Commuting on a tandem?

[Becky]

Anyone commute with another rider on a tandem? DH and I work in the same building, and it occurred to me that a tandem might almost make sense since we're going to the same place every day. (OK, I'm really just looking for justification to buy another bike ) We could probably generate some killer speed working together, but I have no idea if a tandem is practical for urban riding.

Any thoughts?

[Tuckervill]

Why not? You could take the lane and go the speed limit!

Karen

[Aggie_Ama]

Someone on here works with a co-worker who commutes with his wife on a tandem. Maybe they will pop in but I know someone mentioned it.

[divingbiker]

Someone on here works with a co-worker who commutes with his wife on a tandem. Maybe they will pop in but I know someone mentioned it.

That would be me! Yes, a guy in my building and his wife ride in every day year-round. He's very tall, and she's very short, so the tandem is the only way they can ride together at a reasonable speed. Here's their bike.

[Becky]

Hmmmm...this may be more feasible than I thought from a bike perspective... But I just looked up tandem costs.... I'll be retired before I can afford a tandem!

DB, that's so cool that your co-workers commute together! Thanks for sharing the bike pic!

[jsdilks]

Hello - I can chime in here about commuting on a tandem. We live over in Arlington and both work just off the Mall, so it's an easy ride, mostly on paths for us. The panniers are packed to the gills, however, so you'll need to take into consideration what you need to bring in with you and what you can already have at work, etc. We're on the street for just a couple blocks of Independence, which I'm not crazy about, but we manage that, and have a different route home to do a loop through Haines Point. I'm not a single biker at all, so the tandem was a good choice for us as I don't feel compelled to steer, brake, or change gears. And I hardly ever yell any more when we go to fast around corners or down a hill (which I *did* do when we first started...) I'd be happy to answer any more questions too - show you the bike loaded up, etc. Just let us know.

[salsabike]

Becky, you can easily get used tandems. We got ours, a '91 Burley Duet--I grant we were lucky--for $350 at an LBS that sells both used and new bikes. If you have a local bike club with want ads on their site, I am sure tandems will show up. We can't commute together, but have put 5,000 miles or so on that bike over the last four years.

[Eden]

That would be me! Yes, a guy in my building and his wife ride in every day year-round. He's very tall, and she's very short, so the tandem is the only way they can ride together at a reasonable speed. Here's their bike.

Eh.... I'm 5 feet and my husband is 6'4". We do not ride a tandem and I keep up with him just fine (in fact it is likely that sometime soon I will surpass him at hill climbs and steady TT efforts, though I don't know if I'll ever be able to accelerate/sprint quite as fast).... Unlike running where a taller person's stride does make a difference, bikes take away the advantage of being taller. She may not be able to keep up with him, but her height doesn't have anything to do with it.

[divingbiker]

Eh.... I'm 5 feet and my husband is 6'4". We do not ride a tandem and I keep up with him just fine (in fact it is likely that sometime soon I will surpass him at hill climbs and steady TT efforts, though I don't know if I'll ever be able to accelerate/sprint quite as fast).... Unlike running where a taller person's stride does make a difference, bikes take away the advantage of being taller. She may not be able to keep up with him, but her height doesn't have anything to do with it.

He's the one who told me that, I think. Or I might be remembering my friend and her husband, who ride separately in rural areas but on a tandem in the city, because he was always losing her at stop lights since he was more aggressive.

[ilima]

I think it'd be a great idea. Plus, think of the days when one of you is tired--knowing the other one is going to help you pedal home would be a relief.

[Bootyscadoodle]

My husband and I love our tandem!

Kind of a newbie lurker here, but I just can't resist responding to this thread!

We found our tandem on Craigslist for $500 and the owner threw in handlebar and rack bags, and a tandem carrier for the yakima rack. It's a Kuwahara from about 15 years ago(?) and it was set up for week-end tours in CA wine country. It had been sitting in the previous owners' garage until the husband finally decided he could let it go.

We updated a few things and are very happy with it. We laughingly named it The Albatross because we are not very graceful in our starts and stops, but once we're cruising, we're fine! Hubby is 6'2" and I am 5'4" and although the frame fits him fine, it's larger than I would ever get for me in a solo bike. I think it's 19" for me in the stoker position, and normally I ride a 15"or 17",depending on the frame. My road bike is a 51cm.

The larger tandem frame is fine while I'm riding but I can't touch the ground easily when stopped. And, at this point, that's okay since mounting and dismounting are different for tandems as opposed to solo bikes. It is not the tandem of our dreams, but it has shown us that we really like riding together. We like it so much that we are looking forward to commuting together to the university where he works and I am a grad student. It's a little over 8 miles each way in very little traffic, with a bit of an uphill at each end.

I second the above comments re. watching Craigslist and eBay for used tandems. They don't have to be fancy to see if you like them. I have my eye on the Trek 900 for our next tandem, but we'll see how things go this year. I am hoping it goes well enough to attend the Pacific Northwest Tandem Rally up in Victoria BC next July. Has anybody been to any of these rallies? What are they like? We are total newbies to all of this.

Sorry for the long post, but I think you should go ahead bite the bullet. If one for a reasonable price comes along, just do it, even if all the specs are not perfect. Even an imperfect, but workable, bike at a reasonable price will give you a really good idea if you want to pursue tandem riding or not.

Good luck, and keep us posted!

Kate

[shootingstar]

Great when tandems do work for a duo.

He does cycle to my stopover midpoint during my daily work commute where I pick up my bike from a bike locker and we ride homeward.

But a tandem will probably get me in a more sour mood after certain wierd work days. I'm 5'1" and he is 5'10". Tandem just doesn't jive well with us...we did try it-- once.

[Becky]

But a tandem will probably get me in a more sour mood after certain wierd work days. I'm 5'1" and he is 5'10". Tandem just doesn't jive well with us...we did try it-- once.

Y'know, it's interesting that you mention this. We had one of "those rides" on the way in yesterday. The kind of ride where I just wanted to clobber him for no apparent reason (and I'm sure that he felt the same way about me!). There's no riding further apart to gain some thinking room on a tandem.....

I think i'm going to start searching Ebay, just to see what I can find. Maybe this will be our Christmas gift to each other this year