Jacquie-Congratulation. Riding a tandem can really be a blast. Read this article. It will give you some good pointers. I didn't read it until after my wife and I started "tandeming" and it took us several months to get on the same page.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tandem.html

Jeff

Good for you for the fact that you CAN ride a tandem with your significant other. Now way in h*ll we could. Neither of us would want to ride on the back. We'd both want to be the boss and would end up killing each other. We ride well together all the time. It's great just as long as we're each on our own bike.

You may think you have simply another bike, but you really have a lot more than that. You have a marriage builder recreational vehicle. You'll spend more time together, and soon you'll be planning weekend tandem trips.

The best advice I got (as the captain) was from some Santana literature. It went something like this: The goal of a rode bike is to get from point A to point B as fast as possible; the goal of a mountain bike is to get from point A to point B without crashing; the goal of a tandem is for the stoker to want to go for another ride. I'm not sure I totally agree with that statement, but the point is valid - you had better set the ground rules from the start that the captain must do what the stoker wants! You're putting your complete trust in the captain so he better make you feel comfortable on the bike.

When you first start, it's best to communicate about every thing, e.g. "I'm braking now... I'm shifting now... Coast... Pedal... Stopping now." After a while you'll get the feel for each other and you'll just be able to tell when the captain is going to do something.

It's also a good idea to not roll though stop signs at first. Just play it by the book at first otherwise one of you will think you're going through the intersection and the other will be preparing to stop, and (at best) you'll have an awkward moment in the middle of the street and (at worst) you'll crash in the middle of the street.

If you want to widen your horizons, join a tandem/recumbent club - it's a whole new world of quirky people.

One of the most fun things we did was race a duathon. I did the runs, we did the tandem together. The Dannon Duathon people gave us a 2 hr penalty for having an equipment advantage - although we weren't even close to taking a podium spot.

Have fun. The articles are probably a good suggestion and I know the communication comment is good. I usually ride with my small kids so there are not so many issues. Their weight, actions and effort are generally not terribly significant. Consequently, although I am a fan of tandems, I am not in a position to give much in the way of advice, but there are lots of good people out their. Only place I have run into them is on the state tour rides.

I do suggest the maiden ride to be as private as possible. I talked a buddy of mine into riding with me last week and I am glad that no one was watching as we made our first effort out of my drive way. My neighbors already think I am weird as hell and if that had seen that I suspect there would be lots of for sale signs. I do not know what I am going to tell my shop about the torn handle bar tape and scratches. We did not execute what would be considered a satisfactory first 10 yards, but no serious injuries and we laughed so long that we were on the ground longer than we needed to be.

My buddy weighs 210 (I think he lies and weighs more) relative to my 180, but we had him on the back and I still found it easier for him to get totally clipped in and stay that way at stops-someone that knows more may disagree.



Have fun and hope your maiden voyage is successful if not as entertaining as mine.

here is a slightly different viewpoint on tandem riding. don't make such a big deal about the thing. get on and ride and have fun - expect the occasional mis-shift or inadvertant movement and just move on. do not try to iron out every little thing. resist the temptation to call out every shift and touch of the brakes like a citizen racing dork. instead endeavor to intuit them.

i say all this as a guy who has raced a tandem off road for many years with his wife, in very tough conditions at times. it is my wife's opinion, and my own, that many teams over-think the issues way too much and thus have unrealistic expectations.

finally - express yourself and get over it. if you are on the back and you wish to say " what the f*ck was THAT?" just say it. if you are on the front do not delve into such a statement, but instead treat it as if you yourself are just sorta talking to yourself.

our basic motto is " shut up and hammer ". this motto has served us well and there are not many married teams who have returned to the battlefield as we have because of it, i believe. it has seen us thru races so hard we have ridden past grown men cramped in the mud and crying like babies. we have done races in slick mud where the strain on steering had my arms cramped and barelty able to hang on. i have launched the wife a$$ over front like a catapult from the back of the bike at 30 mph ( yes, you can endo a tandem) and had her hauled off on a backboard - she will still get back on. in one race we were the only married team to do the marathon distance event and come back with the same ( spousal) partner for something close to 8 years. go ahead and read the little articles and all that - but do not forget to just ride the thing and enjoy the differences it holds - do not attempt to make a tandem experience into something it is not. shut up and hammer, both of you. :)

These are all great comments and perspectives, thanks very much!

btw - How's your Morton's neuroma? Mine's still not 100% healed.

Still buggin' me. I had a cortisone shot a couple of months ago, but my toes still nod off both while biking and running, and I'm starting to wonder if it will ever improve. It sounds like you're still struggling too. Have you done anything else different?

Jacquie,

Hey congrats on the tandem. Not sure where you are from but look into a tandem club. Here in the SF Bay Area I am in one and it is always a blast to ride with other tandems. Nothing is cooler than getting a bunch of tandem riding down the road. I have been riding for over 5 years. Mostly with a blind friend or my 4 or 6 year olds. We have used it as the bike portion of a triathlon relay as well as week long tours pulling a BOB.

Couple of hints,

As the stoker do not take your feet off of the pedals except when you are getting off the bike. When you come to a stop sign you should just stay clipped in. Makes it much easier to get going again.

I have always been the Captain but I tried being a stoker for about 5 miles and it will take a while to get used to not having control of shifting or braking. You have to trust your captain.

We only call out shifting if we are shifting the front rings, never the rear gears.

Get a suspension seat post as you will not notice the bumps in the road and the Captain might not always remember to call them out. If you get a sus post you will both be happier.

I also ride a triplet with my two girls, Jaci & Gabi.

Here is a picture of us coming back from school and a story about me and my 4 year old on a tandem rally in Santa Cruz. They both have little Camelbaks and we can easily ride 25-30 miles. my oldest was riding 40 before she was 4. We just had Girl #3 so will be looking into a Quad in about 3 years.

http://www.precisiontandems.com/artnevin.htm

The above web page is also full of tandem info.

Willy in Pacifica

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Willy in Pacifica

Outstanding pictures and ride description, Willy. We're in the South Bay, so I'll look into a tandem club down here or on the peninsula. I have a beam on the back, so I hope that will help with unannounced bumps. Also the tip about keeping Tootsie Rolls in the captain's jersey pocket - or was that Jaci's tip? Anyway, good thinking, I'm going to remember that one. Thanks for the info and website.

J,

My blind friend lives in San Mateo and I live in Pacifica. We ride in the Woodside area all the time. I have a newer road tandem made by a guy named Bilenky and it is dark blue. I am the treasurer of BART which is Bay Area Roaming Tandems. Here is the web site.

http://bayarearoamingtandems.org/index.shtml

It is $30 per couple per year to join then you can sponsor a club ride in your area and put it up on the site. It is a real blast to have 10 tandems rolling down the road. You get many smiles per mile on one and most tandem groups are very sociable. But they can also get very fast but always a no-drop ride.

You will find yourself riding much faster then you normally would on a single, especiall on the flats and slight downhills.

My e-mail is wjjg@juno.com if you want to get together for a ride some time with me and my blind friend.

Willy in Pacifica

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Willy in Pacifica

Jacquie -

About the Morton's neuroma...

I took a lot of time off after the race season and am just starting to get back into a regular workout schedule. My second and third toes on both feet are still numb/tingly. I don't have shooting pains anymore, but I'm also not doing 4 hr rides either. I'm not sure what to do next.

My cousin had surgery to fix his Morton's neuroma. They went in from the top of the foot. He had a short recovery time and has been pleased with the results. I don't think I'm ready to go that route yet.

I had a high school football injury where my thumb was smashed between the ground and my facemask. Nothing was broken, but my thumb was numb/tingly for about 5 years. It just slowly disappeared. I assume it will take about that long for my feet to heal too.