Bikes

I really like to ride bikes and I love that the kids are getting to an age when we can do it together. Andy can ride without training wheels but he likes them for comfort still (fine by me). Meg likes her tricycle but she's not fast enough to keep up. I have been letting her ride in the bike trailer (see below), but she's too big to want to be towed in what is really a big stroller. And I'm not patient enough to listen to her insist she wants to ride and then have to carry her and her bike half way around the block while begging Andy to slow down.

I'm starting to do some research now on the next step - the trailer bike. These are little half-bikes that attach to the back of the bicycle. The kid gets to pedal and help, a little, but if they do nothing, at least you're towing them vs. towing the kid and the trike.

I was all set to do this until a friend on Facebook recommended I look into a different invention, a bike tow hitch. Basically, you can attach the kids' bike to this trailer hitch and tow him/her like the trailer bike with the advantage of letting them ride on their own until they can't any longer, then hooking them up. I see potential. This could also be useful since sometimes I'd like to meet Andy after school to ride home, but there's no way really to get both our bikes up to the school unless we rode up there together at 7:20 in the morning. And if you know me, you know that just ain't happening.

Anyone have experiences with these, positive, negative, indifferent?