Kath Cochrane on getting out and about with young children

The patter of tiny feet needn’t put paid to your cycling habits. I have always loved cycling and after having children wanted it to remain a central part of how we get around.

Our first child was relatively easy. From the age of about 8 months, he happily rode behind us on a Co-Pilot toddler bike seat attached to our rear panier racks. We went to local villages and when I went back to work part-time, to the local nursery (3 miles). With no.2 I took possession of a third-hand Burley bike trailer, which we used for a while.

When no.3 came along the older two were attending our local pre-school (1.5 miles on rural roads) and the older one would be starting school in the village the following year.

Despite zooming around on their balance bikes (Likeabikes) none of them were pedalling safely enough on the roads without a walking/running adult alongside.

I spent a lot of time researching the options, and was very tempted by a Bakfiets bike, a Dutch bike with what looks like a wheelbarrow at the front for cargo or kids, but decided the hills around us were too steep and I needed some useful gearing.

I ended up getting a Circe Cycles Helios Tandem Duo (www.circecycles.com).

With an added seat on the front (not recommended by the manufacturers) I could get all three children on the bike.

It was a heavy ride but really stable. With everyone on board I regained that sense of freedom that being on a bike brings (and I hope they got a bit of it as well), they certainly loved signalling. It was also a great way to get exercise in those years of nappies, naps and and counting down the long afternoon hours until bedtime!

We have had the tandem for 4 years now and use it daily. Now the older two children ride their own bikes to school, and it is just No.3 and me on the tandem with two panniers behind loaded with book bags, lunches and PE kits.

I now regularly have to sling a guitar on my back as well. The older children aged 7 and 9 both have Islabikes which they love (they are expensive, but keep their resale value). High winds, fog and snow drive us into the car but otherwise I try to make cycling the normal way to get around.

We often go for rides around the country lanes at weekends always stopping for treats and snacks to keep their spirits up. We have done two trips along parts of the National Cycle Route 4 from Swindon to Bristol, stopping in Devizes and Bath overnight. Although we are used to cycling with the children on the roads, there is always an intense joy when we get to a traffic-free path. The parents breathe a collective sigh of relief as the children zoom off ahead.

Our forays onto traffic-free paths leave me slightly nostalgic for 30 years ago when there was far less traffic. We were free range on our bikes from our primary school days. When assessing the provision of cycling infrastructure the key question is always ‘Is it appropriate for a 9 year old child?’.

Unfortunately, for the moment, the answer is usually ‘no’.