Short commute(rs) story
 

My girls can't hold a camera yet or post here, so they asked me to snap some pics and share here a few...

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'' Dad's office commute is pretty long, but the usual way to the day care is rather short, up to 2 miles. Yet very enjoyable.
Today we skipped the big streets and went to the river...:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8382/8...5105aee7_c.jpg

Watched the sunset:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8379/8...9c7f6894_c.jpg

Didn't get all that fuss about the drop bars...:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8543/8...e599fa1a_c.jpg

So we left dad behind:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8245/8...5da5754a_c.jpg

He caught us in the local pub:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8525/8...1dfb02f5_c.jpg

Got fussy about not locking the bikes properly but we wouldn't listen:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8119/8...5f9d73b3_c.jpg

We couldn't really ride anymore ourselves:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8396/8...c72f5cd8_c.jpg

So he brought us home:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8525/8...23baeda1_c.jpg

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Seriously, this became our daily commute lately, short and relaxed but I enjoy it way more then my fast and sweaty run to the office (which I still like very much).

Okay... this is way too cute... seriously... too cute... ;)

As a can't-wait-to-take-my-daughter-on-a-trip proud dad of an 8.5 month old little girl, I give your thread two thumbs up and a big smile! :D

Agreed. Like maybe past-the-legal-limit too cute. :)

mikhalit, you should be banned for posting the above pictures.... way too cute! :p

Always nice to see a family enjoying cycling!

parenting photos, love them! push bikes! love the idea! reg the river - deadly ... take all precautions

That's making me jealous! I tried to get my girls into cycling too late, at about 7-8 years old, and now at 11 and 12 years old I can hardly get them on a bike, it's like a punishment for them. I try to give a good example but that's apparently not enough


Very nice pics!

Probably it's not too late yet. ;)
I started cycling in my early 20s, and it was my girlfriend (now wife) who made me like it. Out of climbing, caving and cycling the latter was the only sport where I could keep up with her pace :)

Of course I don't know what's your situation to say smth like "just do it", but in general you don't have to wait too long. Our first big trip as a family happened when the girls were 5 months old. Was a week long tour from Dresden to Prague along Elbe and Vltava rivers. Here is a bit more motivation for you ;)

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8544/8...cc13a8b5_n.jpg

What I was really looking for is the moment when girls start riding on their own on a daily basis. And it was raining today, but they just didn't care. :)

Right, we always start with explaining them what they shall avoid and why when arriving at new place... So far it works but once they will get older and less dependent I think it will get more difficult.

PS. Thanks everybody!

Thread of the month! So cute, my daughters almost three and she has a little schwinn ive been trying ti teach her to ride. So difficult, she uses it like a push bike :(

Where are the brakes on those things???//??/??
I would never let my daughters ride hipster zero-speeds. Its better to be alive than cool and dead.

Yay, Chariot! We loved ours. On rainy days when the kids were little I'd put the jog wheel on the Chariot, bundle them up with blankets and toys, and take them for a run. They were usually asleep within 15 minutes.

Yes because they are riding those to look cool and impress the girls/boys. Not because they dont yet know how to ride bicycles, and not knowing how to pedal im sure would lead a masterful understanding of front and back brakes..:thumb:

Love those incline roadways the pictures clearly show them zipping down also. No brakes ftw!

Adorable. I've been trying to convince my brother-in-law that my nephew needs to start out on a push bike, but he isn't quite understanding the concept. Oh well.

i have GOT to get me some kids. is there a kid-mart around?

I dig that trailer! My wife is (probably rightly) terrified at the thought of me getting a child seat on the back of my bike for our one-year-old... but I think taking him out would be so much fun. Have you used a child seat? If so, how would you compare them?

You may not need to go to the store, sometimes they just appear.

I am not a women, but I do not remember either one of mine 'just appearing'. ;)

...one day, BAM! Just there all of a sudden.

Enjoy those times, friend. They will be something really good to look back on. Good for you spending time with them. You will NOT regret it.

Wow, I cant believe I say this.. but I am quite jealous...

Same here. When my wife returned to work (our girls were like 7 months old) riding Chariot was the only way I could put those fussy girls to sleep. Almost daily, six months in a row.


Right, or else later they will start racing the Monstertrack. And if seriously it will take them at least a year until their hands will be able to grab a brake lever. Probably more until they'll get the concept of braking with hands, for now it's just another level of confusion.


I think for short trips seats work just fine, just make sure your kid can sit and support his/her head properly. And it allows a bit more interaction. I am thinking of getting an Xtracycle to let them both ride with me. But for longer trips with kids under 3 years old trailer definitely wins.

For 2 years on, the WeeHoo trailer is really cool. Kids are completely strapped in (like on child seat), but kids can pedal if they want.

We used training wheels set all the way down to the ground; basically turning the bike into a large tricycle. Every couple of months I would raise the training wheels up 1/8 inch so the kids would have to balance more and could lean over further. Eventually, when they stopped touching the training wheels on the ground during the rides, we took them off completely. They learned to ride in a gradual transition over a couple of years.

Cuteness overload! Good on dad for being the SAG wagon.

I load my boys' two Strider bikes up on top of our double Chariot trailer, too. And take them all over town. My 4 year old can hit about 4 miles on his own power now.

Strider bikes, also called balance bikes, don't have brakes. Or pedals. Designed to teach balance and bicycle navigation in a developmentally appropriate manor.

Makes the transition to pedal bike so seamless and easy. Kids learn balance on the balance bike and pedaling on a tricycle. Then just put the two together.

Problem is that my 4 year old is faster and more in control on his balance bike even though he can ride a pedal bike that fits him. He prefers the balance bike, esp at the park w/ rolling, grassy hills.

And my kids brake two ways.
1. Feet on the ground.
2. Feet apply pressure to the rear wheel from the 'footpegs/foot plate'. A learned skill.

Thanks for sharing. Way cool.

At least teach your little fakengers how to use a stick.

/loved the pics