Hi....I haven't been around for a long time

[sandra]

We took them to the Trace this morning and they are PERFECT! Exactly what we were looking for. I was apprehensive yesterday until we had our first real ride but it was good to know we made the right decision. I love mine and hubby is very happy with his.

No matter how old we get, riding my bike with the sun on my face and the wind in my hair takes my mind to a happy place.

[Pax]

Very cool, glad you found the right ride.

[colorisnt]

Nice!

I have a Blackburn waterproof bag that I got for a song on Competitive Cyclist and it's great for what I use it for (commuting and groceries) and it's not too heavy as a do-everything bag for weekend riding. I just usually keep it on the bike everyday. It's not super spendy and not an Ortlieb (beautiful bags but not in my budget right now) and while it looks "smaller", I fit an entire two bags of groceries in the one pannier yesterday at the store!

[emily_in_nc]

It's pretty! The Arkel Tailrider is an excellent trunk bag and extremely durable -- ours are still going strong after 10 years. The last I looked, though, it still only comes in red so not the best color for your bike with its pink accents. I am sure others will chime in!

[sandra]

Gotta stay coordinated! I never realized it would be so hard to find a bag with a little touch of pink.

Is it crazy that I already want to change to hot pink Jagwire cables? Or would that be too much? .... and it might not even match.

[Catrin]

I've an Arkel Tailrider, and it is a very durable trunk bag. Not too big, but it holds more than you think it will as it does expand a bit. Mine is red - I've HEARD that it is available in black but I've not seen that myself.

[Crankin]

Yes, we have a red and a black one. I can't remember which one is mine, as it's not on my bike all of the time. I don't use it for commuting, because it won't hold all of my clothes and work stuff. Plus, I ride that bike for regular road rides and I hate having it on for that, unless we are going far, need a change of clothes. I find it hard to put on and take off. So, that's why I use my pannier which is huge, to commute. It came from REI and was not that much $. It just snaps on. The Arkel has straps that need to loop through certain ways, and truthfully, I can never remember how to do it!

[emily_in_nc]

I don't find the Arkel Tailrider to be hard to put on and take off at all, but mine is an older model, and they may have changed the mechanism. It's not huge, agreed, but I love all the pockets and the velcro on back, the visibility factor, and the the fact that it has a built-in rain cover. It's just incredibly well-built. And it does expand to be quite a bit bigger than it appears, but is still not a big bag. Perfect for the layers of clothes you might peel off, though, snacks, wallet, that sort of thing. And we've brought quite a bit of smaller food items back in ours on errand rides.

[emily_in_nc]

We took them to the Trace this morning and they are PERFECT! Exactly what we were looking for. I was apprehensive yesterday until we had our first real ride but it was good to know we made the right decision. I love mine and hubby is very happy with his.

No matter how old we get, riding my bike with the sun on my face and the wind in my hair takes my mind to a happy place.

Great photos! Glad you're so happy with your new bikes. I love the color scheme of yours. I assume you are wearing a helmet since your DH has one on in the photo, but since you mentioned wind in your hair...

[sandra]

Oh yes, I'm wearing a helmet. No worries! We wore these same helmets when the tornado was destroying our house with us inside it.

[Catrin]

I've not had a problem attaching my Tailrider to my rack - but there does need to be holes in the rack at the appropriate places.

[Crankin]

There are spaces for the straps, it's just that I am not intuitive about this kind of stuff. I would have to do it many times to remember. I still have to stop and think about how to do the velcro straps for my headlight battery. If I am going out early in the AM, or will need it to ride home from work, I strap it on the night before, not in the morning, because I have to give myself some extra time.
I like the Trail Rider for rides that are long, I have snacks, lunch, and clothing, or I might stop and buy something small. When we went to the San Juan Islands, we used them, but on the days we rode places and then hiked, we had to bring the panniers, too, as we could not fit our hiking shoes in there, with the other stuff. Most of the time I throw my stuff in DH's Arkel, because I am so lazy.

[emily_in_nc]

Oh yes, I'm wearing a helmet. No worries! We wore these same helmets when the tornado was destroying our house with us inside it.

Now that's dual-purpose! I am so sorry about your house...how incredibly scary. But glad you had bike helmets, and are wearing them when you ride as well. Safety first!

[TrekDianna]

Great color scheme! Looks like a nice place for riding those bikes also. I'm happy you found ones that fit and feel good to ride.