But there are some safety issues to consider before you put a young baby in a bike seat, trailer or sidecar.
The Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute has a web article that's worth reading. It convinced me that any child under the age of 1 year old SHOULD NOT ever be taken biking. Between the chances that the trailer will flip, dust and small gravel might fly up from your tires into their little faces or you could crash and hurt them...it's just not worth the risk. There are no helmets made for children under age one for a reason...pediatricians and scientists believe even a small amount of jostling potentially injures a newborn's brain in the skull. It's possible there are microtears or bruises that could later affect your child's I.Q. when they are 6 or 7-years-old. At that point, you wouldn't know the reason. And you obviously shouldn't even consider letting a newborn ride a bike without a helmet. The weight of their head and the weak neck muscles wouldn't offer enough support for them to breathe correctly; in fact, sitting in a slumped or curled position for prolonged periods is potentially harmful, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
So the first rule of thumb is never take a newborn biking, no matter how short the distance or what the riding surface.
After age one, you should get your children helmets and make sure they are safely buckled in a trailer, bike seat or side car. You should also ask your pediatrician first if your child is ready.
I just got my 1-year-old twins bike helmets last weekend through the Children's Hospital Mobile Bike Safety Unit that came to a park near our home. The CHOP workers used a tape measure to make sure the fit was right. Then they showed me how the side straps should go around their ears and where the chinstrap should fall...so that the helmet is squarely on their heads, not aimed up on the back of their heads. You're trying to protect the top, front and back of the skull if there were a crash.
Zeke and Hunter don't want to wear the awkward helmets. I'm sure they'll put up a bit of a struggle when I try to put the helmets on. But I will gently keep trying and hope that they get used to it soon. Also I am taking the Safety Institute's advice and putting a small pillow behind their necks to help support them...so I hope that will make it a more comfy ride. Hopefully they'll like being outside in the breeze plus seeing the other athletes that it's worth the trouble. Or they'll just fall asleep. That means I can take a little longer ride!
As for specifics on the type of bike trailer to choose...the American Medical Association recommends one that is lower to the ground so that if it flips the child doesn't have far to fall, decreasing the chance of injury. You can also lower the tire pressure in the bike trailer, which can reduce the small vibrations your child will feel if you hit a rock or bump. Check the manufactures instructions for the lower end of the recommended tire pressure range.
You might also want a trailer that's built to protect the child in a rollover, like one that has a rollover bar. And it wouldn't hurt to see if there's protection for the child's bottom if a rock or obstacle passes between the two wheels. If you buy a new trailer, be sure it has a label stating that it meets the ASTM-1975 bicycle trailer standard.
Bike seats mounted to the front or back of the adult's bike have their own issues. The front-mounted ones let you see if the child is hurt or needs something, but you can also fall on top of them if you crash. The front-mounted seats might also obstruct your legs while you're trying to bike.
Rear-mounted seats feel every bump and jiggle that you feel because the child is located right over the back tire. Except they don't have a padded seat like the bicyclist. So a minor jolt to you is a medium jolt to your child. Watch carefully for rocks, potholes and debris.
A Japanese survey in the DAILY YOMIURI reported that 49-percent of the injuries to children in bike seats happen when the bikes are parked...like when the parents have put the child in the seat and turn to grab a water bottle, iPod or their own helmet before starting the ride. Only 17-percent of children fell off bikes when they were in motion and 13-percent were hurt during collisions with other bicycles, cars or pedestrians. So make sure your bike seat also meets the ASTM standards. And if you have time check out the "Ottawa's Citizens for Safe Cycling" article. It lists seven potential problems with child carriers.
If you've done all the background checks, read the articles, bought the child carriers or trailers and helmets, and found a safe bike route or trail, then you're ready.
I plan to give it a try with a short bike ride this weekend with my boys.
Happy riding to all the safe bicyclists out there!
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