OK, so this is a kind of "Say wha'?" subject, but here's the deal...

I just bought one of those kid seats (a Topeak) that fits up in back of me for WeeVee. I was planning on putting it on my GT Avalanche but after reviewing the installation instructions and checking out the bike it ain't going to work (that i can see). So, I also have this 20-sumpin' year old Trek 610 - loved the bike, raced it a few times in bi... oops sorry, duathlons (back in my day we were allowed to say biathlon) with modest success. I'm figuring I should retrofit this thing to be my beater baba-hauler - first thing to go will be the one-piece aero bars that I put on myself in favor of some flat bars. Any thoughts on what else I should do to make this work? Or should I just trade it in for a cheap hybrid?

Don't trade it in for a hybrid. Hybrids are for washed up old men with bad ankles.

Ooops, sorry.

Kid on the back? Been there, done that. I'd put a fat tire on the back to handle the extra weight. Like a 700x35 touring tire. If the brake pads are old, replace them with something long and/or soft to get some extra stopping power.

And for the pinnacle of dorkiness, consider a mirror of some kind. Knowing what's happening behind you is just plain smart; all the more so with the youngin' aboard.

Finally, make sure your pedal system is such that you will not get stuck in the pedals at a red light. This is embarrassing when it happens to you, but with a child in back...<shiver> I know, you say you mastered the foot release years ago. But this is your old bike. Maybe you need to remember something different. Like when you go back to a standard transmission after driving an auto for years. You just forget to step on the clutch at bottom of the exit ramp.

I think you are intelligent enough to know this, but... Just in case. Please do buy WeeVee a properly fitting helmet and wear one yourself. There is nothing that irks an ER nurse more than another moron who went and crashed a bike sans helmet. We are not very good at fixing people with broken heads. It usually ends badly.

Like a 700x35 touring tire.

Probably the best I can manage is a 27 x 1 3/8 (this thing is old). I'll check out what I can do with the brakes (I'll need to replace the levers anyway when I swap out the bars).

Hadn't thought of the mirror - maybe a discrete little helmet-mounted job.

Oh man, not more pedal wrench action - how hard do you think it's going to be shifting 20+ year old pedals?

Thanks for the ideas though Mike - more to add to the list.

Please do buy WeeVee a properly fitting helmet and wear one yourself.

Do you know how hard it is to find a kids helmet that doesn't have dopey characters on it? The best looking thing I could find was a Catlike but they no longer have US representation. Sheesh. But I persevered and found something and actually had the helmet a couple of days before the seat arrived. And I (nearly) always wear mine just like I (nearly) always wear my climbing helmet. Of course that would only apply if i were to actually climb anything but that's a whole other story...