[Closed] trying a 7 month old on a bike

too young, whats the rush?

He can hold his head up well now so we're just going to start experimenting

but they don't hire for babies under 1

might be a bit of a reason for that

I hate to say this but you do appear to be rushing things, I ve got two kids fwiw and I do sympathise slightly however if its advice you really want and not the go ahead from sme cyber mates the please use a bit of common and wait a couple of years, you will greatly reduce the risks and therefore you and the little un will enjoy it more, chances are you will scare the kid bmping along on a bike. If you do go ahead then expect a bit of strange looks on the trail.

meh... Mine was in his weeride from about that age, but I wasn't going off road (smooth paths through local park), would have wobbled his little head off.

Wee ride Kangaroo is very good - a little cold though as get the full force of the wind so wrap them up double warm.

Sorry but +1 for 7 months being too early!!

I'll be slated for this, but for a little un like that put them in a chest mounted carrier, like you might for walking. You're less likely to fall off as it won't affect the balance of the bike. There are some lovely trails at the end of the woods nearer to Dalbeattie. Also walk/bike the trails between Rockcliffe and Kippford - lovely views.
http://www.mothercare.com/BabyBjorn-Baby-Carrier-Active---Black/Silver/933568,default,pd.html

Ours was in a copilot seat from 1 year old but she's diddy (25th percentile). Smallest hat we could find was the Weeride Spike but even that was too big.

You're less likely to fall off as it won't affect the balance of the bike.

ummmmmmmm......
sounds a wee bit like a crapshoot, no?
fully enclosed trailer (with blankets and such) on a fireroad is the furthest i'd go with a wean that young.

I agree...too young for that kind of thing. holding their own head js fine when not moving around but it is totally different on a bike with direction and speed changes frequently.
I took my 2 month old for a spin round our village in a papous...she was strapped to my chest and slept all the way through the half hour pedal, but she was comfy and in a familiar position that didn't move much...familiar is a loose term given she was lnlg 2 months old but I'd be tramping the streets with her like that for weeks before. no hills, no main roads and only roundabouts on a housing sstate so I deemed it perfectly safe...saying that, I wouldn't have taken her offroad and the speed aas very low so ghere was no sudden change of speed.
I'd wait before taking an adventure offrod, but that is my personal view.
have a good holiday, whatever you decide!

I wouldnt use anything but a trailer and worth the expense now as you will get years of use out of it.

[img] [/img]
Crack on

too young in general IMHO
I did this with mine, at that age, but put the car seat in the trailer.
Chest thingy might work as well but the risk of crashing is you may land on them so I dont think i would risk it personally

Patience my young padawan , patience.

I took mine in a trailer when they were about that old - but like JY says they were strapped into a car seat attached to the trailer. Far too young for anything else. Are you getting the message yet?

Everybody's perception of risk is different, but riding with a baby in a chest carrier is madness IMHO - the chances of something happening might be low, but they're far from non-existent, and the potential consequences are very high. I'll point out that in general I'm far from being the sort of parent to wrap my kids in cotton wool (I built my son a jump ramp for his bike for his 5th birthday!)

Too young. My 2 y/o generally falls asleep and gets floppy headed. I wouldn't dream of putting a 7 month old on the back/front/crossbar. I doubt you'd get a helmet to fit either.

Must be trolling.

My son went into a baby seat on our touring tandem (Topeak Babysitter) at three months. At five months he sat through a cylosportive and at seven months he sat there for the 700+km of the semaine fédérale. He slept most of the time.

The consequences of a crash when strapped into a baby seat are low, we tested this by dropping the tandem with him in the seat, he was completely unscathed, not even upset (though mum had a minor flap).

[img] https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-zAHF_7nVITM/UhoCX30Nl6I/AAAAAAAAAI8/u2da8ctYXnw/w958-h633-no/Scan0007b.tif [/img]

At two and a half they can pedal:

[img] https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-BSr_1PwBWXw/UhoGO5snwPI/AAAAAAAAAJw/2LWOzAXz0s0/w811-h554-no/Scan0033.tif [/img]

He can hold his head up well now so we're just going to start experimenting

and if you put a helmet on him, you'll double the weight of his head, thus the above statement will be worthless.
Plenty time. Assume risk for yourself, but it is selfish to be doing this with a wee bairn.

As for Edukator's advice - not something any responsible cyclist / parent I know would do.

Take Grandma/pa along with you, and let them have a pleasant time in the café and a short stroll while you are the Missus got for a ride.

None of my 3 would have been strong enough at that age, nor tbh at twice that age.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I've just been out to buy him a 29er. He'll grow into it so we'll try him on that first on the slab before we do anything risky.

I can't believe how irresponsible you are not to buy him a 650b

I nearly went for a bmx but thought that was just silly. He's too big.

We took youngest Poly in a car seat strapped into a trailer. No helmet as we couldn't find one that would fit, and even if we had within a trailer the bulk forces head forward. Only used on gentle routes with very little bouncing.

I can't believe how irresponsible you are not to buy him a 650b

lmfao... 😀

As for Edukator's advice - not something any responsible cyclist / parent I know would do.

Do elaborate, Too Tall. I think you are perhaps a bit young to have kids of your own so as you are unlikely to have tried it I'm intrigued as to why you think transporting children on bicycles is irresponsible. Visit Holland and you'll find lots of babies moving around on bikes and yet they grow up into fine, healthy adults.

Crazhy Dutch adults though. Must be their heads bobbing about all the time. 🙂

Edukator - where is your childs head in the first picture? doesn't look very comfy for 700k

From about 1 month our wee lad was out in the trailer. We used a standard cheapo trailer from eBay with a cradle for his Maxicosi Cabriofix infant car seat. The seat locked into place and the cradle was isolated via vibration isolating mounts. He notched many miles, mainly asleep. We rolled it once clipping a tree-stump. He woke up.

At about one year he moved onto a Bobike Mini, which he absolutely loves. It is important for your little one to be able to hold their head up and for more off-road stuff, to be able to anticipate bumps. I always say "Bumps" and our wee lad is ready. We've ridden widely, including Caddon Bank.

Number 2 arrived on Tuesday, and will be out in the trailer soon. A secure seat in a trailer with the vibration isolating maounts and soft tyres must be more comfy than his pram.

Cheers TroutWrestler, but too late. I've already reported myself to the NSPCC and I've been arrested. I'm going down.

Another child orphaned.

Break an egg into a jar with out breaking the yolk put the lid on the jar . The yolk is your babies brain if you can ride with the jar on the bike without the yolk breaking then your under child under one maybe ok. I counted down to 12 months before crankbrat got to be in the child seat on the bike.

Ive had mine in babyseats and trailers before they were one, and they were all fine.

But maybe im reckless - I did actually go over the handlebars when I was 8 months pregnant with my second. Thankfully he was fine and walking around 10 months so i really had no problem with him being in a seat on my bike.

He is now 20 and seems fine, and he actually thinks its cool that he had his first bike accident before he was born - definitely an experience I wouldnt recomend though!

All babies are different and develop at different speeds. I've just bought a seat for our 6 month old but as she very strong and can already pull herself up and stand holding the furniture. Our first child I wouldn't have put in a seat until about 10-12 months.

My nephew has been cycling in kangaroo seat since he was about 6 months old. But he is very physically adept compared to other kids the same age. He loves the "Bo Bo!"

I took my son to daycare in a front-mounted seat from 7 1/2 months. 7km on quiet roads and off-road cycle lanes (concrete/asphalt). Back then I'd slow right down to walking pace for things like dropped kerbs, even a 1" kerb face causes a reasonable bump. But then my son is a bit of a monster physically (99th percentile height & weight) and very, err, robust, for want of a better word.

There can be a world of difference physically between kids at that age. Some will be pulling themselves up on furniture, some will not even have rolled over yet. Most will be somewhere in-between. So while it may be generally unsuitable to put a kid in a bike seat that early, for some kids it is fine. Having said that, off-road is a whole different beast, even the small but constant wobbling from fire roads could be very tiring for a big head on a small neck.

Too Tall. I think you are perhaps a bit young to have kids of your own so as you are unlikely to have tried it I'm intrigued as to why you think transporting children on bicycles is irresponsible.

Shows what you think then. Wrong on a couple of counts. I don't think transporting children on bikes is irresponsible - I think putting children in safety equipment that is not designed for them to be pretty irresponsible. I also think that intentionlly dropping a child whilst attached to that safety equipment to prove your point to be something worthy of Mrs E kicking you hard in the plums.

I think its madness to put a child in a seat at that age.

Luckily most parents are good at assessing their own childrens abilities and take the appropriate precautions  to keep them safe.

It really is not about the child's abilities it is about the physical structure of the brain and It's development. The neck strength is also an issue . Every one gets the reason why you don't shake a baby don't they ?

Obviously the 12 month guideline is arbitrary but there is good reason behind it and 7 to 9 months is way too early to be exposing the child to the risk of sustained jolts.

Now off out to test my child's car seat by strapping him in and crashing the car.

Do you all think I'm going to be rattling him about down the reds and blacks? Not a chance. Chances are I wouldn't even get him out of the car park. The point of my post was that I wanted to try him in a crossbar seat, much as I've tried him in a high chair, various slings, bouncers and car seats.

Only on stw could a perfectly reasonable question have someone branded irresponsible, crazy, mad and that I'm putting their child at risk.

Do you have a big pencil sharpener for your pitch forks?

For those who've given reasoned advice, thanks - it's much appreciated.

Luckily most parents are good at assessing their own childrens abilities and take the appropriate precautions to keep them safe.

nope, nope, not by a long shot, a lot of parents are ****ing idiots

even "responsible" members of society do stupid things

ahem

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Madeleine_McCann

Haha!

Now I'm being compared to the McCanns?!

STW swivel eyed lunacy at its best

Accidentally posted.

FYI - google translate is a bit clunky but you get the gist!

From: http://www.ouders.nl/lveiligv.htm

"Safe transport of small children (0 to 4 years)
March 2006

The following recommendations were developed in consultation with the Consumer Safety Institute

Bicycle Seats, general
When to use:

if the child can sit (after 6 to 12 months) unaided.
Purchase and installation advice:

install the seat according to the instructions.
Do:

put the child always stuck with the seat belts;
optionally use a bicycle helmet to prevent severe head injury
Do not:

make in the beginning no long trips. Ie no longer than the time the child can sit up unaided on the ground;
put the bike down with the child in the seat.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bicycle seat front
When to use:

for children up to 15 pounds (about 3 years).
Purchase and installation advice:

make sure the brake and gear cables from being pinched;
use a windshield.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bicycle seat back
When to use:

for children from 15 t / m 25 kilo
Purchase and installation advice:

provide good-spoke protection;
footrests must have spoke-shield (foot well);
mount saddle spring protectors (so there can be no children's fingers between the seat springs inserted);
make sure that the child can not close the ring lock;
ensure a high back (for support and protection).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Baby on the bike
General advice:

from the moment a child can sit (approx. 6-9 months) independent bicycle transportation is a bicycle seat possible. Until then, can a baby be transported. In a reclining position This are several systems on the market, such as a baby car seat on a special frame on the rack, or a baby car seat or baby-shell in a trailer or cargo bike.
Practical tips:

get a good conformation;
use a harness or a belt to fasten the baby;
provide good support for head and back;
Use a firm and stable bike;
bike quiet and keep in touch. "

(Dutch for bikeseat is 'fietsstoeltje')

Whatever you do have a good time!

Cz

It's odd how some folk can't wait to get out with their kids. For me there was never a moment I wanted to share my rides with my kids. And that never stopped them going on to be keen cyclists.

What is the obsession with people on her to get 'babies' on bikes FFS

They should be doing baby things like crawling/walking/climbing/exploring - don't forget the dangers.

Absolutely ridiculous!

I think its madness to put a child in a seat at that age.

EXACTLY

Roflmaololololololdailymailincredulousnesscopter

bet ya missus not keen either!

Soem of my happiest times with my kids has been with them in child seats on my bike. I commute with my 2 year old to nursery every day and its probably my favourite part of the day. So i can understand people's eagerness.

I think the youngest either of them have been is around 18 months - mainly because of the helmet fitting issue.

yeah but 7 months FFS

And for the record my daughter who is 2 1/2 comes everywhere with me on my bike! (I mean the local park)

Maybe there is a difference between people who go on rides primarily to trail centres and actual cyclist who use their bikes as transport.

I am definitely in the later category and even though I can drive and ride a motorbike I much prefer to do as many journeys on my bike. So of course there was an urgency to get my babies on my bike.

I wouldn't take a baby on an off road ride if it were really bumpy, that would be stupid. And i think i did ok as none of my four have any problems or signs of shaken baby syndrome.

Funny how I havent got shot down in flames for saying I went over the handlebars when I was 8 months pregnant!

Sbrock - wrong. She suggested it.

Going back to the original post, I've got a weeride that you could try, but I'm down south and suspect that you are north of the border.............

Natrix - Sheffield

What is the obsession with people on her to get 'babies' on bikes FFS

Strokes chin. Dons Holmes deer stalker but still cannot make the connection between web based forum dedicated to all things cycling and the question posed.
Feels confused

Maybe there is a difference between people who go on rides primarily to trail centres and actual cyclist who use their bikes as transport.

Mrs cloudnine also suggested bar / stem mounted seat for our nearly 7 month old. Mainly for gentle cycle path pootles and the odd dirt jump session. She'll have 150mm of dual air front travel but not sure on wheel size, tyres or pedals yet.

My daughter went in a safe-t-seat (mounted on the steerer) from 10 months old. She was absolutely fine on the 3 mile commute to my work/her nursery. Only the OP knows if the child is ready. The near hysterical reaction of some posters is laughable.

Yeah, go for it Pook. It will be good preparation for taking the child rock-climbing as soon as he/she can walk.

"Maybe there is a difference between people who go on rides primarily to trail centres and actual cyclist who use their bikes as transport"

This the original question was about driving to a trail center and riding a green forest road with a child precluded by reason of being too young from using the equipment provided at the center.

It is certainly wrong to suggest pook is a bad parent. There can be nothing better than getting your kids in to the outdoors. It is however certainly appropriate to suggest the risks of ridding a trail center green with a 7 month old outweigh the benefits.

Forget a bike, get him straight on a motor bike 🙂

Look be careful, start them that young he will be leaving you behind by the time he is 5.

We just put our 11 month old in a BoBike - just for cycling around the local park pathways. However (we used a jnr 2yo helmet)!finding her a helmet is impossible and I've seen advice that says helmets should not be used for <1yo. Anyone know why - is it a neck muscle issue?

Chances are I wouldn't even get him out of the car park. The point of my post was that I wanted to try him in a crossbar seat, much as I've tried him in a high chair, various slings, bouncers and car seats.

So you weren't planning on actually riding a green somewhere as suggested in your OP? Maybe you should make your intentions clearer if you want to avoid the flaming.

I have a nine month old, and have started looking at trailers, balance bikes, various seats etc.

I think it [i]is[/i] hard as unlike every other thing related to babies, there is very little readily available info related to babies on bikes. Had it been up to me, I'd have had the wee man in a trailer by now, but (possibly fortunately) Mrs Removed tends to err on the side of caution, so we're waiting another two months until he goes to nursery.

I carry him in slings, wraps and a LittleLife backpack thing. I'm constantly aware of how much his head bobbles about, and for this reason, there's no way I'd use any of these things on a regular bike, quite aside from the falling off danger. I'd happily secure him in a trailer or cargo bike box, sitting upright.

Maybe you should make your intentions clearer if you want to avoid the flaming.

Maybe those flaming me should have just answered the question rather than getting all daily mail and incredulous and questioning my parenting skills. We'd have all got along just fine

Mrs Pook is playing a blinder. If it all goes well and baby Pook is fine and enjoys the trip it's her idea. If it goes a bit pear-shaped it will be "ALL YOUR FAULT" and you will enter a world of hurt. 🙂

This from the bloke who had his youngest climbing outside from an early age.

TBH I wouldn't. Stop being impatient. You've got 18yrs to get him onto bikes/riding them. At 7months his skull has no-way knitted together. Even in a helmet any fall/trauma will have life-long effects.

Funnily and slightly OT- Non-cyclists that I've talked to are gobsmacked that cyclists tow their small toddlers etc in those trailer/bike things.

I must admit I bloody wouldn't on a road.

and actual cyclist who use their bikes as transport.

I am definitely in the latter category and even though I can drive and ride a motorbike I much prefer to do as many journeys on my bike. So of course there was an urgency to get my babies on my bike.

This is part of it. I had Rose in the trailer from 6 months. I did buy a trailer which had a baby sling bit (croozer with added baby sling). It worked great. I have never relied on a car to get her around locally, which is nice. She loves it, and loves coming out on the bike for adventures. It's also fun for me, I got out for a lovely 2 hour road ride on Saturday (albeit only 22 miles), and not only did I have a nice ride, I also got to spend some fun time with Rose chitter chattering away as we went, then she got to ride round the big park on her bike and have a picnic. It's great to combine your riding with time with your kid, rather than just keeping riding as a dad thing that you head off and do. Really I find it hard to understand why if you love riding bikes, you wouldn't want to share that with your kids, it isn't like riding bikes with your kids takes away from other riding time, it takes away from jigsaw puzzle and painting and reading ballerina books time, and much as I love Angelina, I'd much rather be outside.

As a bonus, she's always been really excited about getting out on her own bike for her own adventures and is excited about bikes in general, and sees them as a mode of transport, she's 3 and a bit now, and she just rode up to the childminders on her new pedal bike, about which she is super excited, and we did 4 miles on the Monsal Trail last week. Her getting into pedal bike riding is good for my running too, and much as I love running, I don't really have the time to fit in dedicated runs, but I have tons of time looking after Rose.

Oh, and yes, she's been on forest roads from an early age (6 or 7 months), and the trailer has been on some quite bumpy stuff in Shining Cliff Woods, and full speed down the wide but quite steep and a bit bumpy incline on the High Peak Trail at 9 months or so, all fine.

Also, if you look at the various seats and trailers and things, they recommend different ages in different countries, I guess depending on legal and cultural stuff, but the Croozer baby sling is rated for use from 12 weeks up to about 10 months (was just over 12 months for our small baby), so is obviously okay for 6 months. If you search for German or Dutch sites selling bike seats, you can see their age recommendations. If Dutch people aren't happy with recommending a particular seat, I wouldn't do it.

It will be good preparation for taking the child rock-climbing as soon as he/she can walk.

Toddlers love a good scramble actually. Not to mention a nice swim in a lake (you can't do that for long until about 2, unless you have a really warm lake though).

Funnily and slightly OT- Non-cyclists that I've talked to are gobsmacked that cyclists tow their small toddlers etc in those trailer/bike things.

I must admit I bloody wouldn't on a road.

If you've ever been out with a trailer, you'd be amazed at how careful drivers are around you, and how much room they give you. Got to be way safer than a seat around traffic.

It gives the lie to the idea that when you're normally on the bike people mean to drive safely around you, but just fail to pay attention. In general people just don't in practice consider the safety of cyclists to be as high a priority as their ability to squeeze through a super narrow gap and save a couple of seconds, whereas when there is an obvious kid in the equation, they're suddenly right over the centre line to the other side of the road to overtake.

Any topic concerning the safety of children inevitably causes strong opinions and you've been on here long enough to know that Pook 🙂

Your OP had key words such as "7 months", "Dalbeattie", "7Stanes" so it does read like you want to take a 7 month old off-road on your bike, so I can completely understand the discouraging responses. Perhaps if you'd mentioned Dutch canal towpaths instead, you would have got a more enthusiastic response 😉

As mentioned above, I use a bike for transport quite a bit - hence I'm happy using the trailer on the road (we've now mostly graduated to using the tandem for transport - really need a triplet though). I'm one of those who reckons 7 months is a bit young for a seat. I'm also not convinced about the OP's protestations of innocence concerning intentions of taking baby on off-road trails using that. Trailer and car seat (or sling) all the way at that age.

@aracer, are the trailers adapted to take a car seat or do you have to do it ghetto style?

I did a ghetto think involving ropes from the frame and then some bungee cords for a bit of "suspension"
Essentially an improvised seat belt to the frame

I'm also not convinced about the OP's protestations of innocence concerning intentions of taking baby on off-road trails using that. Trailer and car seat (or sling) all the way at that age.

So you're now suggesting in lying about the welfare of my own child? A child you don't even know? Of at any point I felt he was at risk, in danger or that it wasn't suitable for him I'd stop. How cani possibly decide that without first trying him in a seat or trailer?

You seem to be suggesting that I'm putting my own biking before his health and well being, which others on here would tell you is about as far from the truth as you can possibly get in my parenting.

How cani possibly decide that without first trying him in a seat or trailer?

Well you could check out the professional advice about shaking small babies around. As a responsible parent who puts your children first you have done that haven't you? I'm not quite sure what you expect to learn by putting your baby in a seat or a trailer.

We come back to your OP

were hoping to hire a buggy so we could get out on a green somewhere

iBert / Safe-t-seat here from about 10-11 months. Absolutely loved it and still does now at 21 months.
Helmet is a Giro Me2.

Ignore the 7stanes- get out in the wilderness.

Well you could check out the professional advice about shaking small babies around

Or having already looked into that and talked to a number of medical professionals about it, I could find a well supported seat that keeps his head up. And try him in it.

Equally i could reference trusted consumer sources such as which for advice
[url=http:// http://www.which.co.uk/baby-and-child/baby-transport/guides/travelling-with-children/cycling/ ]which baby seats[/url]