# Is all hope for riding a tandem gone?



## Cajun Rich (Mar 6, 2010)

I need a small captains and a small stroker. Does anyone make a tandem like this?


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## PMK (Oct 12, 2004)

Cajun Rich...Hope is never expired until you let it be.

We have not had our tandem to Pinehurst or Dyer lately, it would be nice to have another off-road tandem team in Palm Beach.

Post your inseam and plans for both captain and stoker. There are almost always some great deals used, and currently some very nice options new.

BTW, yes you can get small / medium pretty easy, and with most tandem frame designs, it will be a small / small when built if you want it that way.

PK


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## Cajun Rich (Mar 6, 2010)

PK, I dont know if I could get her to trust me off road lol! I am a bit more of a dare devil than she is but I have hope that it will help her gain more confidence off road. I noticed that a few of your picture were taken at Pinhurst. I am trying to get her warmed up to the idea of a tandem but she is afraid to lose that control factor. We are both 5"4" tall, my inseam is 29 her is 31 both torso are 23, my arm length is 24 hers 23.


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## Fleas (Jan 19, 2006)

Cajun Rich said:


> PK, I dont know if I could get her to trust me off road lol! I am a bit more of a dare devil than she is but I have hope that it will help her gain more confidence off road. I noticed that a few of your picture were taken at Pinhurst. I am trying to get her warmed up to the idea of a tandem but she is afraid to lose that control factor. We are both 5"4" tall, my inseam is 29 her is 31 both torso are 23, my arm length is 24 hers 23.


DUDE!
I was just out with a group today (tandem pool of bikes to borrow for vision-impaired folks). I don't have a pic, but there is a Burley set up for small(er) people. It can't be more than 18x15 at the most... I think it is actually smaller (At 6'-3" I can barely ride it - cockpits are quite short). In the group, it is too small for most everyone. I think the lady that runs it would love to sell the small bike and buy a larger one. Any chance you'll be in Ohio this Summer?  You could get a smokin' deal or work a trade (I actually helped acquire the latest bike for the program).
I hate to see such a nice bike sit unused. From your description, it sounds perfect for you. It has flat bars, decent wheels, high-level components, and slicks, but it will fit modest knobbies. It's also a really nice purple color - if you like purple... or if it would get the wife out.
Too bad you're not in the neighborhood.
But yes, they are out there.

-F


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## PMK (Oct 12, 2004)

Cajun Rich said:


> PK, I dont know if I could get her to trust me off road lol! I am a bit more of a dare devil than she is but I have hope that it will help her gain more confidence off road. I noticed that a few of your picture were taken at Pinhurst. I am trying to get her warmed up to the idea of a tandem but she is afraid to lose that control factor. We are both 5"4" tall, my inseam is 29 her is 31 both torso are 23, my arm length is 24 hers 23.


Trust...we had the exact same conversation on the Florida Turnpike returning from Santos.

Jeanne wanted nothing to do with it. Somehow I convinced her to give it a try, so we started looking and found our first tandem. A 1998 Cannondale MT300 that spent almost its entire life as a piece of art hanging from a mansion wall in Miami Beach. That bike was a Large small, but I somehow got her to fit. We learned a lot about tandeming from that machine.

Fast forward to today, Jeanne has no interest in riding a regular bike. Tandems aren't for everyone, but if it works for you two, you may become convinced / addicted.

Our original Cannondale was sold, and hopefully the new owner uses it as we did.

Our current fleet has two off-road and one road tandem. All get ridden a lot or at least as often as we can.

There are other videos besides PH. I believe all are here, but if not they are on Vimeo. Pinehurst, Santos, Boyette, Bent Creek NC. would be good searches.

There is a learning curve, but a trail like Santos epic type trails will learn you fast. PH, Boyette or other technical trails would be best saved for at least the second ride.

If it is in your future I hope you make it happen.

PK


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## clj2289 (Jan 2, 2010)

You might fit on a 17/14 stock ventanna....


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## Cajun Rich (Mar 6, 2010)

Fleas said:


> DUDE!
> I was just out with a group today (tandem pool of bikes to borrow for vision-impaired folks). I don't have a pic, but there is a Burley set up for small(er) people. It can't be more than 18x15 at the most... I think it is actually smaller (At 6'-3" I can barely ride it - cockpits are quite short). In the group, it is too small for most everyone. I think the lady that runs it would love to sell the small bike and buy a larger one. Any chance you'll be in Ohio this Summer?  You could get a smokin' deal or work a trade (I actually helped acquire the latest bike for the program).
> I hate to see such a nice bike sit unused. From your description, it sounds perfect for you. It has flat bars, decent wheels, high-level components, and slicks, but it will fit modest knobbies. It's also a really nice purple color - if you like purple... or if it would get the wife out.
> Too bad you're not in the neighborhood.
> ...


If you have contact information for the lady PM it to me. 
Thanks


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## Cajun Rich (Mar 6, 2010)

I showed her the green ventanna. Green is her favorite color. All I get is "NO NO NO! Remember when we tried the tandem kayak? We are not doing that again!" LOL I think we both had to swim back from that attempt. I keep telling her the bike will be different. I think it would be awesome to hit A1A and smoke the roadies. I already do it on my mountain bike. Maybe I can find a place that would rent us a cruiser around here.


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## giff07 (Jun 7, 2010)

Hi Cajun Rich,
I think Paul(PMK) describes it best in the word Trust. Pat and I started out in a similar situation as you in that I had ridden an MTB before and she had not. She had no interest in a single MTB as she is "over cautious" on her single road bike. We do ride a road tandem and that may be a good place for you to start. We love hiking and the solitude of the woods but as age ( and a couple of bouts with lime disease) creeps up on us she has developed arthritis in both knees and hiking any distance is no longer an option. We purchased our first MTB tandem with the idea of using it on rail trails and such. A little at a time as she developed Trust in me as a captain we went further and further off road. We agreed that when one of us has any apprehension about riding something we both get off and walk it first and then decide if its ridable, no questions asked. At this point(3 years later) we have bought a full susp. Ventana and theres not much she won't try to ride. Its our bike of choice.
So.... there is hope but be patient with the wife and let her get confidence in herself and your abilities on the tandem. And you could be surprised at what happens.
Ed and Pat Gifford
Toms River, NJ
the Snot Rocket tandem


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## Cajun Rich (Mar 6, 2010)

Ed very nice bike! Thanks for the tips that is the plan. I am ready to try and let it go slow.


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## Okayfine (Sep 7, 2010)

We began our adventurs in tandeming on a road tandem. They have advantages over off-road tandems in that they are vastly more available, cheaper, and are available in smaller frame sizes than you might find on a typical off-road bike. Road tandeming is also a much easier learning curve for you as a team and for you as individuals. Aside from traffic (no a small consideration these days), there's typically less going on to distract from riding and learning how to ride a tandem.

Once you both get bitten, there's no looking back. I don't ride single bikes any more, it's not as much fun. And, once you know you're in for the long haul, companies like Ventana will be able to satisfy your frame sizing issues. FWIW, you may not even need a semi-custom/custom frame made. I'm 6' but with a 32" inseam. We have a 17/16 frame with a 6" fork on the front. On our aluminum Ventana frame I had zero standover issues. The S&S bike we have now has a higher top tube (different frame design) which has reduced the standover clearance to zero...but it hasn't been a problem yet. And with a 4" fork wouldn't be an issue at all.


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## PMK (Oct 12, 2004)

Rich, Burleys are nice. May be a good choice.

I would say that where you plan to roll that tandem locally and North, we have been there. As a first tandem, assuming you plan to buy a used one first, my thoughts lean towards a Cannondale in M/S.

There are several on the Jax'd site, and I know there was a 98 MT3000 in Boca area a couple years ago in the M/S size. The owner wanted a fair price or a trade for boat stuff. So they do exist locally.

If you doubt your wife will get dirty, I noticed there were a couple of Ibis tandem for sale also for reasonable cost, only thing is, they are not local, so emails about size come into play.

FWIW, unknown to many local riders are many off-road miles of levies, canal banks, horse trails, and Greenways connectors that are similar to the road riding with no real single track, but it is off-road.

Best of luck with it.

PK


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## PMK (Oct 12, 2004)

giff07 said:


> We agreed that when one of us has any apprehension about riding something we both get off and walk it first and then decide if its ridable, no questions asked. At this point(3 years later) we have bought a full susp. Ventana and theres not much she won't try to ride.
> Ed and Pat Gifford
> Toms River, NJ
> the Snot Rocket tandem


Ed, great reply.

PK


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## TandemNut (Mar 12, 2004)

You'd fit a 17/14 Ventana el Conquistador. If you want to try one out, plan a trip up this way and we'll send you out (or even ride with you) on some easy trails. There are M/S and S tandems out there; you're as likely to find a used Cannondale as anything, and that's not a bad way to start off (we did).
Of course, if you come home bleeding and broken after every ride on your single bike, she may have a good point


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## Trails4Two (May 12, 2008)

*M/S Cannondale*

+1 on the M/S cannondale. We started with a M/S MT 3000 in year 2000. I am 5'11'' and mostly torso. My wife is 5'4" mostly leg. We rode the bike hard for about six years before getting a Ventana. When we got the Ventana I realized that the C'dale was really quite small for me. It went to my in-laws captain 5'8" and stoker 5'9") they rode it for the next five years, mostly road and dirt road. Now that we have it back, it is the child limo with a kid stoker kit. Since the captain's area is small for me and large for my wife, we split the reach difference and now either of us can pilot it around town with a simple seat height adjustment.

The bike has been bombproof though all of it's incarnations.


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## Fleas (Jan 19, 2006)

Cajun Rich said:


> If you have contact information for the lady PM it to me.
> Thanks


PM sent. This bike looks less intimidating than a full-on big hit off road tandem. I'll bet your wife sees the big bikes and how they are just begging to be ridden off a mountain and she wants no part of that. This one is more "low-impact". Good entry-level stuff.

btw - the sit-on-top kayaks don't roll as easy. :nono: :lol:

...although my M&D rolled a 2-up Wave-Runner at about 8 mph so I guess anything is possible.  
(they do not tandem)

-F


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## zipzit (Aug 3, 2005)

I just saw a 17/16 Ventana with Marzocchi bomber fork go up for sale, I think in Idaho. Would that work for you?

Zip
Metro Detroit


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