Just bought ourselves a Madsen cargo bike!

[WriConsult]

Glad to hear from another Madsen owner. It really is one of the best cargo bike setups out there, even without taking the price into consideration. Still a great deal at the regular price. I can honestly say I would prefer it to the Bakfiets type designs even if we hadn't been able to get the Madsen for 1/3 the price.

Those sound like nice upgrades that you've done. We have installed two blinky taillights on the back. They're just below the horizontal line where the bucket narrows, so a thief can't use the quick release to remove them. Other than that, a better saddle, and a bell and bottle holder, we haven't done any upgrades. I do still plan on upgrading the weak brakes, and I also like your idea of putting in a flag like we have on our trailers.

Now that my son's grown into his Burley trailerbike (tagalong), he prefers that for longer rides. We haven't used our Madsen anywhere near as extensively as you have, but we still like it for grocery-getting, and for last-minute races to the bus stop in the morning when we don't want to fuss with getting the trailerbike attached.

[BioGuy]

that bike is crazy! I am a gardner, I wonder how much dirt I could fit in that thing?? Looks like a real human powered cargo trailer. It also kind of reminds me of a bicycle built for two in a way. Great bike!

[WriConsult]

I have a 4cf (standard size) wheelbarrow, and I think it could hold at least one wheelbarrow load of dirt if not two.

[roxanne113]

Originally Posted by MinivanOn2wheels

I now also refer to it as the minivan bike cause the only thing it doesn't have is a DVD player in the back (hmmm... )

Have you mounted the portable DVD player yet? Hello fellow Portlander! We did the Burley thing until I got my ds on his own 2 wheels - He started at 5. Anyway, we just became full-time bikers by selling our second car a couple of weeks ago. Anyway, I found these super-handy rubber-coated metal baskets for grocery shopping and I love them.

Not as big as the bucket, but I can get quite a few groceries hauled home.

The Madsen doesn't work for us since we live in an upstairs apartment and I couldn't fathom trying to get that things upstairs.

[aca2983]

I lived in Denmark for a short while and am familiar with all sorts of cargo bikes such as this.

If you think bikes in Denmark can handle lots of cargo, you should see their baby carriages. I swear some of them are bigger than some cars. I saw them loaded with cases of beer, groceries, and all kinds of other stuff, with a little baby stuffed in there also, asleep and snug as a bug in a rug as they say.

[herm]

Please post a picture with all the kids loaded up, I would love to see that