truly replace a car
Tested: Urban Arrow Family, $5,000+ (depending on configuration)
Alternatives: Trek Fetch, Triobike Boxster, Riese & Müller Load, Butchers & Bicycles MK1, Yuba Supercargo. $4,000-8,000+
It takes a long time to get to 10,000 miles in 3.5-mile increments. Just under five years, in our case. The Urban Arrow has replaced our car for local transportation, and that’s how you need to think about the cost, because these things are not cheap.
There are two major factors in favor of this type of cargo bike versus the long-tail types that are more common in most areas. The first is car seat compatibility. Urban Arrow sells a mount for Maxi Cosi-compatible car seats, meaning you can put a kid in there as soon as you’re comfortable doing so. For us, that was a few weeks old. They’re fully strapped in, head controlled, and laying on their back, just like they are in the car. The mounts are spring-loaded, so they even get a bit of suspension.
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