Bike Helmets for Littler Children

Finding appealing bike helmets for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers can be challenging. Here are some of the Totcycle favorites so far:

Lazer Infant Helmet

Fitting helmets on infants or smaller-headed toddlers is very hard to do with commonly available helmets. Sure, the models most mainstream shops stock have an adjustable fit dial in the back, but the helmets themselves are quite large on my 1yo son, and protrude enough in the back that trailer riding becomes an exercise in frustration, with the helmet getting pushed down onto his face.

Enter the Lazer infant helmet ($25), via Longleaf Bicycles. It fits heads as small as 46cm, doesn't look horrible, and was easy to adjust. Luc and I liked it, and were so sad that it got lost in the great Amtrak cargo bike debacle of 2010. Now he's stuck with some pink Strawberry Shortcake sister hand-me-down.

Bern Helmets

Bern helmets are the Totcycle family favorite. Mom, dad, and daughter are currently sporting lovely Bern helmets with built-in fabric visors. Poor visor-less & emasculated son. A new helmet would probably be cheaper than all that therapy he'll need.

Bern helmets are sleek, light, comfortable, have excellent coverage, and are refreshingly lacking in extraneous vents for vents sake. Why look like a roadie if you don't have to? They come in summer and winter versions (warm earflaps), many have removable visors, and the colors & shapes are appealing. Drew LOVES her pink Bern helmet, and likes that she has the same helmet as mom and dad. And that Luc doesn't.

Giro Helmets

Giro helmets are the ones you're most likely to find at your Local Bike Shop. They're cute, and work well for toddlers and preschoolers. Here one is looking a bit big on Luc. The adjustable fit dial is handy, but please note that it only connects by velcro to the "money" part of the helmet, so it will not hold the helmet in place in any sort of "why we wear helmets" scenario. Make sure the straps are properly adjusted (see below, not my beret-style photo to the left).

Nutcase Helmets

These multisport helmets from our bikey neighbors to the south win on graphic appeal, and have a more durable shell, for older kids that like to skateboard or throw their helmets around. They are heavier and look a bit bulbous, IMHO. But if they fit your kid's head, and the durability/weight tradeoff makes sense, or they love the graphics, go nutty with these.

Helmet Tips

I'm going to bypass any helmet debate here and just assume that if you're putting a helmet on your child then you're doing so wanting it to be effective, rather than to satisfy the letter of the local law. If so, please please please snug up those straps! There are SO many kids out there with dangling helmet straps. That leaves the helmet next-to-useless in a crash, where it will slip off the part of the body you're hoping to protect, and possibly harmful, if the helmet were to catch on something and get pulled behind your child's head.

• Before adjusting the straps, make sure the helmet fits - ideally you should be able to adjust the snugness so it doesn't fall off with straps unbuckled.
• Next, get the angle right - the front of the helmet should be low on the forehead, not jauntily at the hairline or down in their eyes. Your child should see the brim of the helmet when he/she looks up with their eyes.
• The straps should be even, and each make a "V" with the bottoms just below their ears.
• Finally, and this is the hard part, snug up the straps so that only 1-2 fingers can fit, and so that your child can feel the straps tighten when opening their mouth fully. 
• That last part is hard for kids with sensory issues, who are resistant to helmets in general, who are used to loose straps, or who have been pinched in the past. Oh, the guilt I have about the times I've pinched Drew buckling her helmet. She won't let me forget it. Be very cautious when buckling, have them look up and close their mouth, and use your own finger as a "pinchguard". Then gradually snug up the straps a bit more with each ride.
• Need a quick 1-2-3 helmet fit test? Just remember the eyes, ears, and mouth part.
• When it's cold out, the models with ear flaps are great, but you can also use a hoodie top or thin wool cap to keep little heads and ears warm. Bulky hats and hoods interfere with helmet fit, though.
• In the category of "safety advice based on ultra-rare occurences", the safety people would like me to warn you that bike helmets are not for general play, especially on playground equipment, where a handful of children have snagged their helmet dropping through narrow spaces.
• Starting young, letting your child help pick the helmet, modeling helmet wearing yourself, and being consistent about their usage may reduce helmet battles. In your house, that is, not online.

What helmets have worked for you and yours? Any tips on getting them on kids, fitting them, and avoiding the dreaded "pinch"?

Bike (to School) Across America

Well, it's Bike to Work and School month again. And while a snobbish part of me reacts with "every month is bike to ___ month," it's nice to see creative approaches to getting kids and grownups using bikes as everyday transportation.

I just read about a nice program in England where schools "bike around the world", inspired by Alistair Humphreys' Round the World by Bike adventure. Cumulative student & staff bike to school mileage is plotted on a world map, and schools compete against one another.

This would make a nice bike to school project here in the colonies. Lacking any convenient Alistairs, it might work as a Race Across America between local schools, with students choosing the route, and learning about states they're "passing through."

As in the British Sustrans Bike It version, teacher/staff mileage could count double, so that adults set an example, and get harassed to ride by eager kid competitiors.

The Pedouin Clan, soon to reach SeattleA Bike to School program could use Bicycle Dreams, the documentary about the real RAAM (3,000 mile ultra-marathon bike race across America), as inspiration. But I'm not sure that a portrayal of cycling as grueling extreme sport is the smartest way to encourage everyday cycling for the sheer pleasure of it. Maybe the Pedouins (a family on a five person tandem biking 7,000 miles to from Kentucky to Alaska) would be a better choice.

What say you, school parents? Are your schools doing anything cool this month? Any obstacles you've encountered?

Take the Day UFF

My wife's been either ill with norovirus or busy with work these past few weekends, so the kids and I have had some days to fill. Naturally, bikes were involved. 

So we've been taking the day UFF. UFF? Urban Family Flâneurs. Flâ-whâh? I warned you I was half-Gallic. A flâneur, in the words of Charles Baudelaire (via wikipedia, not my own erudition) is "someone who walks [bikes] the city in order to experience it." A way to stroll about Seattle by bike, at the speed of discovery, with the freedom to stop and jump out whenever fancy or boredom strike.

For the bike nuts, an UFF day is like Grant Petersen's S24O. But with kids. And cargo bikes. And no overnight. Yet.

After breakfast, I grab diapers, wipes, water bottles, sundry kid snacks (booty, fruit, and whatnot), load up the MADSEN, and off we go. We often have at least one destination in mind, but the rest is improvised. Pass a park? Stop and romp. Discover a pocket beach? Why not. Hungry/thirsty? Stop for a treat. It's like credit card touring, without the touring. Sculpture Park or Aquarium? Disturbing the peace at the Sculpture Park it is:

Naptime? Seat the kids in sleep mode and off we go. The bike gets them to synchronized sleep like nothing else. Arrive at a picturesque location or favorite cafe, park the bike near an outdoor table or window seat, and enjoy some precious grownup time (just don't get arrested, like this poor Danish mom). Come home by bedtime after a day of bike serendipity. 

A "Hemingway" at Miro Tea (Rooibos tea, grapefruit, strawberry, mint, ice, seltzer) & Sleeping Children (Sugar, spice, everything nice)
For UFF days with young children, a bike with multiple seating positions and nap capability is really nice to have. On our MADSEN with front Bobike Mini seat, Luc can be up front when awake, telling me about "dat, a-dat, and dat," and in his DIY baby seat when it's nap time, reasonably protected from sun/drizzle. Drew can sit on the back bench when awake, or "get cozy" down in the bucket on cushions when it's her naptime. 

A bakfiets would also work well for UFF days (especially with rain cover), or maybe a bike with trailer and bike-mounted child seats (for varied seating positions). Longtails (xtracycle, Yuba Mundo) could do well for older children that don't nap, or young children that nap well in child seats (mine don't). You'll want a stable centerstand, so you can walk away from the bike during the nap. 

Last weekend, our UFF day started with a trip to Kinko's to laminate some Kidical Mass spoke cards, then a lovely KM ride to the bike expo, via the Locks and trainyard. We saw a bit of Ryan Leech's trials demo, and the German artistic cycling whiz kids (they're youtube-bike-blog-famous). Luc was a particular fan of the latter. Lots of clapping and "so big" gestures. 

We ate and drank our fill of electrolytes and energy bars (Larabars are seriously delicious, "Lance juice" is not), drooled over some folding bikes and Metrofietsen, took a spin in a Zigo trike, and headed off by naptime. OK, a bit late for naptime. Drew had a meltdown in the bike parking lot. Pilot error. 

They both fell asleep in minutes, leaving me with a picturesque ride by the Sound, through the downtown waterfront, over to West Seattle, around Alki Beach to our friends' house for an early St Patrick's day stew. The ride ended with an uphill that put the uff da in UFF day. 

After imbibing many green drinks, stew, and cupcakes, it was getting late, so the twin-in-law graciously brought the kids home in her car, and I rode the bike home solo, catching Aaron from Aaron's Bike Repair on his way home from the shop on his Big Dummy, who showed me a killer downhill past the new mixed-income housing "projects", and told me of a stokemonkey install on a customer's MADSEN, in the rear rectangle behind the seatpost (tempting!). Rode back on what is, temporarily at least, a protected cycletrack by the container ship docks, and stopped at the Sculpture Park to enjoy the sunset. 

More epic than typical UFF day (35 miles, which is a cargo bike "century")

So take the day UFF. No plans necessary. You can cover some distance during the naps, or experience your own neighborhood in a new way. See where you wind up, and come home by bedtime (or after). In a similar mode, here's a Dutch "papa day" by bike. How do you st/roll?

Kidical Mass to the Bike Expo!

This weekend March 13-14 is the Seattle Bike Expo, the largest consumer bicycle show in the US! We had a great time last year, and may be going both days this weekend, to catch some trials riding, Willie Weir and other speakers, and to demo some family bikes (the Zigo, Dutch Bikes, etc).

So March's Kidical Mass will run from Ballard Commons Park to the Bike Expo, across the locks, through the railyard, to Elliott Bay. A lovely route. Time is up to you! I'll post consensus details in the next day or two, but I thought I'd see what time worked for most of you. Saturday mornings seem to have a lot of class/sports conflicts. Let me know in the comments or by email if you'd come Sat late morning, Sat early afternoon, Sun morning, or Sun afternoon.

UPDATE: Sunday it is ... meet at Ballard Commons Park at 10:45am, leave at 11am, should be there in time for the Ryan Leech trails riding extravaganza. Bring food if your kids are finicky, but otherwise I believe there will be food vendors.

Speaking of the route, Google Maps went live last night with bicycle routes and directions, led by a Seattle team of developers. Yay!!! It includes bike trails, bike lanes, and even unofficial preferred bike routes, and takes hills, traffic, and other bikey considerations into account, with reasonable time estimates and route alternatives. Check it out, using our route as a starting point. Note the dark green (separate trails), light green (bike lanes), and dotted green (bike-friendlier streets) bike routes on the map. The little-used terrain (instead of map/satellite) feature is also handy for bikes. Definitely use the feedback button for questionable recommendations, as they will be updating their bike routes based on user feedback. Can't wait for the iPhone map update. 

I leave you with a nice video from the new peopleforbikes.org, a new project from Bikes Belong, which aims to mobilize online and local support for bikes. Check it out!

My First Road Rash

Poor Drewbie. She's been feeling her oats on her run-trike lately (yes, it's still in 3-wheel mode; other bikes are "too tippy, Daddy"). Last week she took off down a deserted alley behind the local P-Patch, caught some speed, lifted her legs behind her into "flying position", and sped ahead of her mom, who yelled "STOP!". And stop she did. Planted her two feet down Fred Flintstone-style, and endo'd right over them. Resulting in this:

Owww. Somehow Kim and the two kids and bikes got home. And then Kim cleaned it. And when I got home, there was still some alley grit left, so I cleaned it some more. Oh Drew. That was the more traumatic part, I think. We're not roadies, what do we know about road rash? Does she need to start shaving?

Fast forward one entire box of Dora bandaids and one week:

Not only are we relieved, but it's delightful that through the alchemy of childhood resilience, this crash has become all about her strength and healing powers. She loves to tell people about her shoulder, that it's all better, and how "I rode my bike so fast, and Mommy said stop, and I stopped. Like this." She's very proud of her stopping ability. She would put her two front brakes up against yours any day. 

Seattle Tweed Ride

Luc's sporting a fierce urchin look, upper left may be a tweed mating ritual. Photo by Eric Shalit.

Pip pip, huzzah, tally-ho, and whatnot! Yesterday's Seattle Tweed Ride was a smashing success, from the logistics, to the brisk but sunny weather, to the fine company. Over 50 folks turned out (Drew's more conservative estimate was "five"), including our CarFreeDays mates Tim & Anne. The ride up Capitol Hill was a bit of a bother, but tolerable in the Madsen, especially with Tim's power assist.

After tea & lunch & civilized ball-sports at Cal Anderson Park, we rode down to Gasworks Park, where we reclined upon the grass, ate Earl Gray biscuits, rolled down the hill, and got the kids filthy with Superfund soil and high on plumes of benzene.

I did not tempt fate by continuing on to the George & Dragon Pub terminus with two very underage and sleep-deprived companions. Such would have been hubris. We learned from our Portland Tweed Ride adventures not to bike too close to the sun.

Thanks to Nova & Sylvie, who organized the event! More photos from Eric Shalit here. And we were pleased to make the acquaintance of Pablo, the rider of the stylish Velo Orange steed, and future family cargo bike owner. Not to mention the chap starting a seltzer-delivery-by-bike business (for those not on Capitol Hill, carbonate yourself with SodaStream), and the proprietors of the new Hub & Bespoke shop opening soon in Fremont.

Why We Drive

It was, in retrospect, an ill-conceived plan.

At one point, it did make a bit more sense. I'm always looking for an excuse to spend a weekend in Portland, and their first ever Tweed Ride seemed as good an excuse as any. Our kids in tweed - little street urchins?  Chimney sweeps? Girls at high tea? How cute would that be? Plus the chance to meet up with some other online bikey family friends.

I planned for us to leave on Friday and return Sunday, taking a city bike and the Madsen bucket bike, and going down on Amtrak, because, well, I love the train ride down to PDX, and I thought the kids would be dazzled.

Melissa (my twin-in-law) and Kevin were going to come down too, with Drew's cousins Maddie and Lola. But then they didn't. And Kim and I offered to bring the cousins anyway, because they love Kidical Mass and other bike rides with us. And because we're clinically insane.

Then the Friday departure fell apart, and we already had tickets. But there was a Sat 7:30am train arriving just in time for the Tweed Ride. Why not? Luc gets us up early, what's an hour earlier? Apparently that hour is the difference between our typical fuzzy muddling though life and a violation of the Geneva Conventions.

We left at pre-dawn in a drizzle. We'd added the bike trailer to Kim's bike for more weather protection and kid separation. I'd budgeted an hour for the ride to the station, through the Locks, the railyards, and along the lovely Elliott Bay Trail. Except the Locks open at 7am. Leaving us with the Ballard Bridge. With its precarious, all-too-narrow sidewalk. The Madsen might have worked, but not the trailer. We took a lane, side by side, lit up like the dickens. So sketchy - a 4 lane arterial bridge, short but with a stretch of metal grating at the drawbridge part. Kim said she wasn't nervous, as she trusted me. Mistake. I was freaked out.

Survived the bridge (traffic was light, we were careful on the slippery part), but then ... Kim bonked on the Elliott Bay trail. I hadn't planned for her to be pulling a trailer with child. And she hadn't had much to eat or drink in the hectic, behind schedule departure. And I don't consider myself in great physical shape, but I apparently have "cargo legs".

It could have been worse, relationship-trauma-wise and how-to-make-your-spouse-hate-bikes-wise. We had banana bread and water, blocks from the station. And an arrival 10 minutes before the train left, but not early enough to finesse the Madsen issue. DENIED. With extreme prejudice. We'd have to take a later train. And leave the Madsen behind. FIASCO! And not unpredictably so.

In my defense, Amtrak is inconsistent with large bikes. Technically, they need to hang from their vertical bike racks, or fit in a bike box. In real life, I've heard of xtracycles and other longtails making it. My Dutch bike didn't fit on their rack, and they allowed me to secure it to a rail in the baggage car (with grumbling).  But the baggage supervisor at the Seattle station refused to even consider the Madsen. Even with sturdy centerstand to keep it upright. Even though the baggage car has had plentiful room behind the bike racks every time I've looked. "Yadda yadda 'our policy' yadda yadda 'liability' yadda yadda 'since 9/11' yadda yadda". 9/11?? This bike is not a pipe bomb.

Obligatory Album Cover ShotTo anyone but a bike geek I sound like an entitled idiot, expecting Amtrak to bend their official policy of "no unusual bikes". Perhaps I thought having 4 urchins in tow would tip the scales? Not so much. Anyway, Kevin and I had discussed the possibility of Madsen denial, so he had his helmet. He left his car, and rode the Madsen home. And we got to sit around the station for 3 hours. At which point Kim stated that if we'd taken Melissa's minivan, we'd be there now. In a coping, but pining for automobility sort of way.

The kids and I wandered around Pioneer Square at dawn, posing with statues, as we do. The children fought in public, but that's par for the course down there.

The train ride itself was not as fabulous as I envisioned it. I think that I have a very selective memory when it comes to travel with children. As in, I only remember what it's like to travel without children. On the positive side, they weren't strapped down for 3 hours, and got to move around, swap seats, visit the bistro, and nap on the floor. On the negative side, they weren't strapped down. And we had an audience of non-plussed fellow passengers. It could have been worse, though. They could have been stuck with the drunken bachelor party in the next car.

I put out a Pan-pan to my bike tweeps, and both Clever Cycles and Allan Folz offered long-bike help. In fact, Allan was our savior that day, meeting us on a bakfiets at the station, with a Brompton for himself in the box. We got to borrow his lovely red bakfiets with raincover for the weekend, and met him back at the train station the next day. I felt really bad about that because it was a busman's holiday for Allan; he provides bike concierge and van support to Oregon bike tourists with his business, Portland Sag Wagon. We love Allan.

Our Dapper Hero!

High Tea TimesAs for the Tweed Ride? Yeah, we pretty much missed it. Most of the bikey families had already peeled off by the time we met the ride at the finish. But we did have the pleasure of meeting Jasper and his Yuba-Mundo-hacking parents at A Most Civilized Conveyance. Not that we could talk much. Have I mentioned that Kim and I were completely freaking outnumbered by children? 2:1 child to adult ratio does not make for grownup conversation. It makes for circular endless discussions about wanting what you don't have. Raising a toddler has been described as "like living with a drunken dwarf". Well, we were traveling with 4. And 2 separate strangers yelled "get an SUV" at us in 5 minutes. In Portland Bikeytown USA. A sign?

And then (the indignity!) I was denied discount beer by the saucy wench (not misogynist, just period dialect, mind you) at the Backspace counter, who said I had to be wearing tweed. Well what would you call this focacta bowler hat, bowtie, tuxedo pants and smoking jacket getup that I carried all the way from Seattle by bike and train?!? Not tweed, apparently. I was going for a dapper waiter to the girls' Madsen tea party look. But without the Madsen, and without the girls, I apparently just looked like an imbecile. It was a low point.

Hotel movie and pizza? We're not proud.Off to the hotel. Ah, the hotel. Embassy Suites at a killer online rate. Every room a suite. And whether from pity or a desire to keep our escaped-from-the-zoo menagerie away from other patrons, we were up high in a huge corner suite. Bliss. Ponyo (great movie) for the girls. Old Town Pizza delivered by bakfiets! A two-hour bedtime calamity, and then Kim and I huddled in the dark with our light sleeper, drinking room service hooch.

A bonanza breakfast buffet and lots of pool & hot tub time the next morning was another highlight for the girls. We weren't left with much time, so we rode bikes around the Pearl cruising for parks and playgrounds, and wound up here, favored by sunshine and a delicious lunch, with Voodoo Doughnuts.

A Rare Peaceful Moment (The Calm Before the Hair Grab)

I'd hoped to make it to Clever to get a thank you gift for Allan, but I thought I'd spare my entourage and the shop from each other that day. We did arrange a gift certificate, thinking his son might like some spiffy grips and fold-out footpegs for the bakfiets stoker seat. And then a ride home on Amtrak again, where this time to our outrage we were not able to check the children as baggage. But three of our crew fell into a coma, and Maddie, Luc, and I had a train bistro date over Mac 'n Cheese. 

Kim drove the cousins home in their car, and I rode Kim's bike home with Drew and Luc, who fell fast asleep in the snuggly trailer while Drew and I discussed how one might deal with "bad guys", and that poking their eyes might not be the best choice. Especially when Drew thinks that any social slight makes you a "bad guy". Even if you're her baby brother.

When we got home, Kim threatened to post a "Why We Drive" ode-to-driving response to our "Why We Ride" slideshow. And I can't say I disagree. Even as the "Slightly Lower Impact Man" in our relationship, I concede we should have borrowed the minivan and rented bikes from Clever Cycles when we got there. Here is my penance:

What have we (I) learned from this cautionary tale?

• I love riding bikes with my family (still very true)
• A fully-loaded bakfiets is a dream to ride, especially around a flat city
• I hate flat handlebars on bikes (Kim's)
• My clown-ass getup was insufficiently "tweedy" (relevant for the upcoming Seattle Tweed Ride)
• Hotels are fun with kids. A different kind of fun, however, than one might remember from B.C. times (Before Children).
• Don't bring an unusual bike on Amtrak if anything depends on it (but do bring folding and standard bikes)
• There are some inherent disadvantages to mass transit: a fixed schedule, inflexible baggage policies, and a need for at least some decorum. These are a problem for our clan, especially if we've got an event to get to. Even if we could convince Amtrak to allow unusual bikes (and we should), we still would have missed our train, spent hours more in transit, and worried more about our kids' behavior on the trip.
• Thus and so forth, QED, ipso facto ... if wildly outnumbered by small children and traveling to a bikey town, we will DRIVE and rent bikes. The good lord made church vans for a reason.

How about you, hopefully wiser parents out there? Any cautionary tales or bike/train fiascos of your own?

Why We Ride

A slideshow celebration of cycling a la familia, from the family-biking-obsessed folks here at totcycle and our friends/inspirations from Seattle, Tacoma, Portland, and Eugene. Soundtrack from Vancouver, BC.

It's how we roll in the Pacific Northwest.

Viewing tip: fullscreen it (expand button in lower right), the resolution on Vimeo is surprisingly good. And tuuurn it up! Thanks so much to all who contributed photos. 

Cyclist of the Decade

Cascade Bicycle Club, you know, the largest bicycle club in the country, just made me cyclist of the month. Which is pretty much the cyclist of the decade. So far. 

I'm not sure what this award comes with, but I'm thinking a waiver, an Epilady, something with electrolytes, a 2 hour seminar in the finer points of the right-turn hand signal, a handlebar-mounted krieg-lamp aimed at eye-height, and front row seats to a heating-oil-wrestling match between David Hiller and Warren Aakervik.

I'd like to thank Jesus, mom and dad for believing in me ... and transpo cycling affirmative action, I suppose. Because Cascade is generally known for big recreational club rides and other Fredliness (despite being quite active in education, bike commuting, and advocacy, bless their hearts). It's all about performance.

And along comes little 'ol totcycle. Not a stitch of lycra to be found. Shoes that don't click. Not even knowing how much his bikes weigh. Sheeee-it.

The article in the Cascade Courier was written by Scott Marlow (thanks Scott! and MJ, I blame you for this). It's not exactly Profiles in Courage, but here it is. You may learn more about my personal hygiene than you care to know:

Cyclist of the Month: Julian Davies

Age: 37
Occupation: Pediatrician, University of Washington Medical Center
Hometown: North Carolina
Residence: Ballard
Wheels: MADSEN cargo bike, Dutch Azor Transport, Specialized Globe Live 02

Ditch your trailer. That is Julian’s advice to parents who want to ride with young children. You may wonder what type of Kool-Aid Julian is drinking, but you have to listen to a guy who can transport four kids on a bicycle.

Julian loves biking with his three-year old daughter, Drew, upfront — instead of in a tow-behind trailer. “We have some of our best conversations up there, and she gets to see more than my backside. It is much more enjoyable than listening to her cry or complain in a trailer.”

Solutions besides trailers do work. Like the Bike-Tutor from the U.K. that mounts on the top tube. Or the Bobike Mini, which mounts on the stem, for children aged 9 months to 3 years. Julian recommends both products as superior child carriers, but is also partial to cargo bikes like xtracycles, Dutch bakfietsen (“box bikes”), and MADSEN “precious cargo bikes.”

Julian has also installed bench and bucket car seats, complete with five-point buckle system, onto his MADSEN cargo bike. “Heavy? Are you calling my bike fat? I prefer strong-boned. She’s as heavy as she needs to be.”

NOTE: Julian points out that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants not ride on adult bikes until one year of age, when they can safely wear a helmet and have adequate neck and trunk control.

That said, how long did he wait? 7 weeks, with an infant car seat in a trailer, and then his custom MADSEN infant seat with head/neck support.

Julian started commuting on a RANS Rocket recumbent during med school at the University of California, San Francisco; during his residency at Seattle Children’s Hospital, fatigue turned Julian into a fair weather commuter. Today, he commutes year-round on a Dutch bike or Globe city bike daily between Ballard and the U. District. The UW Medical Center provides an indoor bike cage and showers – although Julian prefers the endless supply of baby wipes at his pediatric clinic.

The family appreciates the convenience of step-through frames, available on many cargo and commuter bikes. This feature means Julian, 5’9”, can share the MADSEN and Globe with his wife Kim, 5’2.”

Julian is also a fan of “ridiculous bike lights.” His favorites are Rock The Bike’s Down Low Glow and MonkeyLectric’s spinning Monkey lights – a 32 full color LED-ensemble for your spokes. Stylish and safe, given how many car-bike collisions are broadsides.

Diagnosed with Obsessive-Cycling Disorder, Julian started a blog called www.TotCycle.com where families with similar conditions can share information. You can find a wealth of information on TotCycle.com, including the next monthly Kidical Mass – a fun, safe, easy-going family bike ride for kids of all ages.

Julian joined Cascade Bicycle Club to support its education work in schools, and its advocacy work. Julian worked with Sustainable Ballard and Friends of the Burke-Gilman on a rally for the Missing Link. He has also attended a Ride Leader Certification session and hopes to lead tot rides for the Club in the future.

What’s the largest haul Julian has accomplished on any of his cargo bikes? He humbly claims that carrying a 6’ Christmas tree from St. Alphonsus Parish was just an obligatory bike blog photo op. “The MADSEN is an epic grocery getter. My largest run to-date is $211 worth of Trader Joe’s.” I don’t ask if that weighs more or less than four kids in the bucket seat of a MADSEN.

If you are interested in family cargo biking, Julian recommends Aaron’s Bicycle Repair in West Seattle and Dutch Bike Seattle in Ballard, as well as Clever Cycles in Portland.

Julian looks forward to coordinating a Fiets of Family Cycling (fiets is Dutch for bike) next year, based on the French constructeur races. “We’ll hold silly cycling contests — like the dropped toy, the diaper change, synchronized signals, fancy dismounts, and ‘I’ll pull this bike right over’ sibling fights.”

The next Cascade Ride Leader Training is scheduled for March.

Scott Marlow was marketing director for Cascade Bicycle Club from 2001-2005. The Club record-holder for the shortest commute (under six seconds), Marlow works from his home office in West Seattle. Nominate a cyclist of the month.

Family Biking is the Anti-Grumpy

This weekend has been one set of struggs after another. Yesterday morning I was powerful grumpy, having failed to fix our dishwasher, which is leaving the top rack dishes cemented with food grit. A serious funk. Crabby (ask my wife). Almost didn't ride. But Kim reminded me that biking generally makes me happy, so Drew, Luc & I went off in the MADSEN to join some friends on a Spokespeople ride from Wallingford Playfield to Bagel Oasis in Ravenna. Spokespeople rides are generally leisurely, scrupulously law-abiding affairs.

Not so if you miss the start.

"Slow down, Daddyyyyyyy!" from the back as we flew down Latona, caught some lucky lights, and met the ride on 65th. Wooot! We had a great time, lingered over bagels and hot chocolate, and rode home with our friends, Drew hot-dogging and showing off for their boys from the backseat. She's a bit smitten, in a 3 year old way, where hollering and spitting is flirting.

But truth be told, I'd been happy minutes after we left. Works every time. I'm too lazy to run, and walking's too slow, but biking? Biking's just right. The steady cadence, wind on my face, exultant feeling of powering myself through town. Getting an amount of exercise that's just enough to put the mellow into your autonomic nervous system (like deep calming breaths, but less woowoo). 

This morning, on my one sleep-in morning of the week, Luc woke at 6am ready to party, and my wife, bless her soul, had a "sore throat", and asked me to get up with him instead of her. Grumpy things were said. But got up I did, Kim having convinced me that she was actually sick and not just wiped out from carousing at some Banya place on her twin's night out. 

Struggs.

And we were out of coffee.

Struuuuuuggs.

But I knew just what to do. Me and Luc, we hit the bike, and here we are outside of Aster Coffee, 6:30am: 

Coffee, scones, and some crawling around. Good times.

And here we are at the Ballard Market. By then, I was feeling so happy and sweet that we were buying tasty breakfast-in-bed treats and medicines for Miss Kim. And yes, the backdrop in this photo also makes me happy but no, that's not why we were there. 7am's a little early for that.