icandy apple jogger + gravel = disaster?

[sevenmoons]

Hi I've hunted high and low for any info on the icandy apple and how it performs on gravel. I have a new home with a long gravel drive and currently having to carry my pram over the gravel which is a massive hassle. I wanted to get the icandy apple, but now think the jogger version might be better for the gravel- but as there isn't much specific info on the icandy website I thought I'd ask on here for anyones actual experiences. Do they work well on gravel??

I don't want to buy one only to find I have to carry it again!

Thanks everyone much appreciated

 

[Mindy_mini]

I dont have any experience but I'd say most prams are going to be a nightmare on gravel unless you go for a big wheeled off road type thing. Just my opinion

 

[sevenmoons]

Thanks Mindy mini, I'm sure that's the right thing to do, although I was led to believe the apple jogger was an all terrain push chair that's why I thought it would be good, but their website is so vague about it.

I don't much about other all terrain prams, but I really want it to be parent facing and preferably easy to connect a car seat, not so keen on those massive 3 wheeled one and it seems a shame to have to get one just for the gravel drive, once I'm over that it's just normal town pavements nothing off road,maybe I should move house again.. ha ha

 

[Bexx]

I have an (older) iCandy with the jogger wheel, though I don't use it any more.

We have a gravel driveway too and it is one of the hardest surfaces for pushchairs to cope with (beach sand is probably the worst though!). The iCandy handled it pretty well for a mainstream pushchair. Because the wheels are a sensible size and they have suspension, it's a reasonably smooth ride and not too tough to push. Our driveway hasn't been well cared for and has lots of pits and weeds as well which makes it that more awkward.

Three-wheelers do seem to be better suited to harsh terrain. I'd avoid anything like a Quinny though as they are what I'd call "fashion three-wheelers" lol.

I have had a rather annoying issue woth the iCandy jogger wheel however. It has a tendency to get stuck at an angle and cause the pushchair to come to a complete stop. The only way to correct it is to lift the front end up until the wheel rotates back into a better position. I'm not the only one who has experienced this problem and it can happen in dangerous situations such as when crossing a road.

I live in the country and like to take the buggy off-road on walks through fields and such. Because I do this often, I now use a Baby Jogger Summit XC which has 16" rear wheels so can cope really well with this. I also own a Stokke Xplory for more everyday use. The latter struggles a bit with our driveway, but it's not so bad if you pull it backwards!

 

[Eala]

You can buy an all-terrain front wheel for the Quinny Buzz 3 which vastly improves its off-road capabilities. I have taken it over gravel and even through several inches of snow around a country park What I'd say is that you really need to always lock your front wheels if you are going across gravel, sand, cobbles etc. Doesn't matter what pushchair you have, really, the front wheel(s) should be locked otherwise they just get pushed to one side or the other by the uneven terrain, which is what makes them dig in.

 

[CLH_X3]

i have a normal icandy .. not the jogger wheel and its a nightmare to push over gravel!!... i always lift it and then push when im on normal road!!

 

[sevenmoons]

Thanks for all the replies, weirdly I've seen loads of quinny's out today and not really liking them much. CLH it's good to know your struggling with gravel with the 4 wheeled one- well not good but you know... useful

I have found an icandy apple on ebay I like it had 4 wheels though, so asked the seller if it was possible to buy the jogger wheel separately and fix, she said she had a jogger frame and would happily swap them over.

Me being difficult, read on the icandy website that you can't convert the jogger to a 4 wheeled one, but you can convert a 4 wheeled one to a jogger. I wanted the best of both, so asked if I can stick with the 4 wheel frame and buy a separate jogger wheel, but now I think that's just being greedy. And as CLH has said the 4 wheeled one is no good on gravel I may as well just go for the jogger and just never be able to convert to a 4 wheel.

If i bought the 4 wheel one, I would have to buy a jogger wheel and there are only a few on ebay which are £50 or so...not sure how'd they attach either...

So sorry for the brain splurge there, just really want to get it right as have awful back ache from carrying my pram over the gravel and would love to be able to just push my son over it easily...here's hoping!

 

[Bexx]

hun, I have the four wheel version and bought the jogger wheel to use instead. It works fine, but you do need to have a screwdriver handy when changing the wheels, you can't just instantly swap them over.

 

[CLH_X3]

How much do iCandy apples fetch second hand ? Just wondering ...

 

[Bexx]

I paid £180 for mine off eBay a couple of years ago and it came with the carrycot too. I think they still go for something similar, unless you want a nearly new model with all the trimmings. Then it can be upwards of £400.