Bakfiets: The €10 Solution

A cheaper cargo bike option

A few months back I posted about my love of the Nihola bakfiets, a family tricycle which I thought was my best option for transporting M.  Despite my best efforts I am not able to balance with M on the back of my bike. The bike seat sits up high on my bike and he's nearly one third of my weight, creating an inverted pendulum that I'm not strong enough to counteract.  Most bakfiets are giant, but the Nihola is lovely and sleek.  It's also €2,100.  But, my reasoning was that we don't have a car, and the bakfiets would be our primary family transport.  It would allow us greater mobility and we'd greatly improve our quality of life.

But I hesitated.  As much as I love the Nihola I kept wondering how long the shelf life would be.  We only have one kid, and with any luck M will be riding his own two wheeler by summer.  And the sides are high--did I really want to be lifting a five year old out of a box bike?  So I tested the Bakfiets.nl short.  Given that it's a two wheeled bakfiets I was surprised how easy it was to ride (of course, I rode it empty).  And, M could easily climb in and out himself.  But, it's still no bargain at €1,600.  This only led to more hesitation.

So, last Friday at the playground a bunch of us moms were talking and I learned the Croozer bike trailer, at €300, is a very cost-effective solution to the bakfiets issue.  M and I took a test drive and we both loved it!  When I returned to the playground a friend told me she had one from the States she'd be interested in selling.

The cheapest cargo bike option.  

The next day I went to pick it up but it (American) wouldn't attach to the axel of my (Dutch) bike.  So, my friend put it in her bakfiets (kind of like the one above but longer) and drove it to the bike store.  One thing I love about Dutch bike mechanics is that they are willing to MacGuyver anything.  So, now I have an option for transporting my kid!  Since then we've been to the pool twice and I've taken it for groceries.

I'm not saying I'll never get a bakfiets but I'm definitely giving the trailer the old college try.  The big downside I see right now is that since only use the trailer a couple of times per week I have to lug it down two flights every time I want to use it--then lug it back up when I'm done.  Also, it's not the Dutch way so it's not really the Dutch experience I was looking for.

But on Saturday as I was cycling with the trailer I heard a Dutch dad talking to his kid.  I couldn't understand what he was saying but by his tone I could tell he was pointing out my bike to his toddler, and was very encouraged that he used the word "bakfiets."

Nihola Love

 Today I rode the Nihola Family bike.  I think I'm in love.

Riding with Mairtin has been challenging.  I'm nervous, and nerves and bike riding don't mix in a fall-on-your-ass kind of way.  While the Nihola is a bit wide, and somewhat tough to wheel around urban sidewalks, riding it on roads and paths is a dream and actually strengthened my cycling skills.  It steers easily and shifts smoothly.  The shop was near Vondelpak, so I took the majority of my test ride there.  My biggest challenge riding with Mairtin has been balance--his seat is perched high on my bike and the extra 40 pounds creates something of an inverted pendulum.  Since the Nihola is a trike, balance is simply taken out of the equation.  I didn't realize this until the end of the ride when I was stopped at a light and didn't need to put my feet down.  The downside:  The pricetag.  At about $3,000, it's in the same range as a car.

Between the test ride and my errand to the British General Store (to get the black pudding M requested for his birthday dinner), and the wrong turns I took, I must have cycled about 5 miles today.  What a great way to get around.

Tomorrow is my little boy's 4th birthday. I can't wait to celebrate!