Big Wheels, Crayons & Bike Racing — Parents

Nov 19, 2013 at 09:57 PM

I recommend Max at Berkley Carroll for private lessons. Jules, I can give you his number if you are interested. My girls are currently going to Camp Olympia at John Jay High school which is a zoo on Saturdays but their swimming instructors are top notch and the lessons are also cheap.

Graydon Kolk

Jan 18, 2014 at 07:30 PM

So my kid is getting to the bike transportable age and we're thinking about bike bike seat options for the spring. Just wanted to know what the family men were using for transporting their little ones?

Also I'm moving to Queens (Astoria) to a first floor apartment with a backyard so I'm kind of thinking about cargo bikes. Thoughts?

Jules

Jan 18, 2014 at 09:40 PM

Graydon,

I've heard nothing but good things about cargo bikes; I tried putting a kids seat on my lovely new Aloominator but the rear stays are too short; so the kids seat overlaps with the saddle.

I'm a big fan of the Bern helmets.

j

Ryan J

Jan 20, 2014 at 12:00 AM

Some of you may recall that I once had a pretty nifty "bike room" - with tension racks holding 4 bikes, wheels and frames hanging from the ceiling, a work stand set up, rubber gloves and greasy t-shirts and various wrenches strewn about in that wonderful way. Cassettes laying around. The trainer just left out. Now it looks like this.

IMG_0811.jpg

Ryan J

Jan 20, 2014 at 12:04 AM

...and my bedroom looks like this. And yes, that's a wheel lying cassette down on the bed.

IMG_0813.jpg

twoyacks

Jan 20, 2014 at 02:01 AM

Dude, that's great...

mugwump

Jan 20, 2014 at 02:57 AM

Graydon Kolk said:

So my kid is getting to the bike transportable age and we're thinking about bike bike seat options for the spring. Just wanted to know what the family men were using for transporting their little ones?

Also I'm moving to Queens (Astoria) to a first floor apartment with a backyard so I'm kind of thinking about cargo bikes. Thoughts?

Graydon,

I used a Topeak from the time Oscar was about 1.3 till he was 5.7. When the imps are on the small side, they fall asleep pretty easily, thus the topeak's noggin protection came in handy. Also, when they're small, they really notice every gram on their head. Oscar started with a Nutcase and after about 45 minutes, he'd be holding his helmet up to relieve pressure on his head and neck. I returned it and got him a kids Giro which was much, much lighter. He did three Bike New York's in that seat and went to school almost every day last year in it.

We're on a Burley Trail-a-Bike right now. Awesome. He can help pedal, and the extra length and extra wheel is somewhat mitigated by the much lower weight distribution. I think we go to school faster these days, by a minute or two on average. When the ride is less than 10 minutes to begin with, it's a big difference. The one issue is that I need to make an extra-long mudflap so his pants don't get wet from the spray when we ride to school in the rain or snow.

Jeffrey White

Jan 20, 2014 at 03:45 AM

@Ryan - That was a good bike room.

Ryan J

Jan 20, 2014 at 04:20 AM

Jeffrey White said:

@Ryan - That was a good bike room.

I'll have another one someday.

eragot

Jan 20, 2014 at 12:16 PM

@Ryan - so Maria really likes the look of bikes on the walls now. Awesome. Try hanging your polka dot jersey above the bed too! Perlberg did it, Yacks does it, and word has it that Reiners is redecorating around a green theme...

nice work there.

Jules

Jan 20, 2014 at 01:41 PM

@Ryan you'll probably need to get those a little higher off the ground before too long. Three feet seems to be the magic number.

Graydon Kolk

Jan 20, 2014 at 03:11 PM

@mugwump and @Jules Thanks for the helpful info!

Jules

Feb 15, 2014 at 08:07 PM

I'm not at all sure what/how was going on here, but I thought it would fit well in this thread...

Mark Inaba

Feb 16, 2014 at 01:57 AM

Ninja turtle?

jim_nelson

Feb 16, 2014 at 12:20 PM

Jules, they make something called the Baby Bjorn. It's more comfortable for the kids I think. Good thing you're going to get more practice.

Joshua Edwards

Mar 10, 2014 at 02:46 AM

Fellas, I'll be joining your ranks this season. Still another 5 months to go. Plenty of time for me to fully realize how little I know about what's about to hit me.

Marc Bertucco

Mar 10, 2014 at 02:51 AM

Congratulations Joshua! To be honest, it's not going to be a great thing for your cycling, but you'll soon discover that you don't care because taking care of a little life? There is no thing greater.

jim_nelson

Mar 10, 2014 at 12:05 PM

Right on Josh, congrats!

Jules

Mar 10, 2014 at 01:36 PM

Congratulations Josh, good times ahead!

Mark Inaba

Mar 10, 2014 at 04:36 PM

Josh, Congratulations!! Nothing more awesome then having a little one in your life.

Joshua Edwards

Mar 10, 2014 at 08:40 PM

Thanks, guys. The wife and I are seriously excited about it. I'm sure I'll look more and more bewildered as we get closer to the date.

Marc Bertucco

Mar 10, 2014 at 09:31 PM

Joshua Edwards said:

Thanks, guys. The wife and I are seriously excited about it. I'm sure I'll look more and more bewildered as we get closer to the date.

Don't worry, in the beginning it's simple. Feed, change and love that baby. That's all. When they cry, its for a reason, wet or hungry or ouchy.

Jules

Mar 10, 2014 at 09:47 PM

1) diaper
2) tired
3) hungry
4) needs a swaddle

Later in life the reasons for crying grow to include Spring Classic forum spoilers, getting chased down by your own teammates and of course... Broken Carbon!

Marc Bertucco

Mar 21, 2014 at 10:52 AM

Congratulations to Jules and Lisa Roazen on the birth of their new baby! Just saw a picture on the Facebook, I'm sure more info will follow!

Mark Inaba

Mar 21, 2014 at 02:13 PM

Congratulations Jules!!! Boy or girl?

Graydon Kolk

Mar 21, 2014 at 02:28 PM

Congrats Jules!!!

Jules

Mar 21, 2014 at 02:44 PM

Thanks all!

Lisa gave birth to a bouncing baby boy last night - with hair as red as his sister's - so that makes one more for the Ginger army!
Mom & son are doing great - name, pictures & details soon.

Our heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been posting, texting, and calling with their well wishes, we are all very happy, and very tired.

PS the third question I keep getting is "does this put Battenkill back on the schedule?" Gotta love bike racers... the answer is "possibly"

Erika Tarte

Mar 21, 2014 at 08:18 PM

Congratulations Jules and Lisa!!! Seems he's already taking after his father, soloing off the front and crossing the finish line a bit ahead of schedule

Jules

Mar 22, 2014 at 05:52 PM

Raphael Thomas Roazen 7lbs 3oz If we play our cards right we might even get home before Erika. (Speaking of which this thread probably needs to be renamed - suggestion box is OPEN)

Joaquin

Mar 22, 2014 at 06:01 PM

Nice!! Congrats, dude. (Also, one of the best of the TMNTs)