Biking with Kids

We've been biking with our kid(s) as soon as our oldest was 9 months old. At each stage of their growth, we've had to get new gear and change our biking setup and routines. It's definitely a lot of overhead, but it's fun and worth it when we can finally all go biking together as a family to different places. Following are our experiences biking with the kids, and perhaps there's some helpful info here for other families wanting to bike with their kids.

Biking with an Infant or Toddler

Types of Carriers for the Kid

With infants or toddlers who can't bike on their own yet, we pretty much have to haul them around with our bikes. We've used both a baby seat mounted on the rear rack, and also towed a double trailer. My brother-in-law used a baby seat mounted in the front on the top tube, and also towed a double trailer. Each has its pros and cons.

Child Carrier Type	Pros	Cons
Rear Rack Mounted Baby Seat	Lightweight Easy to communicate with kid Takes up less storage space Leaves option of towing a cargo trailer or a kid bike Easier to navigate on narrow or unpaved trails	Difficult to carry other gear/stuff without towing another trailer or using a handlebar basket/bag A bit harder to balance the bike, esp. when loading/unloading kid Less comfortable for kid to sleep in without modification (we strapped a pillow onto the bar)
Front Mounted Baby Seat	Similar pros as rear rack mounted baby seat plus: Child gets better view sitting in front Leaves option of using rear rack to carry panniers, etc.	Similar cons as rear rack mounted baby seat, plus: Baby seat gets in the way of pedaling. Have to angle knees outward to avoid hitting baby seat, putting lots of stress on the knees when pedaling, so not so good for biking longer distances or up hills.
Double Trailer	Can carry two kids Can carry additional gear/stuff Can detach from bike and use as a stroller	Heavy, especially if it's sturdy or a double (vs. single) trailer Need to be aware of extra trailer when turning, going over bumps/ ditches, on narrow trails, etc. Takes up a lot of storage space More expensive than baby seats

Types of Bikes to Carry the Kid Carriers

We both started out with entry-level GT mountain bikes before we had kids. We used the bikes on the weekend for leisurely biking on mostly paved trails or streets, and I was commuting to work a couple days a week (@ 28 miles round trip).

Eventually due to wanting a faster commute and lighter bike for hauling more kids, we ended up getting road bikes.

We went through soooo many different biking configurations as we had additional kid(s), as the kids grew older, and as we went on longer rides. Eventually we also added a single trailer to the mix to haul cargo (food, extra clothes, toys, balance bike, etc.).

The lighter our bikes, the easier it is to carry the extra weight of the kids and kid carriers, especially if going up hills. Hence, road bikes were preferable over mountain bikes. However, the bikes need to also be study enough to handle the extra weight if going over bumps/curbs with kid carriers. I learned the hard way when the lighter weight wheels on my road bike got damaged (spokes came off) when going over a curb when I was both towing a trailer and had a rear rack mount baby seat. Too much weight on my poor wheels!

Training Kids to Ride a Bike

Balance Bikes

First J started biking a tricycle at age 3, then moved to two-wheeler with training wheels at age 4, and took off the training wheels around age 6.

Second J started biking a tricycle at age 3, then moved to two-wheeler with training wheels at age 4, and took off the training wheels around age 5.

With the third J, at age 2 he was already very eager to bike so that he could be just like his older brothers. However, his legs were too short for the smallest 12-inch bike we had. His legs couldn't reach the pedals when fully extended, haha. So, we started looking around to see if there were any even smaller bikes, and we discovered balance bikes (two-wheelers without pedals). Even amongst balance bikes, however, many brands were still too tall for him. We finally found a Strider Classic balance bike that can be adjusted very low, and boy he was off and biking in no time on it!

If we had known about balance bikes earlier, we would have completely skipped the tricycle and training wheels for the first 2 kids. Balance bikes are a terrific way to get used to biking and balancing without the fuss of learning how to pedal or how to work the brakes. It comes very naturally to the kid since it's basically just like walking or scooting. With tricycles and training wheels, the kids are actually learning to balance the exact opposite way of how they'd balance on a two-wheeler bike w/o training wheels. When taking corners with tricycles or training wheels, because the bike can't "move", the kid has to lean the body inward to the curve in order to keep from falling over. When taking corners with a two-wheeler, it's the exact opposite, where we lean the bike inward to the curve and keep the body stable. So basically, the kids have to unlearn how they balanced when going from tricycles/training wheels to two-wheeler w/o training wheels, so it takes longer to relearn how to balance. With a balance bike, there's no re-learning needed. It's exactly the same way to balance. We also outfitted the balance bike with a single hand brake for the front wheel. That way he could learn right from the get-go how to use a hand brake rather than going to coaster brakes and then having to relearn how to brake when transitioning to hand brakes. It took Little J just half an hour to transition from the balance bike to successfully biking a pedal bike with no training wheels and using two hand brakes.

Teaching Essential Biking Skills

Initially, the kids just biked around our side yard, or we'd drive them and the bikes to the school's big open flat blacktop area to bike around. Our house sits on a slope, so to go anywhere from our house the kids had to learn how to brake and go slowly down a slope, and how to turn corners. So, we had them practice these skills on the school's blacktop area:

Starting - They actually had some trouble figuring out how to keep the bike balanced while getting on the seat to start biking. We initially held the bike steady for them to get on and start pedaling until they got comfortable on their own.
Braking - So the original 12-inch bike we had didn't have any hand brakes. It had coaster brakes instead. The kid brakes by pedaling backwards. Here's another area where we would have just gone straight to hand brakes had we known it'd be a long transition to switch from pedaling backwards to using hand brakes. For Little J, we bought hand brakes to install on the balance bike, and got a brand new 12-inch bike with free wheels and two hand brakes (Cleary Gecko). It took Little J just a few weeks to get used to using the hand brake on the balance bike, so no transition needed for him later when switching to the pedal bike.
Stopping - If the bike seat is adjusted to the right height, the feet can't touch the ground when sitting on the seat. At first they had trouble stopping because they kept trying to put their feet on the ground while still on the seat. We had them practice either (1) sliding off the seat over the top tube first before putting feet on ground or (2) leaning the bike to one side to put the foot on that side down on the ground.
Going down slopes - Once they got comfortable braking, next was learning to go slowly down slopes instead of gathering too much speed, panicking, braking too hard, flipping, and crashing (yup, learned the hard way).
Going up slopes - We showed them how to shift gears to go up hill, and shift back when going down, etc.
Cornering - In addition to practicing leaning the bike, we also had them practice remembering to keep the pedal up on whichever side they're turning into (i.e. keep left pedal up when turning left) so that the pedal wouldn't scrape the ground on sharp corners, causing a fall (yup, learned this the hard way too).
Balancing - We had them practice keeping balance on the bike while stationary (or biking as slowly as they could).

When they got more comfortable and proficient, we started biking on the sidewalks, then trails, on residential streets, and with people/obstacles on the routes, and with that came a whole new bunch of things for them to learn:

Keep to the right - On trails with people and other cyclists, we have to make sure they stay on the right side so as not to crash into oncoming traffic.
Passing - The kids' initial tendency was to pass the person in front with 2 inches to spare without any warning. We had to tell them to alert the person in front by ringing bells and yelling "on your left", and to pass with a wide berth.
Eyes in front - We're still working on this one. They need to keep their eyes on what's in front instead of sightseeing and crashing into water fountains on the side of the trail (yup.. the hard way).
Cars - Biking on the street, we had to tell them to watch for parked cars that have people who might open car doors all of a sudden, watch driveways where cars might back out, etc.

Riding Longer Distances with Kids

Progressively Longer Rides

We trained our kids to ride longer distances in the following progression:

Kid biked around our side yard
We walked while kid biked 2 blocks to the park, then we hauled the kid and bike back in a stroller
We walked while kid biked 2 blocks to the park and back
We walked while kid biked 3 blocks to the school and back
We biked 1 mile to the nearest shopping plaza and back
One of us drove the van with bike rack to park at the library then biked back to meet the rest of the family to bike 2 miles to the library. Then we drove the family and bikes back home in the van.
We biked 2 miles to the library and 2 miles back
One of us drove the van with bike rack to park at Almaden Lake park then biked back to meet the rest of the family to bike 4 miles to the park. Had picnic lunch, kids played sand and at the playground, then we drove the family and bikes back home in the van.

At around 5 years old, 4-5 miles was pretty much the limit for our kid in terms of biking distance. Since we had 3 kids in succession, it was also pretty much the limit that our entire family could bike at any given time, until we discovered this awesome tandem/towing device (see more info below).

We purchased two tandem devices, so each of us could tow one kid, which then meant our biking distance was limited to how far we could tow, haha. We discovered another benefit with the tandem device - it was much easier to get our middle kid out biking, because initially he would balk at having to bike too far. However, once we got the tandem device, he was actually eager to go biking since he knew he could always be towed if he got tired. Often on the way to our destination, he'd ask to be towed once he got tired, but on the way back, he'd want to start out biking on his own until he got tired again and needed towing. Once the oldest kid started biking a 24", the tandem/towing device could no longer accommodate that larger size wheel, so then we were limited by how far the oldest J could bike. At 10 years old, though, he was able to bike 22-24 miles on his own.

FollowMe Tandem Coupling Device

Originally we were considering a tandem bike or something like Trail-A-Bike. However, a tandem bike meant a brand new longer bike taking up more space and costing upwards of $3K for a nice one (i.e. not from Walmart). Trail-A-Bike is less expensive at $200-$600, and is basically one wheel and a pedal with a bar attaching to the adult bike's seat tube. Both of these options are rather inflexible in that the child doesn't have a chance to bike on his own at all.

Then we came across the FollowMe Tandem Coupling Device, and it's perfect for our needs:

We can use our own existing bikes for both the adult and kid
The child gets to bike on his own bike until tired
It's fast to hook up the child bike or unhook it from the adult bike
It accommodates kid bikes from 12-20" wheel size
Has very good build quality (made in Switzerland)
Attaches to the rear wheel hub via an included replacement skewer (so can fit most bikes and offers better stability and maneuverability than trail-a-bikes)
Costs $399 which is reasonable considering the other tandem alternatives

The FollowMe Tandem Coupling Device in action:

Purchasing FollowMe Tandem Coupling Device

We ordered the devices from Clever Cycles bike shop (in Washington state), because the device was not carried in local shops at all.

I emailed them with pictures of our adult and kids' bikes so that they could verify whether the coupling device would work with our bikes before purchasing. They were very friendly and replied quickly. I called them directly to ask for a discount. They couldn't give a discount, but they waived the shipping fee.

Update: Looks like Amazon also now carries this device for only $299

Setting Up and Using FollowMe Tandem Coupling Device

The device does take some time to set up, so be sure to allow enough time (i.e. don't wait until the morning of a ride to set it up, haha).

When towing the kid using the device, for safety, we instruct the kid as follows and practice with him first before going on a real ride:

Make sure the kid asks you first when he wants to get on and off the bike, and that you acknowledge it's OK before he gets on and off
Make sure the kid doesn't brake while you're towing him (ya, learned this the hard way)
Make sure the kid stays seated when you stop (and follow first point above)
Tell the kid to pedal to help you out, esp. when going uphill
Tell the kid to pedal as smoothly as possible, and not to squirm or move around too much, because this can easily throw off the balance

Have fun!! :)