Rave and Review

Tike Tech CX3 Stroller Review and Giveaway!

When we first found out we were going to be parents, hubby and I absolutely agreed that a stroller was where we would spend most of our baby budget.  There were a couple of good reasons behind the decision, but our first thought was that the stroller really was for us as a family, and getting one that was of high quality meant that we would actually want to use it. 

The ultimate goal was to find one that was easy to use, comfortable for extended distances, and was able to grow with us – all without completely obliterating our buggy budget.  We finally settled on a travel system that worked with our car seat, but looking back now, I really wish Tike Tech had released their new 2009 line two years early! 

We’ve all seen them; strollers that cost more than my first car (seriously), and come with fancy schmancy features like speakers and rims that would make my current car green with envy.  But, $1,000 + for a stroller?  Not on my life. 

What if I told you that you could get a seriously awesome Tike Tech jogging stroller for between $200 and $350 that came loaded with features and handled better than the so-called premium stroller brands?  It’s absolutely true - the Tike Tech line offers a full line of jogging, city and performance strollers with truly reasonable price tags. 

A few months ago I first noticed that something was a little off with our stroller.  Every time I would run with baby or pick up speed to cross the street, or even just to quickstep it out of the rain, the left front wheel began to rattle and shake, causing the whole buggy to vibrate violently until I slowed to a walk.  I didn’t think much of it the first few times it happened, but then when it happened numerous times a day during Stroller Strides, it began to get really hard to control unless I was merely leisurely walking.  It was hubby who first made the connection between the stroller shudder and the swivel wheels, and he suggested we search for a fixed wheel jogger for the daily Stroller Strides beating.

I found the Tike Tech line and was so excited to see that they offered so many options for an active stroller, and had numerous features to choose between.  Since I’m not a runner by nature, I really didn’t need a full-on jogging stroller for daily use and realized I was looking more for an all terrain buggy that could easily convert between swivel and fixed wheel settings.  When I found out Tike Tech had an all-terrain City stroller, I was dying to try it.

As the name suggests, the CityX3 is a three wheeled stroller that is perfect for around town and more.  With wheels that can handle virtually any terrain paired with Tike Tech’s exclusive Frame Dampening IFD Shox, you get one of the smoothest and most fluid handling strollers that I have ever used.  The bigger tires and the front wheel that swivels allow you to make 360 degree turns with almost no effort at all. 

In fact, we have found that you can actually make those 360 degree turns one handed, while holding a steaming Pumpkin Spice Latte in the other.  One handed operation has become a feature that is absolutely crucial to me the older my daughter gets.  Between the unpredictability of a toddler and every parent’s need to multi-task while strolling, being able to have one hand free really does make all the difference in the world. 

Don’t be fooled by the Tike Tech City X3 name, this little stroller can handle both big cities and the big beautiful ‘burbs.  The Tike Tech CityX3 is one part jogging stroller, one part all-terrain sport stroller and then a little of the traditional travel system thrown in to maximize the stroller’s usability.  Since it has a shorter frame and a smaller footprint, the CX3 is perfect for crowded spaces that can’t handle a full jogger, but big enough to grow with your child and give you maximum freedom to roam.  And, you can roam just about anywhere you can imagine, since the Tike Tech CX3 is ultra portable and, with the easy push button release wheels, folds compactly for travel.   

Most expectant parents are steered from baby joggers while stroller shopping, with clerks recommending that babies be 6 months + before rolling the sportier stroller varieties.  All sound advice, if in fact the jogging stroller you’re considering doesn’t adapt for use with newborns.  The Tike Tech company has absolutely changed my mind that jogging strollers are just for toddler and up by offering an additional car seat adaptor that allows you to click your child’s car seat onto the stroller and go.  They even stock an optional bassinet attachment that converts your sport stroller into a pram beautifully, replacing the need to own more than one stroller.  In the picture above we are taking full advantage of the awesome 60lb weight limit and letting a small reviewer rest his legs while we talk at a local art fair. 

Features I’m Raving About: Luxury for baby.  With a padded seat and back support, one handed recline adjustment and a silky smooth ride, the Tike Tech is really the way to roll in ultimate comfort.  It comes standard with special features that any baby or parent can appreciate, like a padded 5 point harness, mesh storage pockets on the seat sides for baby’s snacks and toys and the removable canopy for rain and sun. 

Speaking of raving, the Tike Tech canopy extends far lower than any other sporty stroller I have seen, which is perfect for Seattle’s unpredictable weather.  The canopy is also multi-positional and offers a “moon roof” with cover for easy viewing of your little one.  This is one of my favorite features since I am constantly trying to “wait out” the rain and refuse to go to the trouble of attaching a rain cover unless I’m in a full fledged downpour.  The Tike Tech’s extra large canopy is perfect for simply saving me the hassle all together, since the large coverage area means I have never needed a full rain cover for any Seattle storm.

Since hubby and I are both tall, we really appreciate the fact that the Tike Tech handle is fully adjustable in both directions, allowing for the greatest range of handlebar heights I have ever seen.  Whether you are in the extra tall range, have a short stature, or find yourself in the middle of the old height bell curve, the Tike Tech is a surprisingly good fit all around.  For couples who have a huge height difference, you will be happy to note that the handlebar adjustment is not only exceptional in range, it is also incredibly quick to adjust on the go.

But, my favorite feature by far would have to be the height of the Tike Tech stroller seat.  The extra tall stroller frame brings baby right up into the action and makes it easier to interact with her on the go.  As a super duper added bonus, we love that we can simply wheel our daughter up to dining tables while we are out and still leave her strapped into the Tike Tech City X3 to eat with us at the table, with no need for an additional booster or high chair.  Probably not a feature that was fully intended, but sometimes it’s the unexpected that you appreciate the most!

If you are a jogger, speed walker, or merely an all terrain walker, you should seriously consider the Tike Tech CX3 as a great single stroller option.  When you add up the savings of not having to purchase two (or more) strollers, the Tike Tech is well worth the already reasonable price.  If you still need convincing, just consider it a gift to yourself that will keep you healthy, active and adventure ready… a gift baby is sure to appreciate too. 

Specifications from the Tike Tech website:
Stand Up: 35"L x 24"W x 37-45"H
(front to back wheel)
Folded (w/o wheels): 32.5"L x 18.5"W x 16.5"H
Folded (w/ wheels): 32.5"L x 24"W x 18.5"H
Door Pass Through: 24"
Frame: Aluminum
Weight (w/o wheels): 20 LBS
Weight (w/ wheels): 26 LBS
Weight Capacity: 60 LBS
Width: 24"
Handle height (ground to handle): 37-45"
Wheels: 12" air / wide track slick tread
Seat back height: 21.5"
Head room (inside canopy): 25"

http://www.tiketech.com/

And now for the Giveaway...

One extremely lucky Rave and Review readers will win a Tike Tech CX3 of their very own ($330 ARV) from Tike Tech's new stroller stock!  To enter to win the Giveaway, just visit Tike Tech Strollers and comment below with your favorite Tike Tech Stroller model (other than the City X3 reviewed here), favorite Tike Tech feature, or something you learned about the company that you're excited to share.  Sorry, no color choice available, but you're in luck because all the color choices are beautiful!

And, as always, there are extra entries available!

1) Subscribe to Rave and Review - link at top right sidebar (2 extra entries, must be verified to count)

2) Tweet about this Giveaway using @raveandreview and @tiketech after following us both! (1 entry for daily tweet, just post link here)

3) Blog about this Giveaway or the 2009 Holiday Gift Guide with links to this post and www.raveandreview.com (1 extra entry)

4) Place my logo or link in your sidebar on your blog or website (2 extra entries, must have an active link to www.raveandreview.com)

5) Sport the 2009 Holiday Gift Guide logo on your blog or website - HTML code in right sidebar (2 extra entries, must have an active link to www.raveandreview.com)

6) Share this post on Facebook (1 extra entry)

7) Email love. Share this Giveaway with friends and family via email and cc Leanne@raveandreview.com for two bonus entries (I will never, ever contact your email recipients)

8) Comment love. Enter any of my other Giveaways or comment on any non-giveaway post.

9) Vote for Rave and Review on Top Baby Blogs: just click this link to vote daily! (1 entry for daily)

10) Extra credit: Watch above imbedded YouTube video and comment with a feature profiled in the review that you're excited about (1 super duper bonus entry) 

On December 13th at 11:59pm PST a winner will be drawn, announced here and notified via email

 A big thank you to Tike Tech Strollers for making our family adventure ready with their new Tike Tech City X3 Stroller.  No type of monetary compensation was received in exchange for this Rave Review.

 

Bones Bicycle Rack by Saris Cycling Group

When my wife and I first got our bicycles, we had a lot of our friends laughing at us.  Not for the fact that we were riding, but because our bikes were so different.  She on her Electra Townie, and me on my full suspension mountain bike, we definitely turned a few heads.  After a few months of this ridicule and once the realization hit me that the most dirt my mountain bike had seen was a long driveway, I ended up trading it in for a road bike. 

Unfortunately, this didn’t solve all of our mismatched bike problems.  Much worse than a few snickers was the fact that taking our bikes anywhere by car was next to impossible with the two very different sized frames.  At least it was until we found the Bones 3 by Saris that helped expand our biking area dramatically.

Anyone who has gone bike shopping recently will agree that there is a staggering amount of bikes available, and they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Even a casual observer would note that not every bike is going to fit nicely onto a standard fixed frame car mounted rack, especially when there is more than one bike to tow.

Sure, you could spend hundreds of dollars getting a roof rack and all the attachments, but that adds up quickly and doesn’t seem worth it when you just need to transport two bikes for a few weekends here and there. Besides the fact that it’s difficult to get heavier bikes on roof racks (*ahem, Electra*), it also permanently changes your car‘s appearance, which doesn‘t appeal to everyone. For the spur-of-the-moment biker who prefers being able to go through a drive through with low height clearance, or for someone who needs to pull into a garage, the trunk mounted rack is absolutely the way to go.

The problem we found with most trunk racks is that if you have two very different kinds of bikes to mount, there is a very good possibility one of them isn’t going to fit right. The first rack we tried had my bike nice and straight across the back while the Townie, with it’s step through frame, was tilted up at a crazy and rather unsafe angle. At that moment, my wife refused to let her beloved bike ride tandem with mine and we were relegated to biking directly from home if we were going to ride at all.

We’re lucky to live in an area that is highly populated with bike trails and lanes and can easily get to most of them within an hour of biking without a problem. But, with small children in tow we were all of a sudden a lot less mobile now that we needed to avoid heavily congested roads.  For long jaunts, we ran the risk of the kiddos being finished biking before we even reached the trailhead.

For us, finding an easy to use rear trunk was becoming more of a necessity and we began our search to find the perfect solution. We needed a strong and sturdy frame rack that could hold the weight of the Townie as well as my road bike and our daughter’s little frame bikes, and we needed that rack to adjust in numerous ways to accommodate all three at once.  We needed quick installation and removal to keep us as spontaneous as possible, with no damage to either set of wheels.  The Saris Cycling Group’s Bones 3 Rack was the only rack we found with all of these features and more, and it came with the added bonus of delivering this high functionality with style to spare.

The heart of the Bones 3 Bicycle Rack by Saris is an aluminum center tube with grooves all around it.  Mounted to the tube are arch shaped legs which work with these grooves to fit practically any vehicle, from SUVs to sedans and station wagons, and even on cars with a spoiler. The multitude of grooves allow you to move each leg independently to almost any angle to get the fit perfect for your vehicle.  In addition each mounting leg has a rubber foot to insure you don’t scratch your car in the process.

Once you get the rack mounted and it’s time to load up your bikes you’ll see another area where the Bones 3 really shines.  Each bike has its own specific place to sit with rubber lined channels with their own set of ratchet straps. Once again, each arm can be mounted at different angles to make sure everything fits perfectly. If your bike is still hard to mount – like a step through frame -  there are even straps on the sides of the arms that allow you to mount to your seat post so your bike will stay level and secure, no matter what the shape.

   

Bones 3 Bicycle Rack features and pictures, courtesy of the Saris Cycling Group website:

Injection-molded arms and legs are the strongest on the market.
Articulated rubber feet to protect the finish on your vehicle.
Built with 100% recyclable, non-rusting materials.
Ratcheting anti-sway straps secure and stabilize bikes.
Arc-based design fits over most spoilers,and separates bikes on different levels.
No overhead lifting, twisting, balancing or hefting required, so you can save your energy for the ride.

Saris Community and Advocacy:

You gotta love a company that gives back, and Saris Cycling Group gives back in a big way.  This is only a partial list of the campaigns and community involvement programs Saris belongs to:

• Prevent Child Abuse Wisconsin
• Boys & Girls Club of Dane County
• Wisconsin Off Road Series
• Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival
• Camba Festival of the Trails
• 12 Hours of Blue Mound
• Insane Terrain Challenge
• L'Alpe Bl'Huez Time Trial

Advocacy Efforts

• Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin
• Dream Bikes
• Alliance for Biking and Walking
• Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals
• Bikes Belong

How could you not love a company like Saris?  Innovative designs, tried and true functionality and a commitment to leaving the world a better place simply speaks for itself.  Click any of the above links to get involved with a cause that moves you!

Price: $130 for 2 bikes, $160 for the 3 bike rack and they come in a variety of colors

http://www.saris.com/

 
  

MSR Mutha Hubba HP Tent

Every year around this time I can’t help but wonder where summer went.  It always seems like I had this great list of activities I was going to do; I had all these plans to get outside more and make the best of the good weather that never came to be. Now as fall is fully upon us and the days are increasingly blustery and chilly, I can’t help but feel the regret of opportunity lost. Thankfully, the folks over at our local favorite outdoor company, MSR, have felt this pain, too, and come up with a great solution to the dreaded end of the summer.  With the addition of their new HP series to their line of Hubba tents, MSR promises to keep you toasty while camping all throughout the shoulder season.

The original line of Hubba tents, which are available in one person (Hubba), two person (Hubba Hubba), and three person (Mutha Hubba), were some of the first tents to use a hubbed pole design. This is a design feature where the poles attach to each other in a hub in order to maximize space inside the tent while still providing a strong and light structure. These tents are well known for being extremely tough and durable, especially in the harshest of conditions. Now, with the addition of the HP versions, MSR has managed to make the Hubba series of tents even tougher.

The most notable difference in the Hubba HP versions is that nearly every spot made of mesh on the normal tent body has been replaced with a super soft and almost silky fabric. This fabric is so fine and lightweight that it actually weighs less than the mesh it is replacing, while adding numerous other benefits. The main advantage this change of fabric provides is that the tent body is much more of a solid wall than a standard mesh tent, so you end up with a lot more protection from the elements as well as a lot better heat retention.  The result is a warmer and more insulated tent that can withstand just about all that the Northwest’s mild climate can throw at you and probably a good portion of why Backpacker Magazine named the Hubba series its recommended tent for the East Coast campers.

How much warmer can a lighter fabric be you ask? While we may lack hard facts and figures, we have anecdotes to spare. Recently, on a Youth Group weekend hike up to some nearby alpine lakes, the group was faced with weather that was much colder than anyone had anticipated.  While some were grumbling about the cold temperatures, especially once the temperatures dropped overnight, I was secretly excited to perform the ultimate test of the Mutha Hubba HP.

The first morning of the campout, everyone was sharing stories of the freezing cold night, but not a word was heard from the Mutha Hubba gang.  In fact, all occupants of the Mutha Hubba HP tent had kept warm all through the night, apparently oblivious to the teeth chattering in the neighboring tents. 

If you’re like most people I know, you only own one tent, and it fits your outdoorsman style.  Some campers I know are fair-weather friends, lacing up their hiking boots only after the temperatures rise above 75 degrees, but others I know are outdoor sleepers by nature and look for any excuse to pop a tent on their back and climb a mountain or two.  If you’re a camper of the first kind, you might be fine with an exclusively mesh tent, like the regular line of Hubba tents, but if you’re more like the latter, the Mutha Hubba HP tent is the answer to extending your summer and thus your camping season. 

Summer campers should be warned though, on our first outing with the Mutha Hubba HP this summer we made the mistake of putting the rain fly on our tent too early in the day, and then when we went to lie down for a midday nap, our tent was at least 10-20 degrees warmer than everyone else’s. So much so that we had everyone jumping from tent to tent to compare. While it was warm in all the tents, the Mutha Hubba HP was definitely the warmest. The next day we were able to leave the rain fly off during the day to allow more ventilation to make it more manageable, but it was still warmer than our campmate’s tents.  Another option is to pitch your Hubba HP tent with just the rain fly and optional footprint for the ultimate in lightweight minimalist protection, which is another way to expand the usefulness of your tent.  Unfortunately my wife refuses to go this route as it lacks the full fledged bug protection she insists upon. 

Some other features we appreciate are the included gear lofts and multiple side pockets in the Mutha Hubba HP which allows you to store all your little odds and ends out of the way.  Anyone that has ever camped with a baby (or my wife) knows this goes a long way in making your tent feel bigger.  Paired with the hubbed poles that allow for maximum headroom by creating almost vertical walls and the bright fabrics that give the impression of space, the Hubba line feels exceptionally roomy. 

Both the Hubba Hubbaand Mutha Hubba have two doors with vestibules so your dirty boots and backpacks can stay away from your sleeping bag while still being protected from the elements. And then, in what is possibly the most ingenious feature we’ve seen on a tent that really seems pretty basic is that the set up instructions for the tent are clearly sewn on the lid flap of the stuff sack for the tent.  Brilliant, really.

Specifications of the Mutha Hubba HP from the MSR website:

Capacity	3
Minimum Weight	6 lbs 4 oz / 2850 g
Packaged Weight	6 lbs 13 oz / 3090 g
Fly with Footprint Weight	4 lbs 13 oz / 2200 g
Floor Area	40 sq. ft / 3.7 sq. m
Vestibule Area	14 (7 + 7) sq. ft / 1.35 (.675 + .675) sq. m
Tent Volume	105 cu. ft / 2945 liters
Vestibule Volume	22 (11 + 11) cu. ft / 623 (311.5 + 311.5) liters
Interior Peak Height	46 in / 117 cm
Packed Size	19 x 8 in / 47 x 20 cm
Number of Doors	2
Freestanding	Yes
Number of Poles	3 DAC
Number of Stakes	12
Fly Fabric	20D x 330T ripstop nylon 66 1000mm polyurethane & silicone coated
Canopy Fabric	20D x 330T ripstop nylon 66 & DWR
Mesh Type	20D polyester mesh
Floor Fabric	40D x 238T ripstop nylon 6 10000mm polyurethane & DWR coated
Country of Origin	Made In Taiwan

http://cascadedesigns.com/MSR

Price: $550 for the Mutha Hubba HP reviewed here, $400 for the Mutha Hubba regular series.

Overall: With a range of tent sizes as well as options for any climate, MSR Hubba series tents have got you covered.

ERGObaby Carrier

“Ergo we go”

I had seen the ERGObaby carriers around town for a few months and was always curious about them but I hadn’t realized just how excited I was to try the ERGObaby until I got my own.  Taking it out of the package, I was oddly giddy as I pictured baby and me exploring the wide Northwest with nothing to stop us.  Not only was I correct in how much I was going to adore it, we ended up globetrotting with the Ergo Carrier, sporting it on a fast-paced multi-continent trip that would have been impossible to navigate with a stroller or lesser quality baby carrier. 

The Ergo Baby Carrier is truly user-friendly and easy to figure out with no instructions at all.* The design is reminiscent of a backpack, but for babies instead of baggage and with a weight bearing padded waist band to lighten the load.  The straps are also nicely padded and comfortable, making you wonder if ERGObaby would ever be interested in designing a better backpack for us all. 

After tearing open the package, I immediately put it on.  I tried the front carry method initially, securing the waist strap first and then holding baby in it while I put the arm straps on.  After baby was secure, I reached back between my shoulder blades and secured the connecting strap in the back.  Immediately, I was impressed with the fabric of the Ergo Carrier.  It feels like the perfect mix of durability and comfort with a heavy duty design that doesn’t have a heavy duty weight to go along with it. 

Baby snuggled right into me and started sucking on the Ergo straps (you can actually buy optional strap covers for this very reason) while I cleaned the house.  Baby felt 100% secure and I didn’t feel like I needed to keep one hand under her at all times like I do with so many other carriers.  Her weight felt evenly distributed and the carrier didn’t dig into my shoulders, strain my back or hurt my hips in any way.  By the time the housework was done, I was a die-hard Ergo fan.  I still hate laundry, but at least with the ERGObaby I got baby snuggles out of the deal.

The ERGObaby carrier is made from 100% cotton canvas on the outside, padded with 100% cotton batting on the inside and lined with a 100% cotton poplin fabric, making it 100% comfortable.  ERGO also now offers their exact same carriers made with organic fabric for the eco conscious or for those who love the earthy look. 

All their carriers have a very unisex appeal, which made this the first front carrier that hubby would wear as well.  When you’re talking days on end of walking or traveling with a baby, bringing something that you can take turns carrying is the only thing that makes sense.  Not only does hubby happily babywear now that we have the ERGO, he actually looks good doing so.  If it can turn hubby into a happy babywearing dad, it just might do the same for your guy.

When packing for our Europe/Africa trip, we knew that a stroller would most definitely slow us down, and decided that babywearing was by far the better option.  As we discussed baby carriers it was absolutely a given that the Ergo would be joining us on the trip.  Even though when packed the ERGO does take up more room than a simple sling or even a mei tai carrier, you will appreciate every inch of padding and durability the Ergo Baby Carrier provides once you are there.  Image to right is one of us enjoying Grenada together, just me, baby, the ERGO and a Spanish mime.  

Features I love:

* Three carriers in one; with optional infant insert you can carry babies from newborn until 40 pounds.  I plan on carrying baby in hers until she just becomes too heavy for hubby and I, as the fabric and durability is tested to 90 pounds.*  Baby is 16 months now still loves the ERGO, both as a front carrier or back carrier.

* The standard zip pockets on the ERGObaby carrier are just big enough to hold the necessities: a wallet, point and shoot camera and maybe some chapstick, so you can forgo the purse for short jaunts out. 

* I love that you can add optional attachments that convert the ERGO to more of a backpack or day pack, meaning that you can carry baby and your gear at the same time.  Perfect for hiking or long days out where you need your hands free, the ERGO allows you to carry everything safely and securely and is far superior to carrying an additional bag. 

* The ERGO is soft and comfortable with features such as a high density neoprene foam in waist belt that adjusts from waist size 25” to 43”.

* High quality buckles are easy to do one handed, but not placed so that baby can undo them as in other baby carriers.

* Ergonomic design fits anyone from 5’ to 6’5” with their adjustable shoulder and chest straps.

* Extremely durable with reinforcement stitching used at all fabric seams and interior rip-stop reinforcements at critical intersections.

* ERGO Carriers are machine washable, as every good baby product should be.

Features I would love to see on the ERGO:

* I would love a full-coverage hood option as well as the small hood attached to the carrier for providing full sun coverage or discrete nursing coverage.

* Speaking of the hood, it would be great if it did remove completely instead of stuffing into the front pocket of the carrier as it has the potential to look messy or even come unstuffed as you move.

* The ERGO is not my top choice hip carrier, as I found that the idea of sliding the carrier to the side to convert it seemed a bit awkward and it felt like there were just too many straps in the way.  I know others swear by their ERGOs as hip carriers, but I just never got the hang of it and neither did baby.  But, having both front and back options was sufficient for both hubby and I.

http://www.ergobabycarriers.com/

Prices range from $105 for the standard carrier to $135 for the organic or fashion carriers. 

Looks: Ranging from earthy to sporty, but equally adorable when you have a sweet baby placed inside.

Overall:  The Ergo is perfect for including baby in all that you do in the most natural and comfortable way.  It does so much more than carry your baby, it allows you to carry your gear, too! 

*I am a professional baby carrier tester with a hubby to oversee my shenanigans and am in no way suggesting that you do not read the instructions on a baby carrier before your first use or that you ignore posted weight limits suggested by a baby carrier. 

A continental sized thank you to the designers at ERGObaby for offering their carrier for review and changing the way we travel with baby forever.  No compensation was received for this review.

Earthmate PN-40 GPS by DeLorme - Geocaching, anyone?

Most people hear GPS and the first thing they think of is dash-mounted vehicle units to help guide you in the car.  I’m here to talk with you about GPS when your method of travel is by bike, foot and car.  The DeLorme Earthmate series handheld GPS are perfect for hiking, biking, boating and more, but what I’m really raving about is the world of possibilities a rugged and handheld GPS unit opens up for a family on the go.

By far the coolest thing about the PN-40 was that it introduced us to geocaching, and now has become our newest obsession.  For those of you who are not familiar with geocaching, it is my pleasure to acquaint you with the coolest pastime ever.  Geocachers all over the world hide little treasures and notes in just about any place there’s human access and then leave the GPS coordinates of their cache on sites like http://www.geocaching.com.  Unlike most hobbies that require large amounts of your disposable income, geocaching is free and the only equipment necessary is a handheld GPS unit like the DeLorme PN-40.

As well as being fairly inexpensive once you make the initial GPS investment, geocaching is quite addictive and has led us to do some crazy things.  Like hunting for treasure in the middle of the night with only flashlights to guide us, hence our geocaching alias, the Night Cachers.  My favorite caches are those with clues or hints that make you feel like a super sleuth when you finally find your treasure and makes the reward that much sweeter.  It’s a great activity for kids of all ages and adding to the fun of finding buried treasure is that a lot of caches are designed for you to swap items or add to the original cache, so your toy or knickknack is added to the booty for the next cachers to find.  It’s a great way to insist your little ones purge their collection of tiny toys that were so cool – but then only played with for a few minutes.   

What makes the PN-40 so great for geocaching are the maps that DeLorme makes available to you.  For $29 a year you have unlimited access to their database of maps in formats other GPS makers can’t even dream of, including NOAA marine charts, satellite imagery, high resolution aerial photos in black and white or color, and scanned USGS topo maps in 1:24,000 scale.  And best of all, you can layer the different types over one another just by clicking a box in the menu screen.  So if you are having trouble finding a particularly well hidden cache, you can just open up the aerial imagery you previously downloaded to your PN-40 and see a birds eye view of where you are, which is much easier than deciphering topo lines or the streets and blank spaces of typical GPS units. 

This feature can also help you learn how to read traditional maps better by combining a satellite image with a topographic map you can really see how the lines follow the contours of the land and get a much more full view of every hill and valley, and then in the future have a much clearer image of how maps translate to reality.  This makes it the perfect way to get kids interested and to help them learn to navigate on their own.  The new PN-40 also features a barometric altimeter and a built in compass that does not require you to hold the unit completely flat for it to work correctly.  These, in conjunction with the maps, make it virtually impossible to get lost.  Even when you’re trying to.

If you feel you don’t need all the extra maps, fear not, the PN-40 comes with DeLorme’s own Topo USA map software including streets, trails, and points of interest for all 50 states.  The software is a little technical but with some practice will let you do amazing things and allow you to fully utilize your GPS.  Let’s say you want to go hiking; you can plan your trip all the way down to which roads you want to take and what kind of elevation changes you will be going through.  Then when you return you can see where you went and even show it off by tagging your pictures to specific coordinates to share with others online. 

The actual PN-40 is extremely durable, which has been tested more than once in our many travels with it and children.  In fact, baby pretty much thinks the Earthmate GPS is just about the coolest toy she’s ever seen and finds it very convenient that it hangs right where she rides in the front pack.  In the months we have been traveling with the PN-40, the unit shows little sign of wear and tear and still performs as good as new.

The unit is similar in size to a remote control and has large, rubberized buttons that are easy to navigate and press while gloved or while cycling.  The battery compartment is water tight and secure, designed for extreme conditions and tough travels, which means that it is kid safe – or mama safe, as the case may be.  The battery life was slightly disappointing in the rare instance when the satellites were having a hard time getting their fix and the PN-40 was searching for our location for long periods of time, but the battery life seemed fine under normal circumstances.

The screen itself is a little smaller than some other GPS units out there, but produces a very clear and sharp image, which combined with the rich map content more than makes up for it. In direct sunlight, or in the middle of the night it was always easily readable.  In addition, the super-fast processor means that as you move around, the PN-40 has no problem keeping the map up with you even while traveling by bike or car.

Speaking of bike rides, after our first bike ride with the PN-40, it’s hard to imagine going without it.  With the use of its proprietary mount it easily attaches to your handle bars in minutes, and from then on snaps in and out in seconds.  The tracking features really come in handy as you can at a glance see your current, average and max speed, your total trip time as well as time moving and stopped and total distance traveled.  Then you can switch to the map screen and see exactly where you’ve gone or where you need to go.  These features while great for hiking, proved awesome for biking as it made us really push ourselves, and also kept the kids interested in the ride much longer as they questioned our latest stats.  And they especially liked being able to search for the nearest frozen yogurt shop in the middle of the ride. 

Ways to make it even more Ravetastic: 1) My husband’s sick of me saying this, but the lanyard really should attach to the bottom of the GPS unit.  Sure, that means it hangs upside down on your neck, but who cares?  Then, when you go to pick it up or check the maps quickly the unit would be right side up.  Makes sense, right? ...right?   2) While it’s a powerful workhorse off road, navigating by PN-40 in the car is a little trickier in that there are no voice prompts.  Instead of a voice saying “turn right here”, the unit merely chimes.  Some people might prefer this, but some might do better to have a passenger seat navigator with the Earthmate PN-40 controls. 

Key Features of the DeLorme PN-40 Include:

• 32-channel STMicroelectronics Cartesio chipset
• 3-axis electronic compass
• 500 MB of available onboard Flash memory
• Support for high-capacity SD cards (SDHC) up to 32 GB
• Dual-core processor for blazing-fast performance
• Barometric altimeter
• Fast USB 2.0 data transfers to in-device SD card – no external card reader required
• More detailed onboard base map data for the U.S., now with secondary and connector roads, along with major highways and thoroughfares for the entire world (still providing detailed U.S. street and backroad detail via the included Topo USA software).

http://www.delorme.com/

Price: $270 - $399, with many sites offering free shipping and also available as a geocaching bundle.  Bicycle mount mentioned in review runs $25 at most sites.

Overall:  A lightweight but rugged handheld GPS with beautiful maps and serious tools for casual and seasoned outdoorsman alike. 

Stay tuned for our complete run-down of geocaching with the kiddos with the Earthmate PN-40.  We will be geocaching throughtout NYC and Seattle, as well as taking to the mountain and trailside to show you the abundance of geocaching options that are right outside your door.

Shred Sled Review and Giveaway

“You’ll twist your ankle.”  That’s the response of everyone over skateboarding age when they see the Shred Sled for the first time.  But you know what?  This little skateboard-esque good time is not created for anyone with rheumatoid arthritis concerns or bad ankles.  No, the Shred Sled is for those who still play like kids, whether they are 8, 28, or 58.  And you would be surprised by the large age range of participants we had joining into the Shred Sled fun.  All without any twisted ankles, broken bones or injuries of any kind. 

The Shred Sled is an in-line, four-wheeled, dual-sided skate deck that is attached by a bendable connector that can be flexed and torqued so both sides move independently of the other side.   Hubby and I had to try it first, because there’s no way we’re sending our family barreling down the street on a contraption we haven’t tested first.  Well, that and we were just dying to try it so when it finally arrived we couldn’t contain ourselves any longer.

The first Shred Sled ride took a bit to get used to, especially for me.  The fact that the wheels of the Shred Sled were inline and the deck had two pieces frightened me a bit and it just didn’t seem possible at all that I would ever be able to ride it.  Requiring balance and a good deal of trust that the first time you step on it won’t land you flat on your face, the Shred Sled seemed intimidating at first to merely stand on, even for hubby.  I should preface this by saying that hubby was a skateboarder in all his high school glory… me, not so much.  So, when hubby turned out to be a natural on the Shred Sled after just a few tries, no one was really surprised.  The shocker was that not only was I able to stay on a four wheeled board for longer than a few seconds, I was actually able to get up some speed and agility. 

After a few tries, we opened up the Shred Sled for riders and showed them the ropes.  We all started out holding onto hubby’s van and pushing off as we learned how to balance on the board and then graduated to trying to twist our hips to pick up momentum.  For the first few tries none of us could go uphill at all, as it required too much coordination to twist in the scissor-like motion required for speed.  However, we had a blast going down the graduated slope of our street over and over by carrying the Shred Sled back up the slope each time. 

Once you get moving, the motion of the Shred Sled is unlike anything you’ve ever ridden.  With all four wheels in a straight line it feels like you are riding on a single blade, able to carve turns with fluid precision far superior to a broad wheeled skateboard.  Add to that the fact that all four wheels actually rotate independently and it gets even crazier.  We found that while in a sweeping turn if you push a little harder out with your rear foot on the rear deck you can add rotation into the turn, a feeling much closer to snowboarding or surfing, and make your turns even sharper but still smooth.   

Hubby was the first to get going uphill and was slow at first but then really got going.  Once he figured it out, it was easy for everyone else to get the technique down for themselves.  I haven’t totally mastered the uphill, but I’ve got the downhill down fast and only a little wobbly.  It was surprising to me how much more in control I felt the faster I rode, which sounds completely backwards but it’s not. 

In fact, I really wasn’t scared at all on the Shred Sled, even as I wiggled down the hill the first time.  This is partly due to how easy it is to stop on the Shred Sled and it makes me so much less nervous, especially when the kiddos are riding it.  Since the board cannot roll on its own and requires your movement to move, you just have to step off the board to stop it, or you can tip either of the Sled sides to the ground where the “brake” is located on the side of the board.  

Speaking of kiddos, I guess I should concede that the Shred Sled is easier to pick up the younger you’re introduced to it.  Kids that had never ridden a Shred Sled before hopped on the deck and (gasp) pushed off, getting a running start at tearing up the streets as if they’d been Shredding it their whole lives.  At least they didn’t laugh at us adults holding onto the van for support or the ones that required a stable buddy to lean on while they learned.  The key point is that eventually we did learn and now are Shred Sledding it up with the kiddos, proving once again that you’re only as old as you play.

http://www.theshredsled.com/

Price: $119.99

Looks: Like a whole lotta fun

Overall: Prepare to be the hit of the neighborhood, or maybe just the parent of the year.

And now for the Giveaway...

Shred Sled was so kind as to offer a Rave and Review reader a chance to win their own Shred Sled! To enter, just visit the Shred Sled website and let me know something cool about the company, the Shred Sled or a move you would love to perfect. 

And, as always, there are extra entries available!

1) Subscribe to Rave and Review (1 extra entry, must be verified to count)

2) Tweet about this Giveaway (1 entry for daily Tweet, just post link here)

3) Blog about this Giveaway (1 extra entry)

4) Place my logo or link in your sidebar on your blog or website (2 extra entries, must have an active link)

5) Vote for Rave and Review on Top Baby Blogs (there is no need to sign up for anything, simply clicking this link is a vote for us.  You can vote one time each day, leave comment each time you vote)

6) Share this post on Facebook (1 extra entry)

7) Email love.  Share this Giveaway with friends and family via email and cc Leanne@raveandreview.com for two bonus entries (I will never, ever contact your email recipients)

On October 13th at 11:59pm PST a winner will be drawn, announced here and notified via email

Thank you to Shred Sled for sponsoring this review and giveaway

 

Click here to see the entire Blog Hop List....

Sierra Designs Lightning XT-4 Tent

Camping means entirely different things to different people.  Case in point: the first time my wife and I decided to go camping together and were comparing gear to see what we needed to bring.  When it came time to talk tents we both ended up laughing hysterically at one another and our tent choices.  I owned the smallest and lightest 2 person tent I could find, with just enough room for the two of us to be shoulder to shoulder, and no room for anything else in there with us.  She had an 8 person tent, complete with its own doggie door, you know, just in case we decided to buy a dog and invite 6 friends along. 

 

Over the next few years as we alternated between backpacking and car camping, we had to figure out each time which tent worked better.  These friendly discussions came to be known as “Pitch My Tent” where we would each argue the merits of our own tent.  But, as our family outgrew the 2 person tent and we tired of carrying around the Taj Mahal with all the valuable trunk space it required, we realized it was time for a compromise, although we had serious doubts we could both be pleased.

 

 

All our doubts disappeared when we found the Lightning XT-4 tent from Sierra Designs.  Here was a tent that weighed within ounces of my old 2 person tent, yet was spacious enough for 4 full size adults and all the gear that comes along with them.  I was relieved knowing we could fit the whole family in one tent while adding virtually no weight to what I was used to carrying.  The wife loved that we had room for the family to grow, or for a guest or two in the meantime.  In a record breaking moment, we both agreed simultaneously that this was the tent for us. 

 

What makes the Lightning XT-4 so cool comes from what Sierra Designs calls their Tunnel Dome Architecture, which refers to the way the poles are configured and really maximizes the interior space of the tent while keeping the weight down.  They utilize smart design features such as quick pitch swivel hubs, ball cap and Jake's foot connectors that combine to make setting up as easy as possible with poles that snap and click solidly into place. Plus there are no sleeves to feed those poles through, only a few more fast and simple clips to attach and you are ready to camp.  Once set up, the shape of the tent reminds me of the end of a French bread roll, with one side where you cut it off being pretty much straight and flat, the other sides continue out from there and then taper off to the end.  The curves are actually very subtle which makes the side walls almost vertical, giving it a very open feel and makes it easy to seat the maximum number of adults without having to cram everyone in the middle of the tent at the peak. 

 

On our first outing with the Sierra Designs Lightning XT 4 tent, a swarm of relentless super bugs had the entire party holed up in tents most of the trip.  Specifically ours, which quickly became the party tent.  We easily fit two sleeping children and four adults while we played all sorts of made up card games and munched on salmon jerky till all hours of the night as we enjoyed the crisp, clean mountain air without all the bugs.    

 

Contributing to the open feeling as much as the vertical walls, is the fact that almost the entire tent body is made of mesh.  The only parts that aren’t are the floor and then a few inches up the side wall to make sure water doesn’t sneak in.  At first I was worried about how strong the mesh would be, but on our very first outing it was put to the test.  Our littlest camper ended up poking the mesh in various places with a plastic dinosaur’s tail, leaving a trail of little holes across the tent.  Thankfully the fabric was plenty tough enough to withstand a plastic dinosaur attack and the fabric of the tent didn’t actually tear.  Instead, the mesh had just spread a little making it appear to have been damaged and all that was needed to repair it was a couple seconds of rubbing the strands back in place and all was well again. 

 

When covered with the rain cover, the tent is extra rugged and durable and easily withstood our unpredictable Washington weather.  During the summer, we were very pleased with the way the mesh underneath allows it to breathe well during the day without becoming unbearably hot.  If there ever was a 0% chance of rain or dew, you could leave the rain cover off and spend the night literally under the stars. 

 

The Sierra Designs Lightning XT-4 seems to be in a category all by itself as a 3 season, 4 person ultra light backpacking tent that is also big enough for car camping and all the luxuries that come with it.  When we were searching for tents, it quickly became clear that most companies don’t make a 4 person tent, and those that do assume that you are only carrying it a few feet before you pitch it and “ultra-light” never even crosses their minds. 

Specs from the Sierra Designs website:
Trail Weight     6 lbs 13 oz
Packed Weight    7 lbs 6 oz
Packed Size    21" x 6"
Number of Doors    2
Interior Area    57.5 sq ft.
Vestibule Area    17.5 + 10 sq ft.
Peak Height    49"
Floor Material     0D Nylon, 3000mm
Body Material     20D Nylon
Fly Material     40D HT Nylon, 1500mm
Number of Poles     4 Hubbed
Poles DAC Featherlite NSL, 9.0/9.6mm
 
Features from the Sierra Designs website:
SuperSeal Floor™
• Combines benefits of catenary and bathtub floors.
• Raised, taped, perimeter seam provides guaranteed waterproofness.
• Maintains a tighter pitch with a better wind line to prevent flapping.
Tunnel Dome™
• Another Sierra Designs first - the Tunnel Dome™ tent.
• Innovative architecture combines the strengths of both dome and tunnel tents in one unified design.
• Freestanding ease of setup and large doors from dome tents meets steep walls, covered doors, and spacious interiors of tunnel tents.
• Quick and easy setup in any weather condition.
Swivel Hub™
• A small and super light pole connector that replace heavier and bulkier pole buckets.
• Allows brow poles to connect to the main poles instead.

http://sierradesigns.com/

MSRP: $449.00, which is cheaper, cleaner and much more memorable than a three night hotel stay and can be used for decades of family vacations.

 

Looks: Like a tent.  A tent both the wife and I can agree on.

 

Overall: A roomy, rugged and ultra lightweight solution for all types of campers. 

 

Want to win a super sweet prize pack? Enter the 'Outdoor Wales' sweepstakes competition below to win round trip coach class tickets for two to London on Virgin Atlantic Airlines, first-class rail passes from BritRail, two nights accommodation at Escape Boutique B&B, two nights in a luxury yurt (or B&B) at Graig Wen, and a tent, sleeping bags and Cyclone jackets and pants from Sierra Designs.

Please note that this sweepstakes is for US residents only. If you're outside USA, please visit www.visitwales.com and select your country gateway as Visit Wales operates across the world. You can read the sweepstakes terms and conditions here

Enter to win a Wales Dream Vacation HERE

Kokopax Carrier Review

Babywearing is to thank for at least 90% of our productivity since baby was born.  Hands free snuggling equates to parenting bliss, and as baby neared her first birthday I was terrified that it would all come to an end once baby got too big for the front pack or the carrier got too cumbersome to maneuver around.  Thus began my search for a designated back carrier that would enable me to carry baby around well past her 1st birthday.  The search ended with the adorable Kokopax Carriers and confirmed our love of babywearing has months of good hands-free productivity remaining.

Kokopax was created out of a love of classic backpack style frame carriers and the desire to make them both stylish and hip.  Inspiration for the adorable Kokopax prints came while founder Sara Spoor was visiting a Washington boutique just a ferry ride from Seattle and fell in love with their trendy fabrics.  An idea was born and she went to work designing the coolest and most coveted back carrier on the market.  The result is a fashionable and chic lightweight back carrier that is suitable for everyday use. 

The Kokopax Carrier was our first introduction to frame carriers and now I wonder why we were hesitant to make that leap, as the Kokopax is easily one of our favorite carriers we have ever tried.  The Kokopax arrived packaged nicely and then enclosed in an adorable fabric carrying case, which makes it easy to keep clean and transport in the trunk or store in a closet when not using.  Immediately we tried it out, with baby {safely} helping me cook by drooling on my neck as she slept, something I previously could not enjoy with our front carriers.

For the rest of the night baby did everything with me, strapped on my back and content to be facing forward for the first time ever.  Now that baby can grab nearly everything I can, having her behind me means that I can now safely use both hands without worry and without her insistence of help.  Cute as it may be, sometimes her help is anything but helpful and means that I have to save most of my daily tasks until she is sleeping.  With the Kokopax, I can still interact with her while I clean, cook or help my mom clean out her garage but don’t have to worry about what she’s getting into. 

Since we received it, we have used the Kokopax for all sorts of activities and love it more every time we use it.  Weighing in at approximately 2.7 lbs and with great features like an opening base that allows for easy loading, the Kokopax is perfect for everyday use no matter where your day takes you.  

I found the back carrier to be much easier to maneuver efficiently and I loved how comfortable it was, even for long periods of time.  Their ultra padded shoulder straps and comfortable lower back lumbar support are both easily adjustable to fit a large range of body types.  Hubby and I both were able to use the carrier comfortably with only quick adjustments necessary before we were off.  It did take some getting used to it since I haven’t carried a backpack since early high school, but once I broke in the , I found it to be surprisingly natural.   

Features from the Kokopax website:
• made with 100% cotton canvas
• anodized aluminum frame
• comfortable shoulder straps
• adjustable frame to fit individual user
• padded waist support
• handy storage pocket
• kickstand for easy loading
• 5-pt. safety harness
• ties to secure pax protector™
• toy ring to attach koko™ or other toys
• weighs approximately 2.7 lbs.
• fits in airline overhead bins
• for use from 6 months to 2 years (or up to 35 pounds)
• includes green carry bag

www.kokopax.com

Price: $179.99

Looks: Modern and stylish patterns make frame carriers fun as well as functional

Overall:  Highly recommended for anyone interested in prolonging the babywearing experience

Off! Clip-On Insect Repellant

I can’t tell you how much I wish I had been reviewing this Off Clip-On a month ago when the fam and I were on a very ambitious two night backpacking trip miles away from civilization.  It turned out that our campsite just so happened to be double booked for the long weekend – our party of six and what had to be some sort of mosquito convention - and the bugs were not going to give up easily.  At one point it was half-jokingly suggested that maybe this species of mosquito was actually attracted to the sticky, stinky and gooey mess we were pretty much bathing in, since the amount of spray we were using was enough to repel full-size adults, but curiously didn’t even seem to affect the swarms of bugs at our site. 

The Off Clip-On is an alternative to the spray-on insect repellant and allows you to clip it onto your clothing or set near you to enjoy all the insect repellant properties without the sticky spray.  When I first received the Off Clip On, I was surprised by the larger size of the unit as I had been picturing a pager or cell phone sized device.  Once I realized that the Off Clip On had a fan and moveable parts, I realized the need for a slightly bigger unit was a necessary evil.  A somewhat bulky unit is a small tradeoff for a product that makes the great outdoors that much more great.

How it works: The Off! Clip-On has an internal fan that is run by batteries (included) and works to circulate the scent-less insect repellant from head to toe.  Each Clip-On Refill lasts for 12 hours and extra refill packs can be purchased separately (sold in packs of 2, and give you 24 hours of coverage).  The Off! Clip-On has an on and off switch so you can turn it on when you need it and then store it once you come inside.  They recommend that each refill be used within 14 days of opening, which means that one refill can easily last through an entire vacation or camping trip.  

What I’m Raving About:  Nearly all of my really, really bad bug attacks were when I was going outside “for just a minute” and therefore couldn’t be bothered with applying bug spray.  The Off Clip-On solves that by offering temporary bug repellant that won’t leave you stinking like bug spray hours after you’ve come indoors.  Pretty cool, really.  The easy on/off makes it perfect for a quick BBQ dinner, picking squash from the garden, a 20 minute lemonade break, or for the infamous 30-minute long standing-by-the-car goodbyes my family is famous for.

What I’m Raving About, Part 2: When baby is in my arms or I am babywearing with the Off! Clip-On, there is no need to spray her with insect repellant, either.  No one likes to douse a baby with bug spray, especially one that is young enough to still be in the “everything in the mouth” stage. 

Suggestion to make it even more Rave-tastic: 1) The Off Clip-On should say in big BOLD letters on the package that all 12 hours of the refill do not need to be used at one time, and that you can turn the unit on an off to prolong the refill pack.  I was so scared to open the refill and start it up because I mistakenly thought I needed to find a 12-hour block to use it in.  I was really relieved to find that you can control the output of the Off Clip-On.  2) The Off Clip-On is not as effective while moving, as it takes a few minutes to rebuild its protection, according to the Off! Website.

Speaking of the Off! Website… Off! also has a neat tool called the Mosquit-O-Meter which is an interactive quiz that shows you how attractive you are to mosquitoes (extremely, as it turns out).  I guess mosquitoes enjoy fruity lotions and bath products as much as I do!

http://www.offprotects.com/

Price: $12.99 for the Off! Clip-On and $8.49 for refills

This post was written for the Family Review Network as part of a program by SC Johnson and Off!, who also supplied the product for review.

Chariot SideCarrier Bicycle Trailer - Enter to Win $1,500 Prize Pack

 

I am scared to death of motorcycles, but if someone offered me a ride in their motorcycle sidecar, I would take them up on it without hesitation.  There is something incredibly cool about sidecars and we all know that coolness always trumps fear.  When I found Chariot Bicycle Carriers made a SideCarrier for bicycles similar a traditional motorcycle sidecar, I was already in love.  What I didn’t know then was how incredibly practical this bike trailer would turn out to be and how it would get more action in one summer than a blender at Margaritaville, quickly becoming our go-to bike trailer. 

If you prefer an off-bike child carrier or trailer, you definitely owe it to yourself and your coolness to check out Chariot Carriers.  Not only does the SideCarrier offer supreme handling ability for ease of riding, it is the best option for keeping our littlest bikers engaged and truly sharing the biking experience with them.  Since the Chariot SideCarrier allows your child to ride right alongside you, it is much easier to keep them entertained while you ride and really enjoy each other’s company.  Not only did all the kids (even a ten year old who was far too old to ride*) enjoy it more than all our other trailers and carriers, they were actually begging for rides in the SideCarrier and didn’t want to get out when their turn was over.  Since the goal of biking as a family is to connect and interact with each other, the Chariot SideCarrier would be our top pick for an off-the-bike trailer.

Unlike a typical tow-behind bike trailer, the Chariot SideCarrier is more like a unified extension of your bicycle and therefore offers superior handling and maneuverability.  Clearly, this is a product for those who love their bikes, but also love their children and want to take them along without compromising all of their speed, agility and mobility.  The Chariot SideCarrier is the result of excellence in engineering as well as an extreme attention to detail and quality of construction.  When you first see the Chariot Carriers in retail, their quality and durability are easy to detect, even from a distance.  The full-line of Chariot Child Carriers stand out amongst their competition as the clear premium Bike Trailer, and their distinctive good-looks make adding it to your beloved bike much less painful than we imagined.  In fact, once you’re out with it and baby, nothing turns heads faster than a sporty-looking SideCarrier and a clearly overjoyed child.      

Looks aside, the Chariot SideCarrier has the performance to back up its style as it is sturdy and well crafted and able to handle any trail or road.  The SideCarrier is engineered in a way that does not “tug” on your bike when you change speeds and does not push on your bike when braking.  The low center of gravity makes this carrier extremely stable and secure, even while turning.  Speaking of turning, the pivoting hitch that connects the SideCar to your bicycle allows you to turn and lean the bike from side to side while the SideCarrier stays completely upright and stable.  We found that during extremely sharp right turns the SideCarrier would brush our leg, but it wasn’t painful at all and could be avoided by making wider and less sharp turns when possible, a small trade-off for ease of turning and full range of motion with your child in tow.

One particularly useful function of the Chariot SideCarrier is for biking in metropolitan areas or those utilizing a bike lane.  When biking through town, whether that is on the sidewalk or in the bike lane, I am incredibly nervous with baby riding moments behind the bicycle.  My fear is that most drivers aren’t expecting you to be towing a child behind you and won’t be as cautious as I feel they should be when my child is cruising down the road sans airbags a few feet behind me.  With the SideCarrier, baby rides right up next to me on the right side, which just so happens to be the furthest from traffic and the safest spot for kids in town and on bike paths and trails.  Always an arm’s length away and completely secure in a padded seat and solidly built lightweight aluminum frame, I feel so much more relaxed with baby by my side.

Another great aspect of the SideCarrier is that you don’t have to ride around nervous about how wide your bike and trailer are.  With a traditional rear trailer, no matter how much we rode we never seemed to get comfortable with how wide the trailer really was.  The off center design of tow behind trailers prompted slowing almost to a stop to get through tight spots like posts at trail-heads, with contortionist level twisting to look behind to make sure we weren’t clipping a wheel or worse.  With the SideCarrier, it is much easier to get used to the size and footprint since it is right next to you and feels more like an actual extension of your bike as opposed to an add-on, even though the width of the side carrier with your bike is almost identical to that of a typical two child tow behind trailer.

As a one child bike carrier, the Chariot SideCarrier is not the pack mule that a rear trailer can be, but we feel the added maneuverability is well worth the reduction in storage capacity.  Besides, who ever complained about hauling around less weight?  From our experience, owning a two child carrier is the equivalent of being the one person in your family who owns a truck.  Suddenly everyone has a purse, jacket or flea market rocking chair for you to haul home.  While the SideCarrier can’t lug your entire nursery, we found that a little creativity ensured just enough space for the essentials.

Chariot's SideCarrier is a unique solution to the tow-behind trailer and is perfect for keeping your kids close and giving them the best view of the road ahead while still maximizing the performance of the bicycle it’s attached to.  Sleek, stylish and sporty, the Chariot SideCarrier is impossible not to ogle as it passes with its irresistible charm and good looks. 

From the Chariot Website:
 Ultra-stable with an extra-low center of gravity
 SideCarrier hitch installs in minutes on most standard bikes. You can then attach or remove the SideCarrier in seconds
 The SideCarrier mounts on the bike’s right-hand side, so the child is on the safer side of the bike paths, away from oncoming pathway users
 The SideCarrier stays upright at all times, however, the pivoting hitch allows the bike to lean gracefully into turns
 The axles of the bike and SideCarrier align, so the SideCarrier’s wheels don’t scrub or skid when turning, even when stopped
 6063-T54 and 6351-T6 lightweight aluminum frame, stiff oversized 1.5” lower frame protects child, wheel and underside of SideCarrier
 Stiff oversized 1.5” lower frame protects child, wheel and underside of SideCarrier
 A bike and SideCarrier are the same width as a traditional two-child trailer, yet much shorter
 The SideCarrier can be folded up to the bike when parked in a narrow space
 Enclosed single child cockpit
 Quick-folding design
 Rear storage bag and large mesh pocket
 Deluxe padded shoulder harness
 Mesh upper seat
 Tinted side windows
 20” spoked stainless aluminum wheel with push-button release
 Maintenance-free cartridge bearings
 2-in-1 weather cover
 600 denier polyester fabric
 3M™ Scotchlite™ Reflective Material
 Limited Lifetime Warranty

Random Rave: Riding beside the bike instead of behind it means that you are not kicking up dust and dirt right at your baby while you ride.  In our pull-behind trailers, baby ends up a grimy mess after any distance of bike ride unless you put the plastic and non-breathable rain shield up.  Not only is this not a great option for airflow on hot summer days, it makes it even harder to communicate with your little passenger. 

http://www.chariotcarriers.com/

Price: $500 and definitely an investment, but something that will last through years and years of use

Looks: As sporty as a bike trailer but as cool as a motorcycle sidecar

Overall: Highly recommended to bicycling parents, especially those on urban trails or city street

Please visit Chariot Carriers between now and November 30th (hey, that's my birthday) and enter to win their $1,500 prize pack just by taking a short survey.  You could win:

Win a 2009 Cougar 1 and a 2009 Dahon Speed D7!

Included with the Cougar 1:

• 3 CTS Conversion Kits:
  • CTS Strolling Kit
  • CTS Jogging Kit
  • CTS Bicycle Trailer Kit
• and these great accessories:
  
  • X-Country Cargo Rack
  • Side Fenders 2.0
  • Handlebar Bag
  • Stridelite™ Strobe kit

 A prize valued at over $1500

Click Here to Enter

An ecstatic thank you to Chariot Carriers for making our biking safer, easier and more fun for all of us

* Ten year olds are not the ideal passengers in a Chariot SideCarrier.  25 kg / 55 lbs is the manufacturer's posted weight limit.

Modular Hauler Deluxe by Mountainsmith

Travel, organized

Travel season is upon us and I couldn’t be more excited.  I’m dreaming of the open road and planning all sorts of fun adventures for the family.  Now, all I have to do is figure out how to get me, hubby, baby and gear to all of our exciting destinations.  Lucky for me, I didn’t have to waste much time figuring because Mountainsmith has already done the work for me.  Their Modular Hauler sets are the perfect thing to help organize our adventures and make traveling with little ones as simple and organized as possible. 

Before we found Mountainsmith, we would all pack in our own bags and then try and arrange it so that all our gear was easily accessible from the trunk.  All sedan owners know that this feat is impossible – because something has to go in the back recesses of the trunk.  Or, at least that used to be true.  Now, with the Modular Hauler System, there is only one bag to put in that prime trunk-front real estate.  Just one bag that contains everything you need to access while on the go in easy to identify colored compartments.  Picture this: no more stacking, squishing and piling the bags in the trunk to fit everything in.  No more digging through the car to find what you need only to have to repack the car once you find it.  That’s right, it’s all the travel, none of the hassle.

It doesn’t seem possible, right?  Something has to be stacked, squished or piled in order to get it all in there, doesn’t it?  Are you sure that you’ll be able to find anything in that big ol’ bag?  And possibly the most important question - will we still get in the road trip spirit if we don’t spend hours packing the trunk?  Relax, naysayers.  Meet Mountainsmith’s Modular Hauler Systems.   

Mountainsmith Modular Haulers make this level of organization not only possible, they make it easy.  They have 2, 3 and 4 cube Hauler Systems to organize any size family or vehicle as well as selling the Modular Cubes individually to fit just about any need.  The Modular Hauler 3 System Deluxe works perfectly for our family and I have no doubt that it will continue to grow with us. 

At the heart of the System are the Deluxe Cubes that fit perfectly into the Hauler and give you all the benefits of multiple bags but without all the trips.  Since the 3 Deluxe Cubes are all fully functional bags on their own, when placed in the Hauler they are an organizer’s dream.   Each Deluxe Cube is color coded for easy identification so you will always know which tote contains what with just a glance.  If you do happen to forget that all the baby gear was in the red bag, Mountainsmith was clever enough to give the Deluxe Cubes laminated mesh tops, and even threw in a clear pocket for labeling or for small items that will remind you of the contents.  

They don’t call these Deluxe Cubes for nothing, these little babies are tough-looking, rugged, reinforced gear haulers with triple layer construction and durability to spare.  Made from 150d ripstop fabric with a thin foam structure that keeps the shape of the Deluxe Cube even when empty and makes for easy loading and unloading.  Each Deluxe Cube has a flat front pocket for storage, tote handles for easy carrying as well as attachment points for shoulder straps or carabiners and loops for hanging.  Hubby is absolutely convinced that if the need were to arise we could haul rocks in our Deluxe Cubes, but even I draw the line somewhere and will let you test that theory on your own. 

Once placed in the 15” x 25” x 15” Modular Hauler, the whole system gets even more Deluxe.  We’re talking waterproof rubber bottom, easy carry handles on all four sides, compression straps, and a reinforced folding internal structure.  The rubber base allows you to set it down anywhere without worrying about what lies beneath, even in a good inch plus of water.  The handles on every side insure that you will always have a place to grab or secure the Hauler if necessary, while the compression straps hold everything in place. And with the internal structure easily folding down when not in use, you won’t have a hard time storing the Modular Hauler in between trips.

Although I really can’t see storing it at all since it’s so useful for all sorts of applications, even just around the house.  It would be perfect for sporting equipment, camping supplies, travel gear or even just organizing your closet contents.  Perhaps even just for hauling large amounts of rocks…should the need arise.

Random Rave: All parts of the system can be used either independently or together, allowing for numerous configurations to fit whatever you’re hauling. 

http://www.mountainsmith.com/

Price: 2 Cube Systems start at $59 and each additional Cube adds $20 to the price.  The 3 Cube Deluxe model with the rubber base that was reviewed here sells for $129

Looks: Like a super rugged and organized version of whatever you’re hauling now

Overall: Perfect for small roadtrips, big camping trips or even just for organizing around the house

A big thank you to Mountainsmith for organizing all our gear for all our many activities