I ended up on my wife's bike again after she toppled over on it coming to a stop at a badly placed motorbike obstacle on the cycle path, with N°3 child in the childseat on the way to the beach. After this unfortunate but not too serious accident she asked for a swop to the Yuba and that was it. She finished the 20 Km of the ride with child and beach gear easily.
She rides a hybrid with 700 c wheels which places the centre of gravity high up. That with thin tyres, a child perched up in a child seat over those tall thin wheels makes for a top heavy bike that whips along, but understeers, and is not as stable as a 26 inch bike. It really wants to fall over when loaded anytime you take your rear off the saddle. The frame might be a tad too big for her too, with these big wheels. The Yuba even with a larger child, beach bags, with its smaller wheels and lower centre of gravity makes for a safer ride and a bike that goes round corners... even if slightly slower !
We saw a lot of rabbits and partridges on the way back, but they were too quick to catch on the camera.
We will start looking for a replacement for the hybrid as she uses this bike every day and there are probably better solutions out there.
I've been longing for a road bike with 650c wheels for a while now. I know Terry makes them (http://www.terrybicycles.com/cycling_savvy/valtour) but I'm surprised they aren't more common on smaller bikes. Once I get done with this pregnancy, I'm going to be shopping for a new touring-type bike with small wheels. Let us know what you find!
ReplyDeleteI spend yesterday morning digging out and then renovating her vintage Peugeot town bike (from our student days)it has 650 c wheels. The wheels are steel, there are 3 gears, and the brakes are not as fantastic as V brakes, but the rust on the cables might have something to do with that. It is still lighter than the modern hybrid bike and might be worth a repaint and the time it takes me to build some modern aluminium wheels, stick some more gears and decent brakes on it. Might be a fun project...
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