Tandem Bikes

[Nikky]

My husband and I went on a spin on a Burley Tandem Mountain Bike and had a great time but found the handlebars uncomfortable especially for the stoker. There's a Shimano Tandem bike for sale (new) on ebay with upright handlebars and sprung seats - looks comfortable but.... don't know anything about that brand - Northwoods. Does anyone have any information. We have solo bikes but would like to have a tandem for tooling around for fun. Thanks

 

[daveornee]

Originally posted by Nikky
My husband and I went on a spin on a Burley Tandem Mountain Bike and had a great time but found the handlebars uncomfortable especially for the stoker. There's a Shimano Tandem bike for sale (new) on ebay with upright handlebars and sprung seats - looks comfortable but.... don't know anything about that brand - Northwoods. Does anyone have any information. We have solo bikes but would like to have a tandem for tooling around for fun. Thanks

Most tandems have adjustable stoker stems. Some have special bar configurations to allow for clearance of the anatomical "rear end" of the captain. There are many different levels of "tooling around for fun" and levels of tandems.
I suggest finding a store in your area that carries Santana and getting a copy of their "catalog" if for nothing else than to see some of the specific issues that make a tandem fun. Also, there is a mailing list called tandem@hobbes that you should check out.
Ride some tandems at different levels to determine what will make it fun for you. Visit:
http://www.tandemmag.com/classified/
to see what is for sale in your area, in your size, and "fun"range.

 

[Nikky]

Thanks very much David for the reply - I'll take your advise and check things out closely first also checking out the sites you mention.