Jog stroller show down

The Jeep Overland Limited Jogging Stroller and the BOB Revolution are three-wheel jogging strollers with similar basic design. They both track straight while running, are fast and smooth to push, and both have beefy inflatable tires to roll past cracks, small rocks and other obstacles on the sidewalk or on gentle dirt trails.

But their respective price tags -- $169 for the Jeep and $359 for the BOB –- immediately put the strollers in different product castes. One is sold at Target, the other at your local high-end bike shop.

The BOB Revolution Jogging Stroller

Up close, at first glance, I could immediately see that the BOB Revolution has a leg up in quality and craftsmanship. And at almost $200 more than the Jeep Overland it better be something special. Testing the strollers out over three months with our now nine-month-old baby the differences remained apparent, though not dramatic.

Overall, I liked the BOB Revolution more than the Jeep Overland. It is more streamlined and better built. It weighs 23 pounds and folds up small to easily fit in the trunk of my car. The Jeep Overland, in contrast, weighs 28 pounds and does not fold up very efficiently. Indeed, I could not fit the Jeep stroller in my trunk without removing the two rear wheels.

The Jeep Jogging Stroller

On the go, both strollers had similar functionality for straightforward sidewalk runs. BOB (www.bobgear.com) includes a shock-absorbing system with the Revolution, which I could not take advantage of with our baby, but might be nice for jogging off trail with toddlers. Jeep (www.jeep.com/gear) includes a hand brake on the Overland; the BOB model is brake-less. Jeep fixes the front wheel straight for tracking, but BOB allows users to release a pin and have an articulating front wheel, which is nice for maneuverability when walking slowly.

Both models have generous awnings that extend over baby to keep out harsh sun and rain. Both have aluminum frames and several pockets to stash diapers, energy gel and water bottles. The Jeep Overland even has embedded speakers and an amplifier to allow joggers to plug in a portable CD player and listen to music while running, but I felt too silly with this feature turned on to give it a thorough testing.

The harness systems on these strollers are similar. Jeep’s stroller supports kids up to 45 pounds; BOB says kids up to 70 pounds are fine in the Revolution, though I’d be amused to see a fourth grader wheeling by in a stroller like this.

In the end, if I were to purchase one of these models, I think I’d actually go with Jeep, even though the BOB model is nicer. I really do like the BOB Revolution. It’s superior in most ways to the Jeep Overland. Just not $190 superior, in my opinion.