8legs2wheels

A little recent history about us 

We’re an animated little family of five on the urban edge of Downtown Sacramento: two Big Sisters (age: 7), Baby Boy (age: 2),  Mom (teacher and world’s best mother and spouse; age: none of your beeswax), and Dad (stay-at-home parent; age: none of your beeswax+1).

3 kids + 1 dad = 1 big fun ride

We moved to our “new” very old, cozy and quirky house about two years  ago, and have adored living in a more bustling and eccentric area that is much more accessible, compact, diverse and filled-to-the-brim with activities than our previous locale in the suburbs.  It has been an adjustment, definitely (not all for the better and certainly not all in areas which were foreseen), but we’re still thrilled with the choice and feel very blessed to have made a move that is substantial in its scope and yet not as drastic as it could have been in its repercussions (we had been considering moving to the other side of the state…or farther…as it is now, we’re still not very far from old friends, just on the other side of the county).

One of the BEST things about living in an urban enclave, as we found out, is the simple bikability and walkability of the cityscape.  On bikes or on our feet, we can run almost any errand, go to almost any of our choice of great restaurants (of which Sacramento really does have a surprising and diverse variety), and visit any of a large number of great parks, farmers markets, museums, and other exciting places that make living in the city special.

However, until we serendipitously met soon-to-be friends with eye-popping/multiple-child-toting bicycles, we didn’t know that we could do all these things more quickly, easily, efficiently and enjoyably with just a bicycle upgrade and a broadening of our understanding of just how car-light and car-free the modern city life can be even with three children under age 7.

Enter, the Big Bike

a.k.a. THE YUBA MUNDO cargo bicycle from Practical Cycle:

This was our first configuration of seats with little guy up front and the girls each in a big rear seat. It was great having the baby up front, but as he (and his sisters) got bigger, I needed to overhaul the seating arrangement. Thankfully, this bike’s flexible (figuratively speaking–in the literal sense, it’s super sturdy!). I have changed accessories, baskets, seats, umbrellas, canopies, cup holders, or some combination thereof at least once every two weeks since I purchased it. It can be tweaked in so many ways!  If you’re considering buying one but don’t know if your current needs will match your long-term needs and–therefore–don’t know if you can use this bike for years to come, please trust me that it can grow WITH your needs.

Now I can take both of the girls to school (with our little guy acting as train conductor), go grocery shopping, cruise to the park, load up at one of Downtown Sacramento’s almost-daily farmers markets, take the kids for a special baked or frozen treat, visit the glorious new Crocker Art Museum, chauffeur the girls to soccer practice, go to friends’ houses or just about anything else aside from make a huge Costco run (although I have successfully transported 45lb bags of dog food and 3-ft. econo-sized toilet paper packages).

We are about 15 months into our new car-light lifestyle, and we could never have foreseen all of the advantages.  Obviously, the lessened ecological impact and saved money are important benefits, but the fact that the girls love riding and being outdoors and actually ASK to take the bike instead of the car is probably the chief bonus.  I love that, for our kids, it’s normal to ride almost everywhere and also that they are much more keenly aware of and in tune with their surroundings on two wheels than they are on four.

(I almost forgot–I’m healthier now than I have ever been, my back pain has decreased, and we cancelled the gym membership…all good things to keep in mind when weighing the costs of whether or not to purchase a pricier bike that can have such a transformative effect on your lifestyle.)

The reasons for this here blog

This is our second major configuration of the MUNDO. The big girls sit on the front half of the padded deck and hold onto the new “Monkey Bars” frame while the little guy has his big boy harness seat in the back. The steering is now easier without a toddler attached to the front stem, and the girls aren’t as constrained (trust me, they’re safe and secure, but have more freedom and feel more like they’re riding a bike than sitting in a car seat). Eventually, all three can just sit on the deck and hold onto the adjustable frame. And, further down the road, when the kids are riding their own bikes, I’ll have an awesome huge rear rack to carry all the stuff for our future adventures.

I was encouraged by a few people to write about our experiences, including our friend Elle (who really is the Godmother of Sacramento Cargo and Commuter Cycling, as well as the author of a phenomenally insightful and helpful blog, TinyHelmetsBigBikes), and Tim at Practical Cycle, the one-of-a-kind cycle shop with encouraging and knowledgeable folk that sells, rents, and services every kind of bike and trike you can think of that isn’t a tiny racing bike.

Also, when you’re a 6ft bearded guy who takes care of children all day and occasionally hauls them around town on a large and conspicuous bicycle, you get a lot of people asking you questions and encouraging you and wanting to know more about how and why you’re doing what you’re doing.

Ergo, this blog.  I also love to write, and am going to have to work really hard to not be overly verbose–I know that people’s free time is limited…(so far, Mission Not-So-Accomplished).

Some topics to be explored

• TINKERING/D.I.Y.
• OFF THE BIKE/RANDOM
• ECO-FRIENDLINESS
• BIKING AROUND TOWN
• BIKES
• CYCLE NEWS
• POLITICS
  
• BIKE-EASY ERRANDS
• LOCAL RIDER PROFILES

And finally…

I would love any feedback people are willing to give.  I have been fortunate to have people around me who teach me and challenge me, and I still have a lot to learn.  If this can be a forum or be helpful or entertaining in any way to people, I’ll be quite happy.  Please feel free to comment and subscribe, as well as contact me through the link on the right.  Thanks for reading, and Happy Trails!

 

–Jarrod (updated May, 2014)