Stroller overload - advice for the weary?

[kristabelle]

Hi there,

I've been perusing the stroller posts on and off for the last couple of weeks and have gotten stroller overload. Every time I think I know what I should get, my mind changes :) I hope you all can help me figure this out.

Summary of my situation:

My daughter just turned 1, and she's in the 75% for height and 5% for weight. We live in downtown Phoenix and take walks daily = we walk to restaurants, through downtown for events, stroll through malls, etc. We're also doing some traveling over the next few months. We're open to getting two strollers, but I think we might be able to get away with one. However, if we can find decent deals, I can justify two strollers. My confession... we've been using the snugride 32 snap n go for the last year, and we have a radio flyer that we take to the downtown market and such. I probaby used the car seat/stroller too much for my daughter's first year, but I had no idea it was problematic. I thought it was designed to be used as a car seat and stroller.

Strollers we're looking at:

Baby Jogger City Mini - this is probably our top choice right now. We like the way it folds and think it'll be easy to travel with. It also has a big canopy and sounds like it can handle the downtown Phoenix terrain. Any opinions on this? Does anyone know where to go to get a better discount on them? Even eBay is coming up short on decent prices for me.

Quinny Zapp or Quinny Zapp Twine - we haven't actually been able to test these out because we haven't found a store in Phoenix that sells them. I'm intrigued by the Zapp Twine because it's supposed to have more breathable fabric, which would be nice for Phoenix summers. It does have a low weight limit, but my daughter is on the light side. Does anyone have the Zapp Twine?

Bugaboo Frog - the guy at Buy Buy Baby tried to upsell us on this one, and we do like it. I've seen it on eBay and Craigslist for some decent prices, but do we really need to spend this kind of money on a stroller?

Thanks for your advice :)

K

[arivecchi]

Have you looked at the Mountain Buggy Swift? It is an AT (all-terrain) stroller so it can handle terrain much better than the ones your are looking at, is a high-quality stroller, has a large hood (as big as the BJCM) and incredible steering. It only weighs 22 pounds and has a fairly compact fold for an AT. Mountain Buggies also sell like hotcakes on CL so you will be able to resell quickly and for good $$ if you take care of your stroller.

http://www.diapers.com/Product/ProductDetail.aspx?productId=26022

[poohbear]

I'm a big fan of the BJCM. We used our friend's when we were visiting my parents in Phoenix and it was great out there - the canopy just rocked in the AZ sun and I thought it handled well in light dirt and AZ landscaping (not as well as air tires, but I'll trade those for the 5 lbs and the ease of throwing it in the car) . (Came back home and bought one!). You can find deals if you order online or pricematch to diapers.com and use bing. You can probably get one for about $165-175ish before bing cashback... (I think I just got a new coupon from living in comfort that you can use either to order from them or to price match to diapers.com, I'll have to check my email and I'm running out now - PM me if you need it and I can send it to you)
HTH!

[salsah]

the bjcm and the swift are both great choices. i would also look at the zippy.
however since you said that you walk a lot, i think you will be happier with the air tires of the swift.

[Suzanne74]

I am not sure about this. The Mountain Buggy Swift is about $450 and it would be a tough all in one stroller if you do go to malls, restaurants and travel. It is about as close as you can get to a perfect all in one but I think for your needs, you could probably purchase on CL, a Maclaren Triumph ($80-100) and an all-terrain stroller ($200-300) for less than the cost of the Swift.

Use the AT stroller for all the walks and use the Mac Triumph (or similar umbrella stroller) for tight malls/shopping and travel.

[salsah]

I am not sure about this. The Mountain Buggy Swift is about $450 and it would be a tough all in one stroller if you do go to malls, restaurants and travel. It is about as close as you can get to a perfect all in one but I think for your needs, you could probably purchase on CL, a Maclaren Triumph ($80-100) and an all-terrain stroller ($200-300) for less than the cost of the Swift.

Use the AT stroller for all the walks and use the Mac Triumph (or similar umbrella stroller) for tight malls/shopping and travel.

i don't see nay reason why you wouldn't want to use the swift for the mall, restaurants, and travel. and if you are walking there, you'll want the air tires.

[kristabelle]

Thanks, everyone. Looks like I need to find a place that has the Swift. It was on my original list, but I didn't see one at the baby store. I have a feeling we'll still go for the BJCM, but I want to check out all my options first :)

[satchnbucky]

Thanks, everyone. Looks like I need to find a place that has the Swift. It was on my original list, but I didn't see one at the baby store. I have a feeling we'll still go for the BJCM, but I want to check out all my options first :)

I think you'd be very happy with the BJCM if that's what you end up with:)
I find that the extra 8 lbs does make a pretty big difference if you're putting the stroller in and out of the car (we have a P&T which weighs I think 25 lbs, and I don't even put it in the car unless it's absolutely necessary, though it may be more cumbersome than the Swift). If you are near a buy buy baby, I would go compare the BJCM to something Swift like in size and weight (the stroller people there can probably help you).
I think the big question is if you're looking for a stroller that you can put in your car and walk on sidewalks and in malls with - if so, then BJCM is a good bet.
FWIW - I got my BJCM for I think about $150 after discounts, bing, pricematching, etc from diapers.com, so there are deals out there (i'm sure even on mountain buggies) - we can help you find them :)

ETA - if you are traveling, you'd probably be happier with the BJCM, or if you get the swift, I'd try to find a Triumph or something like it on CL... I'm not sure if you'd want to fly with a Swift, but Arivecchi may be able to comment on that...

[Suzanne74]

i don't see nay reason why you wouldn't want to use the swift for the mall, restaurants, and travel. and if you are walking there, you'll want the air tires.

Because I personally wouldn't want to travel with a 22lb stroller that doesn't fold compact and even though it is a smaller AT stroller, the footprint (just like the BJCM) is a little PIA to weave in and out of tight clothing racks of malls and tiny restaurants.

I am just throwing the option out there to take a look at Craigslist. You can easily get 2 very good strollers for the price of the Swift if she doesn't want to settle and is having issues with cost.

[arivecchi]

OP, just FYI, you can order both the Swift and the BJCM from diapers.com and return the one you don't want for free! They also have free next day shipping! If it is your first order, you can get 10% off.

[lareigna]

Have you checked out the Indie? It has a small footprint and air tires, great basket for the malls, canopy, lighter than most AT strollers (20 pounds iirc? SQ has a review of it with all the details) and folds up nicely....

[satchnbucky]

Because I personally wouldn't want to travel with a 22lb stroller that doesn't fold compact and even though it is a smaller AT stroller, the footprint (just like the BJCM) is a little PIA to weave in and out of tight clothing racks of malls and tiny restaurants.

I am just throwing the option out there to take a look at Craigslist. You can easily get 2 very good strollers for the price of the Swift if she doesn't want to settle and is having issues with cost.

This is a good point - I got my Triumph for $85, my BJCM for $155 - both were new, but I happened to get lucky on deals with both. Another great place to look for well taken care of strollers is the strollerswap boards. Many times you have to pay shipping, but the people on the boards take excellent care of their strollers...

[Jennifer626]

I would NOT get a Frog if i were you. The Frog is a wonderful stroller for birth-12 months ish, but I don't think you need that for a toddler.

I think you should buy a BJCM and a Swift from diapers.com and play with them both. The BJ fold is AWESOME, but I personally, really love air tires.

Also, I push my BJCE through tight spaces at the mall all the time, I have never had a problem. And that stroller is HUGE.