Behold the latest incarnation of the old mamabike: new Bobike junior kid seat.

I got the Bianchi Milano Citta in April 2009 with a two-year old and a six-month-pregnant belly. Up to that point, I’d been riding a too-big beach cruiser with Bobike mini kid seat on the front for a year, but decided I couldn’t make do with one gear in hilly Seattle with two kids. I moved the Bobike mini to the new bike and was suddenly able to bike more and more and more!

Here is the chronological list of add-ons to the old mamabike (though possibly with a couple things forgotten):

• Bobike mini kid seat
• Bobike mini windshield
• Burley solo trailer with infant car seat
• Bobike maxi kid seat (trailer retired)
• Different rear rack to fit Wald folding baskets
• Pletscher double kickstand
• Swapped rear derailleur for internally-geared hub
• Longer stem to accommodate front kid knees
• Longer longer stem to accommodate front kid knees
• Bobike mini retired
• Back to longer stem (can’t locate original stem)
• Bobike junior (Bobike maxi retired)

I used to look forward to the day I would reclaim the front of the bike for myself and put a basket on it, but it’s been a couple years and I haven’t done it yet. I couldn’t put something too big up front that would interfere with the bus bike rack since having a family bike that fits on the bus–even though it doesn’t carry both kids anymore–is the reason we keep the old mamabike around.

The Bobike junior is a great seat with a 75-pound weight limit. It only has a lap belt and therefore shouldn’t hold a kid younger than five. The Bobike maxi has a three-point harness and maxes out at 50 pounds, but even the sub-50-pound kid was getting too tall to sit comfortably. And the best part: it folds down for stealth mode.

Open:

Closed:

Open:

Closed:

Maybe the foot pegs keep it from being too stealthy:

We almost didn’t take the old mamabike today. We typically only use it to go to the orthodontist in Issaquah, which is 20 miles from home. Our first bus is five blocks from home, the second bus is one block from where the first one lets off, and then it’s one mile to the orthodontist. We’ve left the bikes at home and hoofed it a couple times lately and it’s been fine. We don’t do a lot of walking and a couple years ago the thought of walking a whole mile not for the purpose of using up three hours of the day was inconceivable. But now we can totally walk a mile! Though this time I had planned to take skateboard, longboard, and scooter just to mix things up, but the kids voted for bikes at the last minute. Seattle buses have spots for three bikes on the racks, but I feel safer taking just two bikes in case one slot is in use.

And hooray for having taken bikes! We skipped the second bus and biked the five miles home. We saw a friend bike by and shouted hello at one another, then we discovered a public bike repair station (500 9th Avenue)…and then another one just a block later!

We stopped at the grocery store for as much stuff as I could squeeze onto the old mamabike, and then the best part: we stumbled upon the History House orca! It used to hang from the ceiling of the outdoor seating area shared by History House and Milstead & Co. cafe and many Kidical Mass rides have gathered under it.