Abandon The Tandem ! (Graco Stadium Duo Tandem Travel System)

Member Name: jusophine

Product:	Graco Stadium Duo Tandem Travel System
Date:	01/02/01 (1939 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fits narrow spaces

Disadvantages: Heavy, difficult to stear .

I opted for the Graco Stadium because it seemed to be well suited for 2 children of different ages. I liked the fact that I could go where ever single pushchairs went, and although it is hard to slip in to a cosy resturant with it, I suspect it would be just as difficult with a double buggy.

I find my 'Duo'looks great and folds reasonably easily, but despite plumping for what I thought was one of the lighter duo pushchairs(weighing 11.7kg), find it difficult to heave into the boot of the car.

The older child sits up front and this means the heaviest child has to be lifted when going up a curb. Stearing can be tricky too, on a 'long haul' shop the palms of my hands get red and sore with the effort required to stear. When I first saw the tandem in the shop, I pushed it round through all the narrow gaps and tight bends. Murray Walker would have been proud of my driving skills, I was well chuffed, thinking that I had really put it through it's paces. I wasn't going to be caught out like I had been when I bought my '2 in 1' pram for my son(heavy and fairly difficult to stear). I even put my son in it, he loved it and got quite excited! Now consider the additional weight of a baby in the back and shopping on board, not to mention the ever increasing weight of both children. Big mistake. The once nimble, gliding wheels take on all the characterics of a Sherman tank!

I find the back seat could do with more than just 2 back settings, the baby can either be upright or completely flat, and very young babies would find the upright position too steep. Even more ludicrous, the front seat does not provide any head and neck support what so ever for a toddler falling asleep. My son has only managed a nap a couple of times out of exhaustion with his upper body and head hanging out to the side of the buggy (at risk of banging into things!!).

The Graco provides a good sized area beneath the seats for stor
age of shopping ect, but is really difficult to access when the rear seat is in the flat position. You can probably see this from just looking at the photo. You can get small items through the gaps along the side or slightly larger if you undo a series of poppers, a bit of a pain when your out and about.

Overall, despite all these faults, I still find using the tandem a fun way of transporting my little family from A to B in one go. Getting two children around is always going to be harder than one, but I do still think I could have made a better choice. I would be interested to know if any of you have any comments based on your experiences!

At the end of the day I might consider abandoning the tandem were it not for the financial investment already made in the product. Consider the choices well!!!

Summary: