Mark, Freya, and Courtney stand beside their bicycle mini-van, the Madsen Bucket
A few months ago, one of my neighbors spotted me taking my kids to school on our bicycle mini-van, a Trek 7200 with an Xtracycle Free Radical conversion kit and my own home made handlebars for secure child transport. Courtney e-mailed me to let me know she liked our setup and to let me know she had ordered a Madsen cargo bike. She invited me to come by and try it out once it was in to compare it to my Xtracycle. I said “yes” as I’m always in for trying out different cargo bikes.
Well, I got busy and honestly forgot to followup. Luckily, I saw Courtney riding her Madsen last week with her kiddo in the back (unfortunately from the seat of my car!) and contacted her about getting a closer look. This Saturday, I loaded up Miles & Clara in the Xtracycle, cold weather be damned, and headed over to see it.
Courtney purchased the baby blue Madison Bucket, which is a long tail cargo bike with a large 40 gallon plastic bucket over the back wheel and rack. The bucket includes seating for two adults facing each other or four children with a hauling capacity of 600 pounds. The Bucket version retails for $1299, is also available in black or cream color, and can be purchased through a dealer or from Madsen directly. It only comes in one frame size, but with a sloping, step-through top tube and a long seat post, the Salt Lake City builder claims the bike can be ridden by cyclist from 5′ to 6’6″ in height. There is also a version that comes without the bucket (just a long rack) for $1099.
I liked the overall design and build of the bike right away. The powder coat paint looked good and the inclusion of fenders, chain guard, and double footed kickstand were a welcome sight in a utility bike. (These seem like no brainers, but you’d be surprised what large bike manufactures leave out of their supposed transportation bikes.) The design is like a reverse Bakfeits, with the cargo container stretching behind instead of in front of the driver. The front wheel is 26″ while the back is a smaller 20″ to accommodate the cargo container. The overall frame had a wheel base that was several inches longer than my Xtracycle. I took it for a quick spin empty and was immediately impressed with how stable its handling was from the first pedal stroke. The combination of smaller wheels, thick tires, a long wheel base, and evenly distributed weight made the ride quiet pleasurable.
Three kids and room for a fourth.
Knowing that cargo bike can handle differently loaded (the Bakfiets are much improved with carrying cargo), I decided to jump in all the way and loaded up both my kids and Courtney’s daughter, Freya, for a longer ride around the neighborhood. The Madsen Bucket did not disappoint. It remained stable from slow to quicker speeds, and I felt little instability when the children shifted around. The lower center of gravity of passengers plus its more secure seating make this a better design for hauling people and kids especially than the Xtracycle.
While I liked the bike overall, there were some glaring component missteps that mar an otherwise elegant design. First off like virtually all U.S. bike builders, there is an unexplained aversion to swept back handlebars. Somehow we’ve forgotten how ergonomically comfortable these bars are, instead going for the ubiquitous mountain bike bar. Anyone who rides an upright position will long for these better handlebars. 
And speaking of upright positions, the saddle is a complete mismatch for the riding style. They have put a hard, thinnish performance saddle on this bike. I like firm saddles, but I could barely stand this thing after 5 minutes.
The omission of a wider saddle appropriate to upright riding is a mystery. Courtney complained to the bike shop about this, and they said the bike company puts on cheap stuff like this to save money knowing most people will upgrade to what they like. Give me a break. I know for a fact that there are super economy swept back bars and wide saddles out there. It doesn’t have to be Nitto and Brooks.
My final gripe comes with the gearing options. 8 speed is OK for regular utility bikes and is generally your best choice if you are going internal gearing (unless less you want a $1200, 14 speed Rolfoff hub), but the Madsen is not equipped with an internal hub. The choice of external gearing for a cargo bike is wise as the Nexus hubs aren’t up to hauling 600 pounds. If you are going to go external, why not give yourself more range. I only did one minor hill with the kids, but I could see how I could run out of gears really fast on something steeper or longer. If you live somewhere very flat, this will not be an issue, but anywhere else, a gearing change would probably be appropriate.
Seating for two adults or four kids with seat belts.
Courtney has lived in Amsterdam and wanted to make a stab at going car-free with this purchase. She communicated a disappointment that there has not been as much change in her transportation choices as she expected. The weight and limited gearing of the bike make it a real bear on hills so she has limited its use to around the neighborhood and to the grocery store which are flat runs.
For a company that seems to be marketing primarily to mothers, I’d say these component choices are pretty important. Women are in general much more sensitive to smaller saddles and are going to be less likely to be able to muscle up hills. I don’t think it is acceptable to expect this market, which it not likely to be the cycling enthusiast market, to have to upgrade parts out of the box. Putting a little more thought into how people actually use the bike would greatly improve this product.
Two Bike Mini-vans, side by side. Xtracycle and Madsen.
These gripes aside, I think this is a really great design in a cargo bike. It combines all of the best features of the Xtracycle and Bakfiet into one bike. While I still like the zippier, more performance oriented feel and lower entry cost of my Xtracycle Free Racial, I would seriously consider the Madsen Bucket for bicycle mini-van if I had it to do over again.
on Feb 15th, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Ya, what’s with these so called utility bikes that don’t have gears to go up hills with heavy loads. They are so busy copying bikes from the Nederlands that they forget other places have hills. Useless. Can’t even consider them.
on Feb 16th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Great review!
I have a Dutch commuter (Gazelle) and a lady flagged me down to ask where I got it… I had to explain that it was from a grad student going back to Holland because no, you can’t get them here and no, the U.S. attempts at commuter bikes aren’t quite there yet (tho’ they’re getting better…)
on Feb 16th, 2009 at 11:33 pm
How well do you think the Madsen would do with somewhat older kids? I have four-and-a-half-year-old son and a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, and am wondering when my son will physically outgrow the bucket. Would I be better off with an Xtracycle?
on Feb 17th, 2009 at 7:28 am
I think you could go several more years with your son, but keep in mind, he’s going to need to learn to ride at some point. My son is nearly 5 and we’re already looking at putting a tandem attachment on one of our bikes (we’d love another pair of legs pedaling!)
The Madsen is a more secure setup out of the box. I had to build my own handle bars to make the Xrtacycle safe for little kids. I think you’d also be able to carry more stuff in the bucket container. The Xtracycle Free Radical’s advantage is that it’s cheaper if you already own a bike and you can convert most bikes into a cargo bike. That means you can have a more performance oriented (lighter, more gear range, more aggressive seating position, mountain bike for off-road) than a traditional cargo bike. You do trade off some hauling capacity though.
on Feb 18th, 2009 at 10:38 am
Great write-up! So glad to hear that Courtney is using her MADSEN, and glad you liked it as well. Loved the unbiased points made by an xtracycle owner, great reporting. A quick clarification: our frame is not powder-coated, we specify a high quality under coat paint and clear coat, so it is often mistaken for powder coating. Also a quick note on the handle bars: The MADSEN comes with a adjustable stem and can be set in its up right position which will place the bars closer to the rider and in a higher position creating a upright riding position similar to sweptback bars. We will change saddles in the future — thanks for the input!
on Feb 18th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Jared,
Thanks for the clarifications. My issue with the handlebars is not a hortizontal/vertical adjustment issue. It’s the non-ergonomic hand position mountain bike style bars put your hands in. Most swept back bars have your hands in a very natural, non-stressing position. Mountain bars make you change your hand position to fit the bar. This may be better for handling off road, but it is unnecessary for urban road riding especially when the swept back does it better. The other advantage to swept back it that it naturally makes you more upright.
I know Sun Tour makes a very economical swept back bar if you are looking for something inexpensive to spec with the bike. I can’t remember what Sun Tour calls it, but Velo Orange sells the same bar under the name Tourist.
on Feb 19th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
Thanks for the clarification. I know the exact bars you are referring to, in fact I have similar bars on one of my bikes. At one point we were even considering moustache bars. I am sure you can imagine all we have to juggle while deciding on bike set up, keep the suggestions coming. Every one’s suggestions weigh heavily on the next generation of MADSEN bikes.
on Feb 20th, 2009 at 7:10 am
Thanks for the write-up! I’m looking to get a child-toting bike this spring and your review is really helpful. I’ve been wondering about the Madsen, but its so hard to tell what is like without seeing one in person.
on Feb 22nd, 2009 at 11:51 pm
How old is Freya? Would a strong 14 month old be secure in the seatbelt?
Thanks for the review!
on Feb 23rd, 2009 at 8:08 am
I think as long a the child can hold their head up and sit upright unaided, they should be fine. There are seat belts on each bench seat.
on Mar 1st, 2009 at 2:55 pm
[...] Austin On Two Wheels has a review of the Madsen. Incidently, Practical Cycles may be getting some in to the UK soon. [...]
on Apr 17th, 2009 at 4:21 pm
Thanks for the review. I ordered a Madsen this morning (they have a deal going on a few scratch & dent bikes) and I may also hack your PVC handle-bar idea. Loved the detailed instructions. Many thanks!
http://tacomabikeranch.blogspot.com/2009/04/another-cargo-bike-option-madsen-cycles.html
on Oct 31st, 2010 at 2:49 am
yeah there are lot of cheap stuffs that you can buy on e-bay these days including those made in china stuffs “
on Feb 21st, 2011 at 6:17 pm
@zakschwank I reviewed 1st gen Madsen few yrs ago http://bit.ly/ZZY63 Looks like they’ve addresses a lot of probs in new version.