Four years ago this week, this was delivered to our family:
It came all the way from
Clever Cycles in Portland, OR. At that time, there were no bike shops on the East Coast selling bakfietsen. Not true anymore!
We had some helpers unwrap the most awesome package we ever received.
P and S took it out first:
Soon we were riding it everywhere for all sorts of errands:
We participated in our first Rock to Rock Earth Day Ride:
And we decorated it lots of ways:
Soon, so hooked on family bicycling, we did this:
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| Xtracycle Radish 2009 |
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Bicycling became central to our life. We met lots of new folks. We saw far more things in our city. We had fun together.
Then the boys grew heavier and taller. So this lived with us for two and a half years, was much loved, and recently sold to a local family with younger kiddos:
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| Yuba Mundo | | | | | | | | | | |
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This is what we look like now:
And this is our newest ride. Yes, mama downsized to a mid-tail cargo bike since the kiddos are often pedaling themselves:
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| Yuba Boda Boda |
There have been SO many bikey highlights the past four years, including making friends locally and from far away:
And riding through the five boroughs of New York City:
And carrying our Christmas tree home:
It's just been a FUN ride, both literally and metaphorically. And while I may no longer chronicle our everyday bike adventures here that frequently, I know we'll be having them. Looking forward to more years of family bicycling fun.
Cheers,
Sara and the Full Hands family
13 comments:
I love seeing your journey and cargo biking evolution! Thanks so much for sharing your story and for being one of our inspirations to be a biking family too!
So cool to see all of the pictures from the past couple of years, but kind of bittersweet to see how quickly the boys are growing up. You all continue to inspire me to make biking to work a part of my every day life.
Great recap of your biking adventures and I love all the ways you've decorated your box bike!
S.
Yahoo! What a great four years! And look at those boys growing up so fast!!!
Loved seeing those pictures! The first box bike we ever touched! And of course you were our inspiration for our own boxbike (and three boys!).
Thanks for the trip down memory lane. I love to see photos of kids growing up on bikes! Congratulations on four well-spent years!
It's very helpful to see how the bike stable adjusted to the needs of the family over time. We are now on our third cargobike setup in 7 years (four if you count the bike trailer!) To me, the best part is seeing all of those smiling riders! Keep on pedaling.
So cool. I am just starting my cargo bike adventure, and am looking forward to a lot of good times. Thanks for sharing!!!
I'm looking forward to the day that I have kids pedaling their own bikes, but it seems SO FAR AWAY. Thanks for sharing the recap with us.
PS - This is the first time I've ever thought, "Wow. I wish I had unwrapped my bike."
Sara, What a journey! I recall the day nearly four years ago that I stumbled upon your blog and said, "Hey, I can do that!" Thanks for the continuing inspiration!
Lynette
Thanks, everyone, for your kind comments, support, and for checking in with Full Hands every now and again. I am not sure how this blog will evolve, but it has been fun to witness the growth of family bicycling and family bicycling blogs since we moved Full Hands into that direction, just some time right after we got the bakfiets. I think of our bakfiets as our 'gateway drug' into bicycling and we've been lucky to figure out bike set-ups to meet our needs at various ages and stages.
Our next challenge is to figure out our spring school commute with the older boys taking the AM bus and various after-school activities. I no longer have the capability to ride two kiddos but I can ride the Xtra with one guy and haul and extra bike to school for the ride home. It will need some figuring out how to get two kids' bikes to school.... We'll let you know.
Thanks so much for sharing your stories! We have twins and a singleton and just bought a backfiets just like yours. We have been using a trailer and a bobike jr but our twins are getting too big for the trailer. We are excited to continue our cargo bike journey with the kids up front and hope this new setup will last for a bit! Thanks again for the pictures. I read through everyone of you blog posts over the week and am so inspired!
@Karen W-- You are going to have a *great* time with your bakfiets! Love hearing about other cargo biking families and I have a particular soft spot for families with twins and a singleton! Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy and yes, happy bicycling.
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