Yeah my Bullitt came in at 4k delivered so quite the price difference. The Bullitt will rock along quite well and I have on many occasions blazed past many a Fred at 30+ on the flat with the boy in the front. Yes the hills will slow you down pretty quick, the Alfine 8 speed dose me very well, if I was as build savvy as you Pete I would build an Alfine 11 or try score a Rholof… They pop up here and there from failed rich boy tourer builds that never got built. You will spin out the 8 speed down a hill realitvly quickly. As for electric well maybe just leave that for afters.
Bullitt will roll off gutters without bottoming out
I too have carried 90kgs no worries unless you get to a hill
I have found (when by myself) descending like a banshee it can get a wobble in the front end. Nothing out of control or dangerous and was corrected easily. If however you were not a confident rider you would pack it. You can get a steering dampener for them just like sports bike.
I’ve got one in the shed now. Had it for a few years, touring on it. Getting it ready for sale now. Would probably Alfine 8sp or Derailleur a cargo bike eh, unless an 11sp came up cheap.
I believe the 8sp is more tolerant of low input ratios and cargo loads than the 11sp is. Gear for the toughest loaded climb and coast if you spin out. Or fit a double crankset and a mech and tensioner.
If I had my time again I think I would have gone the omnium, if nothing else but for the price. Seems both are going to to do the job very well. Being the bike nerds you lot are (no offence) how much would you take into account the Bullitt having the load much lower to the ground, better centre of gravity and all that?
Gut feeling is the Bullitt would handle heavier things better, but plenty of people carry plenty of shit on the Omnium and love it. I’m pretty sure Goose is much more likely to stay on a Bullitt platform than an Omnium platform, and for gut feels I’m cooler with the idea of a baby in a capsule in the Bullitt, but it’d probably handle fine or just as well or maybe better on an Omnium.
If go a Bullitt, have an invite from Doug to test ride his soon. Maaike has grown out of the Yepp mini we’ve been using since she was 6 months old.
I don’t want to ride with her behind me, plenty of people out there rave about having their child in front, as you can see them and still have a conversation.
If the Bullitt test ride works out, I’ll be sourcing something with e-assist, better chance of getting Nicole yo use it as well, and the lower cog will help her too.
I rode with my kids behind and we had plenty of conversations. Even in the trailer.
I guess the big thing to consider is the financial investment you do when you buy a cargo bike. If it’s just for carrying your kid, between $200 for a seat/rack and $4000 for a Bullit there’s a big difference. And kids grow out of stuff pretty quickly too.
That being said, I’d have loved to have a Bullit or an Omnium.
I carry my mates around on my omnium all the time. I think if we’re talking about “they’ll grow out of it” then baby seats are the worst possible way to go, you’d get like 6 months out of it, right? How fast do kids even grow?
No, you do get a good few years out of bike seats (the rear ones). And if you have several kids (like me) you get quite a number of years of use. Then there’s also a time when the kids get on their own bikes, another really fun bit.
