The Chariot is one of the options out there for active families.
By Heidi Ahrens
When it comes to transporting children there are a lot of choices out there. As a family you sometimes feel like you need an umbrella stroller for the car, a good sturdy jogging stroller for expeditions, not to mention a stroller that is car seat compatible, one that is great for airports. So what is a family to do if they also want to bike with their child or Nordic ski?
Here is where the Chariot comes in handy.My family lives in Chariot Country. Carbondale, Colorado is filled with families pushing, pulling and gliding along with Chariots. We sometimes joke that there are more Chariots in town then cars.
I have to say two things here: One, the chariot is very expensive and two their customer service is not very good.
As a family we have tried other bike trailers but have found the Chariot to be the best overall. It is a good child carrier that stays on securely and offers a smooth ride to your children. Some even mountain bike with theirs. As a jogging stroller, it is not the best since the handle is not adjustable; so it can’t be tailored to different runners’ needs and the wheels don’t always track straight. For skiing, you remove the wheels and ad the skiing accessory to the Chariot. It works well but it is quite heavy and does not offer much room for extra gear.
Chariot offers many different trailers from single riders to double, systems with suspension to ones with no suspension. The Chariot comes with basic wheels and you need to invest more for the jogging kit, the bike attachment kit or the cross country skiing attachment kit.
The Chariots with suspension have a bit of an angled seat so it more comfortable for kids who fall asleep, but the storage area is on the exterior. The non-suspension Chariot has more of a straight back seat but is more streamlined because of its interior storage area.
All chariots can be made to accommodate infants. Chariot ( The Brand) does not recommend the use of the Chariot with infants while cycling or doing anything else but strolling. They have a lot of other accessories available; for example, to hold coffee, keys, etc. It is easy and cheap to buy additional hardware to have multiple bikes able to pull the chariot.
If you bring your Chariot to the airport they will let you go through the handicap security area since it does not go through the machine.They will manually inspect it and at the gate you need to fold it up.
If you are an active outdoor family that does not want to buy multiple strollers The Chariot may be the ideal product for you.
Heidi Ahrens is the owner of OutdoorBaby.net a free information sharing website for families who enjoy the outdoors. She is mom to two daughters under the age of four and she has been ‘chariotting’ for four years now.
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