Biking is one of those activities that’s just hard not to like. It’s zero impact, takes very little effort and is quite inexpensive to get in to. We’re loving it and will surely consider ourselves “cyclists” in the years to come. That’s why I’m writing this post, to showcase our current bikes and the costs we encountered to get started.

My Trek 8000

I ride a Trek 8000 that was given to me by an awesome family friend back in 2016 and I’ve been riding it regularly ever since. I’ve commuted to work on it, taken it down nearly every rating of mountain bike trail there is and careened over the handlebars many times. I’m convinced that as long as I’m able to recover from whatever crash I get in to, this bike will too.

When Steve gave me the Trek 8000 it was ready to go sans pedals. At the suggestion of my brother-in-law, I purchased a set of Time ATAC clipless pedals from craigslist since that’s what he used so I would also be able to ride his arsenal of bikes. Lewis (My brother-in-law) gave me some shoes for the cleats to bolt in to. A couple years later I replaced the grips. All together I’ve got less than $100 in my bike.

Z’s REFLEX

Z has been riding a few different bikes to try and get a feel for what she likes. She started out riding a Schwinn cruiser that was given to us by another awesome friend and has since upgraded to a mountain bike. She’s convinced that mountain bikes are the best – we just need to get her a slightly smaller frame.

We’re scheduling a bike fitting for Z so we can setup her current bike as best as it can be setup for her and learn exactly what size bike would serve her best. Once we get all the other numbers sorted out, Z is really interested in acquiring a Trek 920.

We bought Z’s first mountain bike on Craigslist for $50 and put a $20 seat cover on it so we currently have $70 in her ride.

Maxine’s CoPilot & WeeHoo

CoPilot Model-A

Maxine has a few options when it comes to riding. Right when she turned one year old we purchased a Copilot Model-A on Craigslist for $100. It was brand new and definitely served the purpose. After a couple rides we fitted a car seat carrier in which was significantly more comfortable and potentially even safer.

WeeHoo Venture

As Maxine approached two years old we wanted a tow-able device that engaged her more. After researching a few options we decided that we wanted a WeeHoo Venture so we saved up and watched for a sale. After we saved up the funds to purchase one Z emailed Weehoo asking for a bundle sale on the Venture and sure enough a bundle sale popped up on their website. After purchasing the WeeHoo Venture, Maxine hasn’t ridden in the CoPilot. Unfortunately her legs are too short to actually pedal but she enjoys our morning rides none the less.The bundle cost us $500 which included the WeeHoo venture, kick stand, all weather shell and mounting gear for two bikes!

Ride what you have

So far, we are loving our foray in to riding as a family and I expect our collection of bikes to grow in both volume and quality. We’ve been riding about 40 miles a week with our short morning rides and already have our first bicycle touring adventure scheduled for October and are super excited for it! I think my last post was a couple years ago but hopefully my next post follows our awesome trip in October. ^_^