Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Cargo Bikes in the New Year. Last day for J.C. Lind 2015 Pre-orders

Just in time for winter, there are a couple of new cargo carrying bikes on the horizon in Chicago and Bike Friday left a comment sharing that they are trying to develop a new longtail.

Bike Friday has a new Cargo Bike that is light, agile and easy for smaller, lighter riders to carry loads. We have a Kickstarter Campaign going on right now to support increasing our production capacity since they are so popular. Check it out https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/greengear/haul-a-day-the-strong-and-light-cargo-bike-built-f/description onAbout Cargobikes
Grabbed from the above link, Green Gear Cycling's Kickstarter project

The Workcycles KR-8, about $3300, is a full sized box bike like the Bakfiets. Workcycles is selling only the KR-8 from now on. Jon Lind is taking orders for 2015 until... today!  We have not had time to ride the new bike but Jon has them.  We hope to get a chance to ride one as soon as the madness of the Chicago high school application season has passed. Jon can also order Onderwaters as well.
The KR-8 is sold by JC Lind in Chicago

Of course Chicago is lucky to have a few shops where families can try out a cargo bike. Green Machine in Ravenswood also has bikes to try if a kid carrying bike is on your holiday wish list.

Our favorite for children's bikes used is of course a refurbished Working Bikes Cooperative bike shined up for more use.

We love the small local bike shops in Chicago.  You can't go wrong seeking anything bikeish for the holidays in a small shop. They can help you find a something special whether you are thinking small to fill a stocking or splashing out for a big gift.

Monday, November 24, 2014

Cut to Winter. About Clothes, Breakfast and Time

Greetings!

Thank you to all the readers still tuning in after a season of quiet from us.  It seems the weather has turned in Chicago. It isn't even late fall anymore. The skies cut to Winter this last two weeks with a tiny rainy thaw this weekend. 

Dressing for these days is all about layers, of course. Not so much difficulty for grown ups but tricky most times when you have a small person, or more, to get outfitted for the morning commute on a bike.

We have an excellent post that we don't really edit much about dressing here. It holds steady with some pretty good advice...

Aside from getting dressed, how do you feed a bunch of kids, get them dressed, and leave on time to get to where you need to go? This is not a perfect art in our household. Especially not these days, when our oldest attends a school completely the other direction from the others. We seem to have clothing sorted but our big problem is time.
Our biggest challenges seem to be getting everyone fed a decent breakfast and out the door dressed. The place I tend to gain time is on breakfasts that they can carry in the box bike and eat even with their glove-covered hands and goggly faces. (It takes too long to get to school with the kids riding their own bikes as we have a four mile commute.) Forget eating at the table before unlocking the bike to leave. Morning food has to travel or I am late.

Here are our survival  strategies for homemade breakfast running out the door.  Substitute pop tarts, or any other favorite carry-along that works for you, and then tell us what it might be in the comments please!

Mugs of instant oatmeal, warmed biscuits, waffles without toppings, a thermos of not-so-hot chocolate and/or a dashed-in stop at a favorite bakery have all worked in our daily pinch.  A jelly sandwich is fast and OK but not warm for winter. Bags of Chinese bakery pork buns are great, too- just steam or microwave the number you need. Of course, it's better fresh but most bakeries we know that bake buns sell them in bags of a dozen or so as well.

We use quick cooking oatmeal that can be finished with boiled water from the kettle in a cup that can travel without having to cook on the stove.  I turn on the kettle, then pour the water into the loaded cups before we get the shoes and clothes on to ride. A spoonful of topping sugar, maple or raisins on top. Then everyone grabs their cup and a spoon and runs down to the garage. We use metal insulated cups that don't burn gloved hands and cheap metal spoons from a restaurant supply in Chinatown.

Waffle mix is made at night with the dry half measured out into a covered bowl and the wet half of the recipe in a cup in the fridge. I turn on the waffle iron just after I get up and mix the batter fast, fill the iron three times while I yell at everyone to get dressed and then pack the waffles in wax paper bags to be eaten on the bike.  We use an old Alice Waters recipe for whole grain waffles from our (covered with years of kitchen grunge) copy of her first Simple Food book. You can add crunchy sugar chunks to the batter when you cook it - Belgian sugar for this is at Ikea, strangely.

Biscuits work because they don't have to rise and they bake fast if cut very small.  Dry and wet mix measured the night before speeds things along. Muffins tend to need to bake just long enough that I get crunched for time and can't get out of the house quite fast enough.  Biscuits, again, get packed in the bags to run out the door. Sometimes they stand in for bread in lunch sandwiches if I forgot we were out of bread! We put ham or jam in the biscuits, or bake them with candied ginger sometimes. We use an old Martha Stewart recipe from her Baking Handbook.

Hot chocolate goes in a small thermos for each kid - not hot so it will burn anyone's mouth, but warmed through to be nice moving along in the box. We just play that by ear. You can make great hot chocolate with just hot milk and dark chocolate;  it's less sweet than a mix and more chocolaty. If the milk is warmed the chocolate will just melt in it while we run around. I mix it with a whisk once before pouring it into the thermoses.

Sometimes we stop at a favorite bakery on the way.  We try to stop at a place with enough people at the counter so we don't get snagged in line, in a neighborhood spot safe enough to leave children out front in the bike while one of the children or I run inside. 

A really nice end to the hectic commute is finding ourselves at a great coffeeshop, with every child safely at school, watching the sleet outside through the steamy windows.

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Summer


the curious half smile came from the snorkel

Happy Summer!

We have been riding a little more, writing a bit less. Many exciting developments have come our way this summer in Chicago.  We rode Wood as the new green pathways for bikes were painted in and finished, there are lots of ersatz new protected bike lanes in our neighborhood as the El construction on the blue line at Morgan is completed and concrete barriers have made bike and pedestrian only pathways enhancing our commute over the bridges. and Go PilsenGo Pilsen has launched practically in our back yard.

  Go Pilsen is a partnership among Active Transportation Alliance, Chicago Department of Transportation, and Pilsen community members  intended to foster walking and biking among all residents of the neighborhood and anyone else who wants to take part!. It follows quickly on the heels of last fall's success of a similar group, Go Bronzeville.

This Saturday, July 12, the Ciclovamos riding group is hosting a  Bike Treasure Hunt through Pilsen. Tricky clues and many surprises are in store for anyone venturing out to join the fun. Details below.
It is on our to do list for the weekend!

We will be walking along co-hosting the Ping Tom Park family walk from Pilsen to Chinatown on July 19th. There is an old post of ours about the water taxi here, but the park was recently at least doubled in size and it now has a fieldhouse as well. Keep your eyes open for the August calendar - we are in Go Pilsen's August events too.


Ciclovamos Bike Treasure Hunt
Saturday, July 12, 7pm-9pm
Dvorak Park (behind the field house) @ 1119 W. Cullerton
Do you think you know Pilsen? How about by bike? This Pilsen-wide treasure hunt will test your local knowledge with riddles and clues showcasing some popular spots as well as unique hideaways. Learn more details here and be sure to RSVP for this free event.



Ping Tom Memorial Park Family Walk and Picnic
Saturday, July 19, 11am-2pm
Plaza Tenochtitlan @ 18th & Blue Island
Bring your family and join our group walk to Ping Tom Memorial Park where kids can play and adults can relax by the beautiful pagoda and bamboo gardens. This event is BYOPB - bring your own picnic basket. Find updates about this free event

"We'll never get to Pilsen from here if you don't get your foot off my bike!"

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Family Folding Bike from Taiwan in Chicago


As I rode past a playground on my way to work today I came across a great bike for carrying two kids and an adult. SRS is a Taiwanese manufacturer of folding bikes and this one is their family model. The owner was there and explained he had bought it in Taiwan and that he carried his two children on it, ages 3 and 5. It rides well, he said, and was not too expensive. And he told me that bikes like this are common there but unavailable here.  With some lights and some way to carry a backpack or two this could be the perfect bike for the school run.  There are other manufacturers of similar bikes and even electric drive options.


basic 21 speed Shimano Tourney derailer gear system, hi-ten steel frame,
small wheels for easy storage and transport. The rear wheel
is suspended almost like a Brompton or similar folding bike but the hinge
is in the frame in front of the bottom bracket and the bike folds like a Dahon.
The front wheel has a simple suspension at the top of the fork.
The front child seat has footrests and is height adjustable,
with a little handlebar to grab attached in front. 

The whole top bar with seat and handle pops off to fold the bike.
The bike maker provides a LED light/horn combo to entertain the rider.
The second child sits on the rear rack seat.
From the manufacturer's website,
this is what it looks like in your car trunk or closet.
If bikes like this are available elsewhere I'm not sure why they are not sold in Chicago. Simple, practical and inexpensive, with basic but functional components, this kind of bike could make transportation easier for plenty of Chicago families. 

Saturday, April 19, 2014

We Updated the Cargobike Page and the Link to Buying a Bike for Your Child

Just so you know, the Cargobike Page has been updated a bit today. The Bakfiets.nl Cargobike's main distributor in the US, Workcycles, will stop shipping it and instead will offer a new modular cargo bike of their own this year.  The Fietsfabriek bikes appear to be unavailable in the US now. Urban Arrow and Bakfiets.nl electric assist bikes are here, and JoeBike's cargo bikes are gone.  There are a few other updates. Have a look.

Buying a bike for a child? Here's our post about it. And look at the other posts about kids in the archives.

Friday, April 18, 2014

Do they ride bikes in Italy?



Our family in Florence chose our first stop - the indoor market. 

Many bicycles both inside and around. And hardly any mopeds this time!




We note that Florentines love an enclosed chain case (to protect those spiffy trouser cuffs?).


We liked the big cargo bikes inside and the fishmongers unlocked bike. 









Most bikes had some way of carrying groceries or work bags or children.



Not as many heavy duty locks as you'd think,
and not always locked to something immobile.
Who would have thought?



mom and kid on his own bike traveling up the Arno

We were very surprised by the number of families riding with their children and new bike lanes we found in Florence compared to our last visit eight years ago. Lots of double kid carrying bikes were parked everywhere, in the city center and in the outer city near the old city walls across the Arno. Outside the city center in the part of town where we were visiting our family we found functional separated bike infrastructure and people using it (even if we didn't get pictures of them).




 
Pee Wee Herman's bike?

Nearly all step through frames.
hilly to ride here but bikes everywhere
  
December roses




al the racks in residential parts of town were full



highbrow graffiti

€1 for the most delicious morning pastry (rice and pastry cream filling) 
and €1 for a cappuccino or latte macchiato  to go with it!


Sunday, April 13, 2014

Tief ( -Garagen) in Bayern

We visited in Holland, Germany, Italy and Switzerland this winter for the first time in eight very long years. We got to return to visit old friends. Babies born but never met are now in elementary school, new buildings everywhere. 

We took a pile of pictures we will be publishing in a short series this week. Thank you again to the beloved friends whose houses are in our pictures. 


Today it's all about the tief (deep) garage!


Here are pictures from two of our friends' neighborhoods. Though both friends live in small cities - one a small university city in Germany, the other a small town about 10 minutes from Zurich on the above ground street tram. Both neighborhoods are created with an underground garage for cars for each neighborhood instead of personal driveways, parking pads or garages.


Personal garages are replaced with small yards and front sheds for bicycles. Removing car parking spaces from the front of the houses created beautiful walking and play spaces for residents. Both neighborhoods had bike pathways and generous sidewalks, well separated from traffic, that gave comfortable access to the city centers and shopping on foot or bike.


These first pictures are from Northern Bavaria



Picked up at the train with the brother of our box bike. Here in
the city shopping pedestrian zone with a Christmas tree
carried from Munich catching a ride on the back.


Out of focus but shows
separated bike lane well


















Here is a view of the road, curb separated lane and sidewalk in the city center. The deeper grey center path is the bikeway. The grate indicates the area of the walking way.




A hairsbreadth from the center of Zurich each townhouse has its own bike garage outside the front door protected from mountain snow and rain. Car free paths lead to a network of off street foot paths throughout the village to schools and shopping with street crossings mixed in.


















Here are more views of the same front gardens and walkway. Below the houses and gardens are the buried garage- "tief garage". Residents' cars are parked down here under the small private backyard gardens adjoining the houses.







Footpaths are marked with signs noting they are for walking only. Below is the path off of the Blumenstrasse. The building just visible on the right is an elementary school. The path can be used by walkers or those on bikes and allows children to travel to school  on foot or bike well separated from car traffic.

We love the small girl and her dapper companion.







Tuesday, April 8, 2014

YOU On Wheels! This Saturday


We’re keeping an eye on the weather here at Chicargobike because Women Bike Chicago’s second Day of Dialogue and Demos, for women curious about riding bikes for recreation and transportation in Chicago, is coming right up this Saturday at Dvorak Park in the heart of Pilsen.

Fear not, registration is encouraged, but you are welcome to just pop down to the park and spend the day without one.


Last year’s favorites will all make a return with lots of new exciting additions. We have some terrific guests this year.  Dvorak has an on-site Divvy station and Divvy will be on hand with demo bikes and mechanics to help teach everyone how to use the station. The CTA bus rack demo will also be there so you can learn to get your bike up on that rack under the trees in the park. The bike corral is back again with oodles of bikes coming from the many women of the Chicago bike community and even some guest shops.

Great workshops and presentations will be happening all day inside the lovely WPA-era field house. The free child care is in a fieldhouse gym this year with plenty of space to run and play. Be ready for a good old fashioned raffle and check out tips on riding and maintenance from the amazing West Town Bikes and Blue Island Bicycle Club.  The full list of activities is at the WomenBikeChicago blog.

Come on down with a friend or four hankering to learn about how to get up on two wheels with a friendly crowd of Chicago women on hand to help!

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Another Odd Raleigh Folding Bike for Kids 9-90

Our 9 year old's NEW 1966 Raleigh RSW16 Compact folding bicycle, seat in lowest position

The Raleigh RSW16 (Raleigh Small Wheel), made 1965 - 1974, preceded the better-known Raleigh Twenty (our post about it) by half a decade. It was an attempt to get in on the popularity of the original 1962 Moulton small wheel bike. There is a long interesting story about the end of Raleigh by Tony Hadland in books and on his blog, and on the Retro Raleighs section of Sheldon Brown's site. After a year of building the RSW16 as a fixed frame, a folding version, the Compact, was developed so that cyclists could carry their bikes in the back of their little British 1960s car. There was also a 14 inch version, the RSW14. Both of these little bikes will work for any rider from about 9 years or 4½ feet / 135cm tall, up to perhaps 6 feet / 180 cm.

Our RSW16 Compact is from 1966 and was sold in Washington DC according to the dealer's sticker.  They originally came with cream colored Dunlop 16 x 2 inch tires which had very supple sidewalls, in an attempt to make up for the lack of the Moulton's full suspension system. You can see these on Sheldon Brown's bike. Dunlop is long out of the bike tire business but 16 inch BMX tires still fit. We found some Maxxis Hookworms. They ride more stiffly and a little less fashionably than the originals, most likely, but they are available.

It also originally came with a white vinyl Brooks mattress seat, famous for ripping apart at the seam, and that's probably what happened to the one on this bike.  Even the (ugly) seat it has now is probably at least as good.



Is it really smaller folded

 than it is unfolded?





The folding system, described by Raleigh as being 'like a shotgun', involves pushing that flap just above the bottom bracket against the seat tube and lifting the seat while pushing the handlebars down. It clicks closed.  There's a photo of the warning decal below.



The handlebars also need to be folded down and the seat lowered as much as possible. The cream colored reflectorless pedals don't fold and the whole package flops around when carried, but I guess it fits in the car better.





The handlebars can be folded (utterly uselessly) into an intermediate straight bar position that looks wonderful for smaller riders until you actually try it.










Another step downward and the handlebars look like this. Undo the quick release seat tube lever and you're ready to fold the frame and pop it into the boot of your Morris Minor.








These are actually not terrible little bikes. There is a Sturmey-Archer AW 3 speed hub without a coaster brake, shifted with a then-newly developed handle grip twist shift (before the Shimano 333 grip that's on the left side?) and the brakes are surprisingly good for a Raleigh.




The front brake is pretty standard Raleigh. But despite the steel rims and the plain rubber pads, the rear brake really works well. It has a design that looks like a 1980s mountain bike brake, behind the bottom bracket, and the crossed levers amplify the braking.





The knob at the top of the stem is used to loosen the
handlebars so they can be folded

















That huge oddly shaped rear rack was intended for a bag made of plaid or white vinyl around a lightweight plywood frame. The bag clamped between one of the wires at the front of the rack and a spring-loaded wire in the back. The sprung section still pulls out on ours (often this is rusted shut on others) but without the special bag it's not a very useful rack. We will probably try to fit angled steel brackets onto a milk crate or similar to take advantage of the connection system. The rack doesn't hold panniers very well at all.

To be safe for riding nowadays this bike still needs better visibility. There are neither pedal, wheel nor front reflectors and there is no lighting. A bell has been added and the rest will have to follow. We'll likely swap out the ugly new seat for an ugly old one, too.

I enjoyed riding my son's RSW16 Compact with its zippy small wheel maneuverability, though it is rather heavy and unwieldy to carry. It's got a real 1960s design feeling that may be the best part of the whole bike. Though it's fun enough for an adult, our 9 year old spent the morning zipping around on  the RSW and says "it's great!" What more do I need to tell you?