More cargo biking fun!

On Friday, we drove down to Stockton to have an awesome day with our besties. Totally worth driving! The boys were asleep within a few minutes of driving home and stayed asleep for the rest of the night. We didn't bike much that day but it was fun and full nonetheless. 

We made up for all the driving on Saturday when we first stopped at our neighborhood farmers' market then got ready to go camping in our friend's backyard across town. I chose the Mundo because I needed to carry more bulky stuff than the Bullitt can handle and because the roads are pretty crazy for part of the route and the Mundo is often more maneuverable and narrower in tight places.  

Our friends, Jen and her son, joined us on their Mundo. Jen had mapped out an awesome route through the neighborhoods and nearly skipped past all the busy arterials. It was so much nicer than the other times I'd ridden up. We had shade, quiet streets, and great conversations. Riding to go camping is fun but it's even more fun with friends. 

Camping was so much fun! The boys ran around like crazy--it was the best yaya time, ever! 

We rode home this morning, again with our Mundo buddies. It was nice and cool and quiet. The one section on Watt Ave. is horrible, as always but we were soon on the American River Parkway. There's some weird construction about to happen but I don't know what's going on. From what I can tell, there's a good chance that the Watt exit is going to be closed for a long chunk of time. That's going to be pretty annoying for many riders if there's not an easy alternative. If anyone has some info, I'd love to hear it. 

It was a 12 mile ride home. Little Brother had conked out within a mile but woke up midway to join in the big boys' conversations. When we got back, Big Brother actually asked to take a nap. They were asleep in minutes and stayed asleep for three hours. 

I had to get ready for our evening Kidical Mass ride and it was almost impossible for me to wake up from my own cat nap. Luckily, our friends were coming by to ride with us and use the Mundo. That was the push I needed to drag myself up and get a move on. 

Little Brother was the only one who was awake so he was the lucky one to join us. There was no way for me to wake up the big guy so we left him behind with papa. 

There were 20 riders at Kidical Mass! We started with a picnic dinner then a short ride along the parkway and into Old Town. From there, everyone broke into smaller groups to head to their respective homes. 

It was the best way to get reenergized for the coming week. It was an incredibly busy weekend but was so full of friends, biking, and fun that I couldn't think of a better way to spend my free time. 

The very best part of the whole weekend was coming home to my cheery big boy and watching him do this: 

I am so proud of this boy! 

I've been itching to take advantage of being kid-free and go bike camping but it's been really difficult. Since it's the middle of the week, Jose isn't able to join me and everyone seems to be insanely busy (myself included). It's a crazy time right now and I needed a bike trip more than anything to settle my brain. My energy level has been a bit low and the number of things on my to-do list has been really high. Instead of succumbing to my stress, I found a solution--KOA! 

The nearest campground I could find was the KOA in West Sac, 8 miles away. It's basically the same route as going to IKEA, just on the other side of the freeway. It's actually about the same cost as camping at Beal's Point--$30 for weeknights, $35 for weekends. I invited my mom and was happily surprised that she could join me! We decided to splurge on a one-room cabin for just a few dollars more. 

We left around 5:30pm, giving ourselves enough time to get things done for the day but not too late to get into camp before dark. I rode the new Bullitt so I could dump all our gear into the box and give it a camping test-run. My mom rode the Mobic because she still doesn't have a bike, yet, and that one is the only one that can adjust small enough to fit her. 

Since this was all pretty much on-the-fly, we didn't have a dinner plan. Luckily for us, we ran into a food truck in Old Town. Everything was coming together nicely! 

The ride was really straightforward. West Sac is easy to bike through even though it's pretty busy. I was happy that we were leaving slightly after the 5pm rush. We made it to the KOA just before 7pm with plenty of daylight to eat dinner on our porch swing. 

I couldn't have asked for a better solution for my April Bike Overnight! My mom and I both needed a fun bike ride and a quiet night. The KOA is surprisingly peaceful for being so close to the freeway (yes, it was pretty noisy). I left my phone off and refused to check my email/facebook/twitter for the night. Instead, I enjoyed an amazing book that a kind reader, David Macpherson, sent to me this week: A Pedouin Life: Stop and Smell the Aritichokes. 

What I think is most incredible about this book, besides the fact that this family rode 7,000 miles on a bike built for 5, is that we actually crossed paths during their journey! Three years ago, Marnie and Bekah and I, rode from Arcata to Elk Prairie for their first experience bike touring. On our last day, we were riding South down hwy 101 when a giant yellow blur sped up the Northern side. The captain yelled out "Where are you headed?" and before I could take in everything I was seeing, I barely got out and answer. Afterwards, I kept going over in my head and discussing with the ladies, how many people were on that bike, what just happened, where were THEY going? It was seared into my brain as one of the most amazing contraptions I had ever seen. Now, three years later, I finally have the answers. It is every bit as brilliant as I had imagined and even more so. 

Thank you, David, for bringing closure to this mystery and thank you, Harrison family for the inspiration! It all feels so kismet! This book is wonderful and awe-inspiring. I'm only on chapter 8 and I just want to keep reading forever. 

'Nama and I rode home this morning. A simple ride back through West Sac. We stopped for coffee at Weatherstones, running into Tara, who had just gotten a Boda Boda as a birthday present from her hubby. As we were enjoying our mochas, I saw another Boda Boda speed by. Such a wonderful day to start with an 8 mile ride, coffee, and cargo bikes swarming Midtown! 

Last weekend I had the fantastic opportunity to test out a local cargo bike builder's set-up: the Cycle Truck! John Lucas has been building bikes in West Sacramento for quite awhile now. His bikes are unmistakeable. Unlike typical long-john style bikes with a wooden box built onto the frame, his bikes are a solid one-piece design. The Cycle Trucks have linkage steering which means the front wheel is pushed forward, in front of the handlebars, and is steered by a connecting piece of metal. This was the most difficult style of bike for me to master and it takes some practice before riding starts to feel "normal." In fact, the first time I got on one of his bikes, I almost steered myself into a wall. However, with a little extra practice, I began riding like a pro. After this last week, getting back on a standard bike felt weird. My first ride back on the Linus almost made me stop to check if the fork had come loose. 

I rode over to John's place in West Sac using the Mobic then folded it up and shoved it into the Cycle Truck to ride home with both bikes. The awesome thing about John's bikes is that they are made to be used. He doesn't worry about scratches in the paint and instead sees them as signs of use. Nothing on the bike is "fancy" or super expensive (although you could build one up that way if you wanted). The metal frame around the deck is so solid that you could rest just about anything on top of it to carry around. 

The very first thing I did with the bike when I got home was load it up with firewood, beer, and camping gear to ride up to Folsom for a little bike overnight. I rode 30 miles that first day and didn't have any problems. The friction shifting was a fun change from the clicky index shifting that I've grown used to. The weight distribution was fantastic and instead of feeling like I was pulling a heavy load, it felt like I was lightly pushing it. It was a subtle difference from what I am used to on the Mundo but it was noticeable and it was comfortable. 

I really liked being able to just throw things in the box and not have to worry about balancing the load or tying it all down. 

In the kid-hauling capacity, while the Cycle Truck was certainly fun, I did feel that I needed more security for traffic riding. The open sides of the basket lead to arms and legs slipping out and a bit more wiggling around than I felt comfortable, especially with the little one. Big Brother actually had a blast and followed my instructions of keeping his body inside the box. Little Brother, on the other hand, didn't follow directions as well and we had a scary moment when he rebelled and stood up, pulling on the cables, having a fit while I was riding through a busy section of road. 

There would be some fairly simple fixes that could be made to the basket to improve the kid-control, such as having a liner around the open bars and some sort of seat with restraints for the little guys. 

Stability-wise, this bike is a tank. I never worried about tipping over or crashing. Even my dad gave it a test--he's never attempted to ride the Mundo, let alone carry a kid on the thing. There is something incredibly comforting to have the weight low to the ground. Steering almost feels like a dance, swooping slightly from side to side. 

John is continuously tinkering with different styles of frames. He has this 20" wheeled bike coming together at the moment and has another plan in mind for a Nihola-like trike. 

John built this green cargo trike while he was in China. It is one of only six that he made. It's hauling capacity is amazing--shown here carrying two Cycle Trucks and below with an entire family. 

This three-wheeled trailer came together after he saw a homeless man carrying a ton of scrap in a similar style trailer. The front wheel is steered by the pole connecting the trailer to the bike. It tracked perfectly behind me and could carry as much as I could tow. The front wheel takes most of the weight so it was a really smooth ride. 

One of John's recent developments to his own orange Cycle Truck is the addition of his pizza maker BBQ. The BBQ rests perfectly on the bike's frame and the propane cylinder rests on the deck inside. The way the cooker sits, the bucket is still completely free to hold the rest of the party gear--ice chest, beach chairs, basically anything you can throw in there.  

After the initial learning curve that comes with linkage steering, this ride is amazing. Going up hills was not a problem for me, even packed with cargo. In fact, it rode a lot better with weight in the bucket. When it was empty, it was more rattly than I am used to. I would say that the Mundo rode better for me as a regular, unloaded bike but they were pretty equal when it came to carrying cargo. Although I loved having the kids up in front of me where I was able to see and talk to them, they had too much freedom to roam for my comfort. I felt more secure with them on the Mundo. However, with the low center of gravity, I never worried about tipping over in the Cycle Truck. 

There are definitely a lot more pros to this bike than cons and one of the biggest pros is the fact that it's built here in Sacramento at an incredibly affordable price--about a third of what other "bakfiets" or long-john style bikes cost. If you are looking for something to carry pets, big kids/adults, large and unwieldy cargo, this is the bike for you. Every person I have ever seen on a Cycle Truck always has a giant smile plastered on their face. This bike is fun and useful--even as a picnic bench. 

We did it! After a couple months of planning, we gathered up our group of cargo campers yesterday and embarked on our first-ever group camping trip! It was a pretty ambitious attempt to schedule a camping trip with kids in the middle of March, but somehow, a group of 24 of us on 14 bikes ventured out to ride 30 miles up to the Negro Bar group campsite in Folsom. We were a motley crew, some local, one family came from Oregon, and another from the Bay Area. As luck would have it, these guys were all incredible! 

Jose and I fought over the Cycle Truck since it was our new toy (borrowed for the week), and a quieter load since it was all cargo, no kid. I kept the Mundo pretty light (relative since it was going to carry two kids anyway). I won the Cycle Truck for this trip!  You can imagine the number of thumbs-up I got from the box of beer in front. I had a bit of a panic attack the night before and imagined riding the Cycle Truck up hills and tipping backwards. I hadn't really even had much of a chance to ride the bike yet but I was still going to give it a shot. 

This was the perfect route, 99% along the American River Parkway, and the most beautiful weather. 

I loved seeing everyone's unique packing techniques. We were in charge of s'mores and firewood and left everyone else to pack their own gear and food. 

We had a few stops along the way and a nice long lunch break at Hagan park so the kids could run out their yayas.

I was amazed at the lack of fussing until our own Big Brother threw a huge fit when we tried to move him to our friend's trailer. Their daughter is a bit too big for their trailer so she wanted to stretch out and loves being on the Mundo deck. I wanted to give Big Brother a break from the Mundo so he could nap but he was not having it. The rest of the group continued on while we attempted to calm him down. Little Brother caused just as much of a scene so we finally relented and put them all on the Mundo. 

Now, he was getting all the attention and cruising at quick clip--12 mph. We eventually caught up with the back of the group and met up with my folks and Kao who were lounging at Karen's Bakery. 

I got a call from Abbie who had made it to the campsite with the rest of the group only to be turned away by some Boy Scouts who claimed they had reserved the entire area. They straightened out the debacle just as I pulled up our reservation on my phone and had to clear some scouts out of our site. Turns out the ranger had told them they could spread out if no one showed up. However, we were unstoppable! 

A couple of our wonderful friends showed up to hang out with us since they hadn't been able to ride with us (luckily they had the great excuse of being a doctor who had to deliver babies on Sunday). They brought their wonderful boys to play and picked up the 8 pizzas we ordered, sponsored by the amazing folks at Practical Cycle! As much as we wanted to pick the pizzas up by bike, their offer was too difficult to pass up (sorry, Tim...). Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

More play time, some s'mores time, a warm campfire, it was fantastic! 

The actual nighttime part got kind of mixed reviews. Camping with kids usually means waking up in the middle of the night multiple times. Multiple kids means more crying. I only heard other babies when I was already awake but we had one of the fussier kiddos (*Little Brother*). Our problems included an air mattress that didn't survive the boys jumping on it and too few sleeping bags--I had thought that we could share just two. It's time for us to invest a little in our camping gear. Our site was also really close to Folsom Blvd. and the traffic noise was pretty intense. We're pretty sure that there was a motorcycle race in the middle of the night. On the other hand, the coyotes were out as well and one was yipping close by. That was really awesome. 

We woke up to a clear, crisp morning. Jon got a fire going and everyone moved slowly. Breakfasts included leftover pizza, oatmeal, polenta, and fried Spam (although not necessarily all together).  

Kristi and her family packed up early to make it to their near-by church. Most of the rest of us headed out about 10 am, leaving just Abbie and Michael to enjoy packing up in peace and meandering home via Fair Oaks. 

The final group split once again about midway through and there was a bit of a mix-up with our lunch spot so we didn't end up catching the speed demons. Sami and her family had to rush back up to Oregon and the kids in that group were younger and less demanding. Our slower group stopped at Hagan Park again to play on the playground. Big Brother was very happy with his special spot in the Cycle Truck so fussing was at a bare minimum. 

The Cycle Truck was amazing! I can see this being the perfect supplement to our fleet. There are a few things that I would absolutely need to change for it to be tailored for our needs but even though it was our first "real" ride, it preformed perfectly. The gears shifted smoothly and it took the hills with ease. The seat was a bit of a pain in the butt, however, and there were more sounds and wobbles to get used to. Other than having to remind Big Brother to keep his feet inside (which I had to do just once), we both loved it. Jose said it was heavier than the Mundo but I didn't really notice. 

We had such a blast and I hope that every one else did, too! An enormous thank you to everyone who came along and made this trip so amazing. You guys all made it seem so easy to pack everything onto a bike and ride 30 miles to sleep on the hard ground and then do it all over the next day. I am so impressed! It was many people's first bike camping trip, or first with children, and the longest trip Kristi had ever ridden! You were all so organized and prepared! 

It was fun to leave from our doorstep and be able to meet up with friends all along the way (Thank you Jen and Lucas, Rebecca, Pablo and sweet boys, Jennifer and Jim!). Especially with this being our first try, I think we did pretty well. I could not have asked for a better group, better weather, or a better route. There are things that I would try differently, almost all related to gear and food, but most importantly, I just can't wait to do it again!

Nicole's Bread Basket liner (take 2) arrived a few days ago and it's even more beautiful and functional than I could have imagined! The bright orangey oranges and gingham sure brighten my mood every time I see it! It is so wonderful to be able to throw anything into the basket, even small things like my phone or keys. There are two handy pockets for organizing little items and a cup holder. The Mundo has become an even better cargo carrier. Thanks, Nicole! You're amazing! 

We got behind on scheduling a Kidical Mass ride for February but tried to throw together a last-minute ride from one park to another. It turned out to be too last-minute and no one except our friend Jen showed up. It was a terribly windy day so we ended up just staying at the first park and having a great time. We both ran into a bunch of friends while we were there. It was more playtime than ride but I think everyone was pretty happy with that. 

Jen also loaned us her juicer to try out. I watched "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead," a very compelling documentary about juice cleanses. Although it's not necessarily something I would do completely, adding more veggies into our diet sounds like a great plan. This is day 3 of substituting a few of our processed meals for slimy juice (although the boys are eating their normal food). I've learned that you can't just throw anything into a juicer and expect it to taste good, in fact, my first few attempts were pretty gnarly. It also takes a lot of prep time and clean up. I've gotten better though. We're still eating food, too, but trying to make sure it's simple and healthy. So far, it's been pretty good. Today was rough because I didn't get a chance to make as much juice as I wanted so by the end of the day, I was starving. Queue the rapid binge. This isn't a diet so I'm not worried. I just want to try to clean up our meals and focus on a more plant-based life. Considering I've probably never eaten this many varied veggies and so few sugars and processed grains, I feel we're doing pretty darn well. 

Finally, don't forget that we have some awesome events coming up! March 3rd is Practical Cycle's third birthday! We're going to have cake and sparkling cider to celebrate at 3pm (of course). Elly Blue and crew are coming to Practical Cycle for Bikes and Dinner on March 13th from 7pm-10pm. A yummy vegan dinner buffet, Aftermass showing, and Elly's radness--all for just $20! Our family camping trip is March 23rd-24th--riding about 30 miles to the group site at Negro Bar for a fun biking overnight ($25 per family). Please contact me if you are interested in any of these fun bikey activities.