Most of my days are incident-free, but today was a double whammy. This morning my loose left pant leg caught on one of my three (yes, three!) empty water bottle cages and bent it. Much better than getting caught up and falling, but grrr. I think I bent it back into shape and these pants won’t be allowed on the Big Dummy again. Then I rode the Milano in the afternoon with the idea to bring it by Dutch Bike Co to see if they could straighten out my kickstand. It’s been getting gradually more sticky and I hoped it just needed a good tightening and not a retirement party.

The kickstand took matters into its own hands (legs?) and broke in half as soon as I wheeled the bike out of the garage. The remaining leg wouldn’t stay up so I zip tied it to the frame and crossed my fingers it would stay. Fitting since I learned the magic of zip ties from Dutch Bike Co. The zip tie held through preschool pick up and ride to the shop where I learned they don’t have a Pletscher two-leg kickstand in stock, but should get one soon. They removed the leftover pieces and politely accepted the fallen-off bits I’d transported in my pocket with the promise to call if it could be put back together. (I’m not expecting a call.) In the meantime, things aren’t too bad with no kickstand. Since I started out with a normal single kickstand, I’m used to leaning the bike against my hip while loading the kids. Granted, it’s not as easy and comfortable as a double kickstand, but it’s safe and effective.

I wasn’t able to leave the shop empty handed once we saw the bells. They now carry kitty cat bells! The Milano’s bells are currently a bunny bell with missing ear and kitty bell with missing kitty (it’s in the house just waiting to be glued back on) so this kitty bell will go on the Big Dummy. I also got an Origin-8 Time Clock Bell. I had assumed the time clock bell would go on my handlebars and the kitty cat on the seat post bars, but the four-year old has other plans. It’ll take me weeks to get around to installing them so hopefully he’ll have forgotten about wanting *my* bell by then.

I took a solo ride on my road bike to meet some friends at the Panama Tea House this morning. I swung by the store for a couple items on the way home, but rather than take either of the cargo-carrying mamabikes, I wore my Tom Bihn Super Ego messenger bag which easily fit toilet paper, kleenex, and cough drops for Mr. Family Ride. I’ve previously only used for airplane carryon because it holds my laptop, many kid clothing changes, toys, and snacks. It wasn’t by design, but I just realized I’ve used four different bikes over the last four days (mountain bike/trailer in heavy snow, Big Dummy in slush, city bike for bus trip, road bike today). I hate to give the impression that it’s necessary to own multiple bikes, but it sure can be convenient.

The only problem with the road bike is that I haven’t taken it out in a while and the tires were very low. I was running late and the kids and Mr. Family Ride were watching me poke at the tires through the front window so I pretended they felt OK and took off, hoping for the best. I have to admit I haven’t pumped up my own tires since college. So there’s my bad-but-good example setting for the day: even someone as clueless and lazy as I can successfully bike with kids all the time. I’ll sooner remember which of Aaron’s cats is Schrader and which is Presta than be diligent in maintaining my tire pressure. If it’s not too late for New Year’s resolutions, I guess I’ve got one. There will still be plenty left for me to learn from the Bike Works Adult Basics Class once I have the time to take it. I can only imagine how fun today’s hilly ride would have been on hard tires.

In the afternoon the two-year old wanted to go for a balance bike ride so we went in search of snow and puddles. Schools have been canceled most of the week so the nearby schoolyard snowfall was undisturbed and made for some good crunching. It was so much easier to keep up with just one kid. Also easier to help push just one kid uphill when he got tired.

Yesterday’s rain washed away most of the snow so I felt safe to take the Milano out for a bike + bus trip 25 miles to Kent. Previously I would have thought a half hour drive with free parking was much better than a two-hour multimodal adventure, but I was so impressed by the ShoWare Center’s Getting There page’s mention of bike parking. Also, Mr. Family Ride had to work all day so adding a few hours of adventurous travel to our day helped get us out of the house for a longer period of time. I was also feeling extra bikey for having been featured on Velo Mom for Family Friday yesterday.

There was still snow to dodge, mostly in the bike lane/door zone. The roads were littered with bits and pieces of broken snow chains, but it was the most rideable it’s been in days. Fortunately no rain fell, but I put rain suits on the boys to shield them from the wind. I chose the University Street transit tunnel as our bike destination because I knew it’d be dry and it’s exciting to watch light rail trains go by. It was a little confusing finding the entrance to tunnel. I asked a pedestrian who looked liked he’d just gotten off a bus and he thought we had to go three blocks north, but we found an elevator inside Benaroya Hall. If there are also stairs to the tunnel, I have no idea where they are.

On the bus I realized I’d left my bike lock at home on the handlebars of my mountain bike. I searched online for sporting goods stores near the venue and the bus passed an REI, but I decided to see if I could talk them into valet parking my bike. I was in luck and the box office directed me around the corner to the group entrance where a staffer let me lean my bike against the wall. She even gave me a claim check for it. She wisely suggested I leave our helmets, too, so I only had to carry twice as much gear (instead of three times as much) as all the car-conveyed families.

When the show (Phineas & Ferb Live, if you were wondering) was over we were greeted with sun!

And we took a peek at the Interurban Trail a block from the ShoWare. I’d love to explore it one day. Preferably one day when it isn’t hugged by snow.

On the way home we took the bus to Convention Place Station to get close to Eastlake and minimize our hill climbing on the way home. I was a bit sad that I didn’t get to experience the full ShoWare bike parking experience, but figured I’d do some research for future shows and take a look at the bike rack closest to the Paramount since we didn’t use it during our visit in November. It’s exposed to the elements and doesn’t seem particularly secure–visible from the street and too far from the buses for their presence to deter theft.

The snow is melting so I’ve stowed the mountain bike. Poor bike–last time it came out of hibernation was three and a half years ago when I got horribly lost in the Cottonwood Valley Trail System in Las Vegas and had to call home for a rescue. I think its previous ride was at least three years before that when I got lost from my group on Mammoth Mountain. I didn’t get lost yesterday or the day before so I guess the curse is broken. Should be safe to venture to the I-5 Colonnade with it and not get lost there, but maybe something as big as Duthie Hill should wait.

Our little street was very slushy this morning, but the forecast called for rain all day long so I set out on the Big Dummy with the expectation that I’d be able to get home easily after playing at REI for a few hours. The two blocks downhill to 40th were hard–I dragged a foot most of the way. I think I was more uncomfortable with the center-of-gravity shift than the less knobby tires. I didn’t wobble once. This is huge since I’ve nearly dropped the bike on its side several times in dry weather. This isn’t the fault of the bike, mind you, I keep trying to manipulate it like my old bike and it doesn’t work that way. It’s simple to treat a bakfiets like the cargo beast that it is, but the Big Dummy is so agile I forget it’s a lot heavier than my old bike with double the kid weight on the back.

I normally don’t like Eastlake since it’s so busy, but that made it perfect for today. The relatively heavy car traffic had melted two strips into the road. One of the strips was even the bike lane…not that the cars cared. The ride didn’t feel dangerous and the few cars that caught up to us passed safely on the left using the center turn lane. I pulled over once at a clear side street to let cars pass. A man standing outside near his pickup truck offered us a lift and asked if we were just out for the sake of taking a ride. I assured him we were doing fine and he offered one more time before traffic cleared and we waved and carried on.

REI was packed, but the bike rack was all mine. I wanted to get a sled–not because I like sledding, but because I wanted to transport something big and bulky. I have yet to do any really exciting cargo transporting. Fortunately for my wallet, REI was out of sleds, but we found some clearance snow boots and replaced the four-year old’s stolen gloves. The new gloves aren’t as long as the previous pair, but the Swix Fun Split Mittens make me chuckle.

We hung out at the play area for a long time, watching the rain wash the snow out of the trees and headed home just as the deluge let up. Eastlake was slightly better on the way home, though it was still an on-foot negotiation getting from the sidewalk down to the street. My street was better, too, but I hit it from above in case the slush hadn’t washed away. I think uphill may have been easier in terms of riding in a straight line. I had to put a foot down several times as I veered into slush. I hadn’t previously realized it’s hard to hold a straight line on the Big Dummy. Seems I have a lot of adapting to do with the new bike still.

In very exciting news, the little guy was warm enough today. I don’t think it was much warmer than our last non-trailer ride so maybe the sunglasses add that little bit of shielding he needs.

I’m still trying to find a way to keep the little guy warm enough. The snow has mostly melted away, but it’s still in the 30’s. Yesterday his hands felt very cold, even under his snow mittens so today I bundled him up in snowsuit (though we compromised on no ski mask or ski goggles) plus Slanket. I think the short ride to drop his brother off at preschool and home may have been OK, but the threat of snow (what snow?) resulted in a two-hour delay for the start of school so we rode to the Ballard Fred Meyer first.

There was even another cargo bike at the rack–an electric-assisted trike. I was a little nervous that the guy left stuff in his basket, considering my bad experience, but we beat him out and his cargo was still there.

The other parents were impressed that we rode today, but today was a breeze compared to Sunday. And I made sure to stress we were ten minutes late because I went by the store, not because of the weather. I know by the end of the school year I won’t be the only biking parent, but I’m not setting a very good example by running late so often.

The little guy said he was still cold so I took the small bike in the afternoon so he could hide from the wind behind his fairing. And I tied my snowboard jacket around him as an extra layer. I’m not going to want to take this bike if there’s any chance of ice on the road, but today was just wet and cold. It’s only been a year since our crash so I want my longtail and disc brakes if we’re anywhere near ice.

Our afternoon took us to Pike Place Market which was emptier than I’ve ever seen it–even the balloon clown was absent. We had the fish throwers all to ourselves and picked up some salmon and watched them throw a fish around for us. The sun came out as we headed towards home, making for a terrific day. But once we were back home, the little guy said he had still been cold. Back to the drawing board.

We headed back to the Seattle Center today for the Model Railroad Show at the Pacific Science Center. I’ve never parked a bike there and was looking forward to utilizing the bike rack inside the parking structure…but with running late and having to retrieve a runaway toddler boot I just locked up to the bike rack right outside the door. Someone had left his sleeping bag next to the rack so I figured it was well sheltered from snow.

I had bundled up the boys a bit more today: extra sweater under their snowsuits and ski mask and ski goggles for the little guy and sunglasses for the big guy. But it made for a lot of stuff to cart around. Even if I wanted to pay a dollar for a locker (which I didn’t–the whole reason I take the bike over is because I’m cheap!), I would have needed at least three.

The show was AWESOME. There was an indoor ride-on train as well as the Iron Horse Railway down from Bothell. I assumed the conductor had driven it down from Bothell Country Village so I asked him what the conditions of the Burke-Gilman Trail were. Turns out the train isn’t street legal and he transported it by flat bed truck.

I love that our preschool commute involves going over a drawbridge…except it’s often up when we’re running late. I need to work on my on-time performance if I want to inspire other families to start bike commuting. This morning’s drawbridge delay made us ten minutes late, but we got to see a very exciting big blue boat. One of our little classmates was meanwhile stuck in her car, but much too far back to see the boat. Not only do bike commuters get to enjoy the view in the canal, but I also saw three riders exchange introductions during the wait.

On the way home, I had to wait for the drawbridge again–that was a first. The traffic lights cooperated nicely and kept all cars away while the bridge was up. It was so peaceful with no idling cars sharing the road. I daydreamed about how nice it would be to have a bridge just for bikes.

The afternoon was cold, but clear, so we took the balance bikes out. I normally prefer to haul the balance bikes to a spot where I can sit while they ride around, but a friend is visiting (this time without her bike) so we let the boys lead the way. They led us down two flights of stairs to the water by Ivar’s Salmon House.

Yes, the stairs really are as steep as they look in the picture–I was impressed the boys were able to negotiate them with their balance bikes. Later, Mr. Family Ride told me he carries the bikes down the stairs for them. Oops.

We spent a bit of time throwing rocks in the water (because that’s just as fun as balance biking), but it eventually got cold and we made our way back uphill.

This was my first encounter with Wallingford’s runnel. The two-year old managed to wheel his bike up two steps, but I ended up carrying both bikes the rest of the way up. I’d imagine it works fine for full-sized people, though. Even with my light road bike, I think I’d opt to zig zag up the nearby streets rather than walk up a flight of stairs. But I’m all for runnels in other parts of the city that aren’t as easily conquered by streets.

Riding home tonight was the first time I left the excitement of 45th for a quieter parallel street. I love that we’re on the road to Neighborhood Greenways, but I’m having trouble with the idea of giving up my cycle along my neighborhood’s main drag. In case greenways are new to you, here’s the definition from Seattle Neighborhood Greenways:

Neighborhood Greenways are dedicated residential streets, often paralleling an arterial, with low traffic volume and traffic speeds. Neighborhood Greenways are mapped to be an extended connection between parks, schools, libraries and neighborhood businesses, while providing a quieter, slower paced place where bicycles, pedestrians and neighbors’ safety are all given priority.

Granted, I’d already gone 9 of my 11 blocks and the decision to move over a block was partially based on not wanting to wait for a light to turn green, but also on the woman in the SUV talking on her cell phone who screeched to a halt next to me, almost running the red light. But I’ve been meaning to force myself to get used to riding on more quiet streets. We’re not often out after dark these days, but we’d had a bikey dinner date with a friend and her two kids who came by Madsen bucket bike. She had a much worse experience on her way home–a motorist nearly hit her while she walked her very lit-up bike through an intersection. So yeah, definitely time to embrace Neighborhood Greenways.

Earlier in the day, the travel was all good, though. I climbed Fremont Avenue again, this time just with the lighter kid. I was feeling pretty accomplished until I saw a guy on a bakfiets cruise by in the other direction. I believe this is the same bakfiets I usually see parked at Streambox on Westlake so this guy goes up and down this hill every day.

My destination was the Phinney Market Pub & Eatery, which has the greatest double-decker train table. I’ve biked by in the evening and seen the place packed, but it’s been fairly slow the few times I’ve visited in the morning.

Ryan of Go Means Go met me there so I could give him the awesome bikey tie I scored at the bins on Sunday. I’ve heard of Cycle Cap Tuesday, but apparently there is also Tie Tuesday so the timing was perfect. Mostly he listened to me whine about having to roll up my pant leg until Edward comes up with chain guard solution, but we also talked about other bike, Seattle, and train stuff.

I was a little disappointed Ryan didn’t put a Go Means Go sticker on the bike rack outside Phinney Market (I’d even taken a “before” picture of the rack, but he’s out of stickers!), but he’s printing more soon. Here’s a picture of him and his Raleigh looking tiny compared to my massive bike.

Apparently Ryan is thinking about a cargo bike for himself. He thinks he wants a bakfiets, but this is based on having dragged trailers around and wanting his cargo in front of him. I extolled the virtues of the Big Dummy, of course. Not sure how effective my “two kids, two balance bikes, and five hours worth of snacks!” was. I’m not sure what that correlates to in his world.

His regular-sized bike has a great rack, though, so he can carry more cargo than the average Joe. It’s got a nice bell as well. I’m still on the lookout for he right bell for my bike, but I don’t know how gold will go with my pink/black theme. Plus, imagine how annoying for everyone to have to hear me chirp, “It’s the same bell Go Means Go has!”

Just another day of appreciating my new bike and how much junk it can accommodate in its trunk. I swung by the grocery stores to get a couple bags of stuff and since I still had room, stopped in at the pet store for a 14.5-pound bag of dog food. Only one problem: now that the kid seat is as far back as possible, the longest part of the foot rest is in the middle of where the backmost shopping bag sits. That cuts down cargo capacity a bit so I’m considering moving the seat back to its previous position. I’m sure the two inches of space is negligable in other areas–separation of the two boys (we’ve had occasional “He’s touching me!” incidents), room for a possible third passenger (friend, not new baby), versus weight feeling heavier farther back on the bike–so I guess I’m not too disappointed at the thought of changing things back the way they were.

I didn’t want to risk sticky FreeLoaders and placed my bulk honey in the front basket. It was still a little precarious with my floppy front wheel; items like this will travel more safely once my front wheel stabilizer spring is ready. The basket usually swings all the way to the side (that’s the reason for the inner tube wrapped around the top tube in the bottom of the picture below). But even when the basket stays put, I think I’ll continue to transport the most fragile items, such as eggs, in my messenger bag on my back. I’m still figuring out the many nuances of grocery shopping by bike.

In the afternoon I took the direct route all the way up Fremont Avenue North to the zoo. It’s totally doable with two kids and 27 gears! It’s still not easy, but it’s nice to know I don’t have to go out of the way if I don’t want to. I didn’t transport much weight besides the kids, but I did have a lot of bulk on board: stroller, big bag of snacks, and big bag of cloth diapers and baby clothing to hand down. Love this bike!

I met some seasoned friends at the Goodwill Outlet for my first visit to “the bins.” This was also my first time to take the Yepp PeaPod III off the FlightDeck Adapter–wow, it was easy! I know, I’ve had the bike a month and should have figured out all (or at least some!) of its intricacies on day one, but I needed the impetus of the possibility of transporting something big and cheap.

In addition to feeling sporty and aerodynamic (don’t laugh, I know I’m still more elephant than cheetah on this bike), it was amazing how quiet the ride was. This was the longest solo ride I’ve taken–50 minutes there (that includes getting lost time, by the way) with no constant chatter. My biggest revelation was that I retained most of my directions and was able to notice and remember things from the trip. It was my first time on the SODO Trail, which isn’t very scenic…unless you’re a fan of light rail trains and buses. LIGHT RAIL TRAINS AND BUSES! I’m not sure I’ll take the boys down here, though, because while the light rail train is surprisingly quiet, I happened to hit an intersection as the barriers were coming down and the alarms that accompanied it were so loud, I was a bit scared.

My getting lost detour was because I couldn’t see street signs from the SODO Trail and I missed my turnoff, but it was great to see the entire mile of bike path. It’s so wonderful to discover all these separated paths around town. I passed by Velo Transit as I made my way back on track. I recognize the logo, but didn’t realize they were a local company making waterproof packs and bags for bike commuting. They weren’t open, but a guy inside noticed me stop to take a look and came out to say hi.

The bins were overwhelming, but yielded some great finds, including 130 Mega Bloks and this sweet bikey tie:

I don’t know anyone who’d wear the tie, but I saw it as I was on my way to checkout and couldn’t help but grab it. When paying by the pound, one tie is essentially free, after all. My three bags of spoils were $10.70, though I didn’t find anything bulky enough to bungee to the top of the FlightDeck. I hadn’t expected to find bike parking at the bins, but there was a bike rack right by the door. There was even a bike already parked there which made leaving my bike unattended a little less scary. And as I was loading up to leave, a guy outside recognized my bike as a Big Dummy for the first time. I don’t think it’s just that I haven’t put the stickers (other than the head badge) back on, there just aren’t a lot of small Big Dummy frames out there so people aren’t accustomed to see the curveless top tube.

I stopped in at Ride Bicycles on the way home to talk to Edward about a front spring (waiting on a bracket thingy big enough to fit around my hefty frame), chain guard (still being researched), move my saddle back a centimeter, and move the kiddie seat adapter a notch. I don’t know if having the kiddie seat all the way back will make it easier to fill up the FreeLoaders, but it seems worth a try. And I’ve noticed an interesting thing about the Brooks saddle: it’s perfectly comfortable if I’m riding with just one kid, but if I’ve got both kids and both balance bikes (close to 100 pounds) aboard and I’m tired, it feels a little off. I’m curious if this holds true for other Brooks saddle enthusiasts. I’d like see how they like things dragging a hundred pounds of cargo around.

My final stop was the grocery store since I still had some available cargo space. If I’d left the kid seat on, I probably would have purchased one more bag of groceries and buckled it in there. I’m not sure what the lesson is there…