Stroller Q

[Deleted]

Ok, are these City Select strollers really as great as they seem to be marketed as? The stroller section gives me high anxiety. My biggest problem is that Dh and I are tall and a lot of strollers DH hits either the storage or the back cross bar when he walks. We haven't been able to get near a city select since the stroller section is always packed at our BBB. I'm currently leaning towards the Graco Modes, a lightweight travel system with a ton of configurations that doesn't mess up Dh's stride too much. It also has a super easy one hand collapse.   I would love thoughts and opinions on strollers.

[sdgal]

I will be following this thread since DH is 6'6"

link this is an older website, but it did recommend the Baby Jogger brand

[Deleted]

Jul 5, 2016 16:29:51 GMT -5 sdgal said:

I will be following this thread since DH is 6'6"

link this is an older website, but it did recommend the Baby Jogger brand

I'm bookmarking that site! Dh is 6'3'' and his shoe size is a 14 4E. Anything my 5'11'' frame was ok with he was kicking or stepping on.
Save

[mrswillie]

Yes!! I was just "selling" it in the Tuesday randoms thread. DH wasn't sold when he saw the price, but once I brought it home and he got to use it and see how it fit in the car, he was sold! We also have the glider board attachment that DS1 likes to stand on at times.

Let me know if there are any other Q's in particular you have about it.
www.goodbyecb.proboards.com/thread/110375

[sdgal]

Jul 5, 2016 16:41:45 GMT -5 @cahistoryteacher said:

Jul 5, 2016 16:29:51 GMT -5 sdgal said:

I will be following this thread since DH is 6'6"

link this is an older website, but it did recommend the Baby Jogger brand

I'm bookmarking that site! Dh is 6'3'' and his shoe size is a 14 4E. Anything my 5'11'' frame was ok with he was kicking or stepping on.
Save

My DH shoe size is 17!! Kicking the stroller is a real concern. That is why I think a jogging stroller might be the best bet because the rear axle seems to be higher off the ground to accommodate the larger tires. And the website says that the City series have better maneuverability that other joggers. 

I'm just 5'6" so I shouldn't have too much of an issue.

[Deleted]

sdgal, well I won't complain about getting Dh his shoes anymore! We saw some joggers, but the cost of them and the bulk was not enough to convince me of a full fledged jogger.

[Lucy]

H and I are both 5'5", so we can get away with most strollers. I can say that on the rare occasion that I used one that I was too tall for (usually umbrellas) as a nanny, it was AWFUL. The backache from slouching while pushing something come quickly You definitely need a stroller that works for your height, whichever it may be. Strollers are awkward and a pain to begin with. Pushing one that's uncomfortable is just plain sucky.

When you get a chance to test some out, don't just push them around empty either. Toss something somewhat heavy in that puppy, because a full stroller steers a lot differently than an empty one. When you have a 20+ lb baby in there, you'll also most likely have a diaper bag, and water bottles and whatever else you toss in the basket.

Check your stride when you walk with it too. Especially if you're tall. Kicking a stroller you're trying to push while you're trying to walk somewhere quickly is annoying.

[mrswillie]

I also found this video I watched before purchasing.
m.youtube.com/watch?v=LoUq_sZKi-U

I believe only the Summit single and double can be used for jogging. The City Select is not intended for jogging.

[hmr11913]

We bought the Graco Snugride infant car seat/stroller combo from Toys R Us and love it... it's super easy to fold down (one handed), fits in the trunk of my Chevy Cruze easily with plenty of left over room and the carseat snaps in really easily and has a cover from the front to back incase it's windy and has a "window" so you can have that down and still see baby.

Super nice if you're shorter (I'm 5'3 and DH is 5'10) and looking for a single stroller.

[mrswillie]

hmr11913 That's what I had with DS1, but I think it was bigger at the time because it was the classic and not the click connect. I think they make them a little smaller now, but still with the same features. I loved it until I needed the second seat.

ETA: Does it still have the option to seat them forward or toward you when they get bigger and can sit in the stroller? I liked that!

[hmr11913]

Mine doesn't have the option to have her sitting in the actual stroller and facing me although she loves it the way it is bc she likes to be looking out. At least if it does have that option, I'm not aware of it LOL.

She's only facing me if she's in the infant seat

[kaydee0402]

DH and I are not tall people. We got the Graco click connect travel system. It was a jogging stroller/car seat combo. We both run so it worked well for us. It was also easy to open and close (I managed both fine after a c-section) and could fit in the back of our Ford Escape and Ford Focus.

That being said, I'm OBSESSED with my new double Bob. It's made for running not just on the pavement, but off road too. It's incredibly lightweight, much lighter than my Graco. I took it for a test run this weekend (we won't discuss how silly I looked pushing a double stroller with only one baby in it) and it was so easy to steer one handed while running, which is something I could never do with my Graco.

If you have the funds, I strongly recommend a Bob. You can find them used on yard sale groups and Craig's List for a decent price. Mine retails for $850 (http://www.bobgear.com/strollers/revolution-se-duallie) and I bought it used for $300 from someone who bought it new but only had it for a year (she's expecting her third so she needed to upgrade)

[tbonequeen13]

We bought 2 strollers for DD- a Baby Trend jogging stroller and a Graco stroller to go with her car seat....and we've basically only used the jogging stroller. It's slightly bulky when folded, but it rolls so easy and her infant car seat worked with it until she was big enough to sit up. I like the 3 wheels better than 4, I like that I can take it anywhere, and I like that it has lots of storage and reclines nicely. We're not buying another stroller for this kid b/c DD can use an umbrella stroller now, but I would buy another jogging stroller if we were buying another.

[emilie]

Stroller / car seat systems are so intimidating! They cost so much and I feel like the options are so overwhelming. Since I live in the city and park on the street, I think I definitely want something that works with an infant car seat so I can carry the nugget from the house to the car with minimal drama. (Let's just hope she doesn't outgrow her carseat too quickly - someone on here saying their kid outgrew their infant car seat by month 4 really freaked me out!)

It sounds like some of you have some good lightweight jogging stroller recs above. Does anyone know if a stroller with the following requirements even exists?

1) lightweight/can be folded/carried with one hand
2) works with infant car seat
3) can work on hiking trails that are dirt/gravel
4) (nice to have but not 100% necessary) expandable to a double if we are lucky enough to have a #2

Thanks, I am totally clueless about this stuff. Whenever I read about stroller options online my head starts to spin.

[tbonequeen13]

emilie, our Baby Trend meets most of those...it's fairly lightweight but I don't know that you could carry it with one hand (due to size, not weight)..it takes 2 hands to hit the switches to collapse it but after that you could use 1 hand. It works with a infant seat and we've used it on gravel. It's not expandable, however.

DD is was in her infant seat for 6 months and could have gone longer but DH got hit by an idiot driving and we had the insurance buy us a bigger car seat instead of replacing it with another infant one...and to be honest, she was about ready to transition (she was getting HEAVY with that seat). I had a Graco that went up to 35lbs and she's 3 and just barely at that weight now. Just make sure you look at the car seats with a higher weight limit if you want LO in there longer.

[kaydee0402]

emilie, I can't think of any strollers that fit all of those recommendations, especially your travel systems, which is what you want if you're looking for something that goes with an infant seat.

I know Bob's tend to be lightweight and they do make car seats that go with them, however, I'm not familiar with where those car seats rank. Obviously they pass safety standards, but how they compare with Britax, Graco and Diono, I'm not sure. You might be able to carry a single Bob with one hand, but I don't know, I only have the double. And as far as I know, they don't make them expandable.

You can try messaging the Baby Guy (he's on Facebook). He has great product knowledge and I think you can submit questions to him. He might have some great recommendations.

[sdgal]

Jul 6, 2016 15:19:54 GMT -5 kaydee0402 said:

emilie , I can't think of any strollers that fit all of those recommendations, especially your travel systems, which is what you want if you're looking for something that goes with an infant seat.

I know Bob's tend to be lightweight and they do make car seats that go with them, however, I'm not familiar with where those car seats rank. Obviously they pass safety standards, but how they compare with Britax, Graco and Diono, I'm not sure. You might be able to carry a single Bob with one hand, but I don't know, I only have the double. And as far as I know, they don't make them expandable.

You can try messaging the Baby Guy (he's on Facebook). He has great product knowledge and I think you can submit questions to him. He might have some great recommendations.

I think Bob's is now owned by Britax, so they are now designed to work together. And/or the new Bob's car seats are made by Britax

[Deleted]

So I've answered my own question. We went last night and had the whole stroller section to ourselves. Dh was like "ughh, I don't care what we get" then he tried the City Select and was in awe. He said it was so much better than the Graco for his stride and he loved how much the handle bar telescoped out. He was also amazed when I showed him how easy it is to add the infant seat and make it a double in the future. While it is a bit more heavy then the Graco it just felt more solidly built and maneuvered great. So yes, they do appear to be all they are hyped to be.

[emilie]

Jul 8, 2016 13:05:11 GMT -5 @cahistoryteacher said:

So I've answered my own question. We went last night and had the whole stroller section to ourselves. Dh was like "ughh, I don't care what we get" then he tried the City Select and was in awe. He said it was so much better than the Graco for his stride and he loved how much the handle bar telescoped out. He was also amazed when I showed him how easy it is to add the infant seat and make it a double in the future. While it is a bit more heavy then the Graco it just felt more solidly built and maneuvered great. So yes, they do appear to be all they are hyped to be.

Do you know if it works on gravel or trails?

[Deleted]

emilie, my understanding that the brand Baby Jogger has several lines within the brand. The City line isn't really meant for trails but they have another line that is better for that. The city select isn't even a jogger, it has 4 wheels. That being said it appears to have substantial wheels and nice rubber tires(a definite step up from the Graco), the front ones can be locked in place if you do go on an unstable surface. I think if you plan on a lot of gravel/trails you should look at the other Baby Jogger lines or a true jogger stroller.

[mrswillie]

@cahistoryteacher I love your answer. It is a little heavy, as any double stroller is, but it's not nearly as awkward for me to get into the car by myself as was Graco Ready2Grow we originally had.