The new Xtracycle is here! The new Xtracycle is here!
Yes, I like Steve Martin in The Jerk, am now somebody. My Xtracycle FreeRadical kit arrived yesterday evening and I immediately went to work converting my old Trek 7200 hybrid into a true S.U.B, Sports Utility Bicycle.
Xtrcycle FreeRadical kit installed and ready to ride
It took me about two hours to fully install the kit while keeping my children from running off with some small key piece. I found the build quality to be good and with a few minor issues, the instructions easy to follow.
Giving Nicole a ride
No sooner had I finished putting the FreeRadical kit together than I went over to Marcus’ house to give him and his wife a ride on the back. This was great fun, and I also was able to haul back a baby gate Marcus had borrowed ealier in the week with ease. This morning I loaded up the back with a bunch of stuff to take to work and felt my road bike at home in favor of my Xtracycle.
I’ve been impressed with the ride quality in my initial ventures with the FreeRadical. I found the handling to be quiet zipping, in fact feeling zippier than my hybrid before the conversion. This may have to do with the inertial built up once you get going, however handling in turns at high speed is great. It is not a speed demon like my Bianchi road bike, but it is definitely more fun to ride than a regular bike with a trailer.
All in all I’ve been very impressed and am enjoying the freedom of carrying much more on my bike with ease. I plan on making some additions to the FreeRadical in the coming days to allow my children to ride safely on the back and doing a more complete review in the next week.
Stay tuned.
on Sep 10th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Yea Rah! yea rah! You’re now another somebody
on Sep 11th, 2008 at 10:15 am
We just my X put together over the last weekend and I’ve ridden it every day- I seriously love my bike now! Taking the kiddos to school, going to the market and library…is there anywhere a X can’t go?
And my bike also rides better with the Free Radical attached. BTW what handlbars are you using on your bike?
on Sep 11th, 2008 at 11:57 am
Sheree,
I just build a homemade add on for taking my kids. We tried it out this morning and it worked fairly well. I’ll have pictures and be writing about here it in the next few days.
To answer your question, those are Tourister bars from VeloOrange for about $20. I upgraded from the flat, mountain bike bars that came with the Trek for more comfort and to allow a more upright position. I really like the Dutch bike style swept bar bars. They are more comfortable and put your hands in a more natural position.
I am considering a new saddle, possibly the Brooks B67/68 as this saddle is not particularly comfortable for sitting upright.
on Feb 4th, 2012 at 3:43 pm
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