We say we humans are social animals, yet how hard do we work at strengthening our relationships? With TV replacing discussion, fast food replacing meals around the table, and computers replacing game boards, our need to socialize is often left unfulfilled. Enter the tandem bicycle. Cleverly packaged as fun, tandeming doubles as a rewarding team-building exercise promoting closeness, shared effort and the attainment of common goals. In family settings, a tandem sets a positive model of companionship and cooperation for children, and deftly bridges generations. By affording easy conversation and cultivating mutual trust and respect, tandem riding can strengthen and improve any relationship. And for that special someone you want to spend more time with, your time on a tandem provides instant togetherness and grows to become a cherished form of intimacy.

Experts agree, two types of people live longer and happier - those who are married and those who stay fit. So, married people who stay fit should live the best lives of all. However, maintaining a relationship and staying fit both require many dedicated hours every week. With time at a premium, the best solution might be shared workouts. While this sounds easy, for most couples it's nearly impossible. For workouts to be effective, you must exercise at your own pace. Inevitably, even the smallest difference in fitness, motivation or ability will cause you to either drift apart (no longer exercising together) or work above or below your desired pace (reducing the effectiveness of the workout). And those ìluckyî enough to have identical abilities? They have another problem - competition; it can strain any relationship. Tandeming is the answer - it's the one activity allowing optimal workouts for both of you. Instead of working out alone, holding back or competing head-to-head, you're a team with a common goal. And because tandeming is fun (some would even say romantic), it's quality time worth repeating.

Every couple on a tandem soon makes the same discovery - people actually smile when they see you. Whether riding across town or around the globe, the universal acceptance of couples on tandems means everyone, including strangers, becomes uncommonly friendly. And while it's been said ìgetting there is half the fun,î on a tandem, getting there is the fun. Besides the benefits of cycling on singles (the intimate scale of travel, an unhurried pace, the immediacy of the elements and a landscape absorbed by all five senses), tandeming also offers the subtle rewards of teamwork - easy conversation, shared discovery and mutual accomplishment.

Tandems bring fun couples together. Folks who enjoy tandeming have much in common; strong relationships, good communication skills, advanced educations, comfortable incomes, plus affinities for the great outdoors, fitness and travel. This realization has created an ever-growing number of tandem-specific clubs, multi-day rallies, and tours.

There is a natural evolution to cycling. As a child, we learn to ride. Later we learn to ride well. Then, as we mature into meaningful relationships, we learn to do without bikes altogether. Tandeming is a more fulfilling answer - it allows you to recapture the exhilaration of youth and share it with those that matter most.