Archive for the ‘Gear – Transport’ Category
Photo Credit: gadgetreview.com
Ruh, roh, family biking fans… We’ve covered Taga Bikes a bunch on GaGaGear, and recently learned that the convertible bike-to-stroller pioneer is not “currently out of stock” (as indicated on their web site) – they’ve hit pause as a business, awaiting new ownership.
From a partner at Taga, in response to our email: “Taga is not out of business. The company is changing owners and the production is currently on hold until the complicated transition is complete. In the meantime we provide support to our existing customers.”
That there is new ownership in the wings is most likely good news for Taga fans – certainly better than the alternative. We’re hoping new management brings their stroller-bike transformer concept out here to Portland Oregon! Portland would absolutely embrace these sort of bikes. Though recent U.S. economic news might mean some belt-tightening around the nation, you’d never know it from the popularity of bakefiets in our town. (Check out our favorite family cycle shop Clever Cycles, which just expanded its space for the third time in four mostly recessionary years!)
GaGaGear thanks The Rumor Mill for the tip, and the fine folks at Taga for the swift explanation. Good luck to all!
Photo Credit: myzigo.com (X2 featured)
Last year, we reported on Taga’s very cool and Transformer-like bike-stroller, which continues to fascinate (the company is undergoing a change in management, temporarily taking it off the market – see more here). Today, we learned about a key competitor to Taga in this convertible bike space: Zigo®, with flagship product the Zigo® Leader(TM) Carrier Bicycle System.
The Zigo Leader differs from Taga in the basic mechanical proposition. Taga features a one-piece bike-stroller chassis, where you essentially own one piece of equipment which can be deployed in a bicycle-carrier OR stroller configuration with all the same pieces intact. Leader is more of a snap-on system, which means you may lose spur of the moment flexibility (where to store the bike part if your route calls for spontaneous strolling?) but also gain single bike mode, which could be great for urban lifestyles.
Strolling mode with Taga looks a bit like Bumbleride meets shopping cart… Strolling mode with Leader is more equivalent to pushing your Chariot or Burley when detached from the bike. Overall, Taga’s aesthetic is high end/head turning, making a point of being indoor-appropriate. Leader comes out of a more active sport tradition, and looks most at home attached to the bicycle.
Priced just shy of $1,400, the Zigo Leader would appeal to folks who want options in family bicycle transport but don’t have space for a full-sized bike + traditional carrier (e.g. Chariot or Burley). The wow-cool factor isn’t as high as Taga, but there’s definitely a lot of practical-chic caché.
With Taga unavailable for the time being, Zigo has an opportunity to gain traction with the hip urban family biking crowd. The company also offers a distinct stroller/jogger/bike carrier product, branded the “Mango.” (See excellent notes on Mango from the company in the Comments section of this post.) To compete as a true stand-alone with BOB and other active stroller/joggers like Phil N’Teds, we suggest an aesthetic tweak – less of a trailer feel – it can still say “active” but it needs to look like it belongs on the sidewalk as well as the street.
Anyway – exciting to see some U.S. competition in this space! We’ll be watching…
Here’s something you won’t see on the chi chi baby gear blogs…
We recently had to get out of dodge quickly after our dishwasher caught fire and filled the house with smoke. It was my first time flying with both toddlers, and I tried to pack light, but was not going to get caught with my pants down! I am a professional. Which meant, while hastily salvaging a half dozen belongings from our basement that didn’t smell like burnt plastic and electrical soot, I grabbed my giant carabiner and said a prayer.
I wish someone had taken our picture at the airport. I had Z’s car seat over one shoulder, Z himself in the Bugaboo Bee, diaper bag stuffed in the stroller basket, Sister H walking, and another backpack with the crucial DVD player and snacks hanging off the back with the carabiner. Without Z in the seat, the whole thing tipped backward. But with everyone in place, it was a thing of beauty.
We somehow made it through security, after which Z decided he’d stay shoeless. So shoes (thanks to their little ankle loops) were added to the carabiner. Ten minutes later, a hoodie came off. Looped onto our friend with the shoes. Down the gangway, time to gate check the stroller and board the plane – quick and easy, since the carabiner kept stray items in check. And no little shoes lost on the plane – added Sister’s to the mix and kept ’em all together, no worries. Changing planes, same deal – don’t want to carry it? Just clip it on.
Fancy strollers and diaper bags sell “valet clips” – but really, don’t you just need a giant carabiner – or two? I think I got mine at the Fred Meyer checkout as an impulse buy in place of mints. Dare I suggest this as an offbeat baby shower gift? They should cost about $8 a piece, and you want at least 7″ x 3″ to fit around most stroller tubing.
Someday perhaps you’ll take up rock climbing. But in the meantime, you’ll just rock.
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