All Terrain Stroller - Any recommendations?

[dubbogod]

Hi, I've been reading the boards, looking over recommendations and thought I'd put it to all of you stroller experts out there. DS is a year old, and once my other two start school I will be doing a bit of walking with him. I am looking for a stroller that will take me to the dog park (gravel and bark mulch trails), but also to the mall or down the street. I don't want to spend $400 on a stroller, but I don't want something that will fall apart either. A nice sized basket would be a plus also, along with a canopy of some sort. I've made do with my Graco Literider, which is about 5 years old now, and the Combi SUBV for quick trips. I must admit, I quite like the Graco for mall trips, the basket is big and it steers great, but it's useless on any kind of bumpy terrain, etc. I've thought about the Zoopers, and a friend had a Walk Air that was gorgeous, but I'd prefer a swivel front wheel. We're off to Australia in a month, and I know they have a huge selection of jogging/all terrain strollers there, and I wonder whether to get one there. Any ideas?

[egoldber]

I did quite a bit of research on swivel front wheel all-terrain strollers/joggers a few months ago. The cheaper options appear to be the Instep Safari TT and Kolcraft Jeep Liberty. The more expensive options are the Kiwi Explorer and Mountain Buggy Urban. There also prams with "steerable" front wheels, like the Bertini Shuttle.

I ended up with the Instep Safari TT and I am VERY happy with it. It steers like a dream, is relatively lightweight, and is sturdy enough for my purposes. I wouldn't take it on a mountain trail, but on gravel/mulch trails it works great. It has a large basket underneath, a large pocket in the back, a pretty good sized canopy, a removable parent's tray, a removable child's tray and a front napper bar. I have never used mine at the mall, but I think it would be fine. I saw someone using one at the mall once and it seemed fine. It is no larger than say, than a Graco stroller from a travel system.

HTH,

[HelenR]

I got a Mountain Buggy Terrain from New Zealand. I live in California now but my Mom bought it over with her when I had my son. He loves it. He's been using it since the day he was born - it has a full recline seat, a large canopy and you can purchase a UV sun visor that covers the entire front so no sun will get in. I also got the seat cover with head support which makes it extremely comfy for my son. They also make an urban version which has a swivel front wheel. I haven't tried this but I hear it is very good. I use my buggy for running and neighbourhood walks and I've been extremely pleased with it. The basket is great and you can also rest a lot of stuff on top of the canopy. For a dealer near you visit www.mountainbuggy.com. You can also buy these in Australia too.