cycling with children

[nailpolish]

cant believe ive started a thread under sports!!

anyway

dh and i really miss our cycling (nothing major, just going out and about on bikes)

we have a 3 yr old and a 1 yr old

is it possible to go out cycling with them? dd1 has her own bike and shes pretty good on it, but if dh and i were on our bikes too i would feel uncomfortable not being able to supervise her properly.

we have lots of cycles routes through countryside round here, but a few roads to get to them

any advice appreciated!!

TIA

We take DD (3 years old) and DS (13 mths) out on our bikes, with child seats on the back. I usually have DD on the back of mine as its a bit more of a work out then!

They are fine and they love it. They've both got their helmuts, and the only problem we encounter is if DS falls asleep, we have to stop and let him have a quick half hour nap on my lap somewhere.

were you nervous about using the seats at first? im trying to persuade dh..

have you tried a trailer buggy? or do you think the seats are better?

You get used to have a child on the back in about 5 minutes. I still worry that I am going to fall off taking said child with me, but in reality (touch wood) you don't often, if ever, fall off anyway, and you are a bit more cautious with a baby on the back. It really is great fun. The kids just love it.

Haven't tried a trailer buggy - is that the enclosed thing, or is it the bike which attaches to the adult bike? If its the first one, I wouldn't be fussed on using those on a road and they would be too wide to use on cycle routes around here. If its the latter, I would worry about DD falling off on bumpy bits. She is only just 3 tho.(well, sept).

yes, my 2 are the same age as yours!

i did wonder if the trailer thing would be too wide for the cycle routes, so ive decided its not worth it, and i imagine they find the seats more fun anyway

thanks for your help!

just one more question (sorry) where did you get your seats? ive looked at them in halfords

Got the first one in an independant cycle retailer by me and it reclines but the second o is from Halfords and tbh they are both as good as each other. Both recline (tho iirc not particularly easily, and they wouldn't comfortably sleep in the seat) and I think I paid around £60-£80 for each (again iirc, but could be way off).

my dd2 is 14 months - would i need to get a reclining seat for her? she is fab at sitting up and walks very well now ie has good balance - but as you say she might sleep

www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10151&storeId=10001&productId=162518&categoryId=31311&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=31311&crumb=33980-31270-31311&varient=&CarSelectorCatalogId=

That is our 2nd seat we have (can't do links).

You wouldn't necessarily need a reclining one, we just have ours set at being slightly-reclined all the time so DS can pull himself forward or be slightly reclined, to suit him. Its just not so upright then iyswim. TBH got the reclining one in case he fell asleep (this was back in the summer so he was that much smaller and younger then) but when he did fall asleep he was so floppy we couldn't carry on cycling with him sleeping so would stop.

thanks mumtoela you have been most helpful!

ToysRUs also do children's cycle seats and you could probably pick up a bargain on ebay.

We cycle with our two boys 7 & 4 and have done for the last couple of years. DS2 (4) is now getting a bit big for his seat so santa's bringing a trailer bike (bargain from ebay!) You can also get poles that link their bike to yours and which will fold up out of the way if they want to ride by themselves.

We tend to stay off road as much as possible for our own peace of mind.

thanks nikki, never thought about ebay

think i have almost persuaded dh

We have two children and cycle loads. DD1 sits on her trailerbike with dad - complete with groovy flag - (4.5yrs) and DD2 (2yrs) has a seat on the back of mine. Personally I think 3 might be a little young for a trailer bike unless you buy the extra backrest and safety straps. Otherwise they can fall off easily esp if long ride and they get tired. Advantages are that they can pedal and feel part of it, get used to balancing a little with parent acting as stabilisers.
We took ages to decide whether or not to get a trailerbike and best decision ever. She was too heavy by 4yrs for bike seat and is much happier on her own seat.
Don?t worry about supervising them - little they can do when strapped in other than enjoy the view and chatter away about the cows and sheep. My normally active and restless 2 yr old sits good as gold for hours round our country lanes.
Buy two drink holders to fit to frames though as they will drink all your juice!
1 yr old should be fine but might find it hard to get a well fitting bike hat if they have small head - not impossible though - I think DH got ours abroad in the end! The safety rule with young child and age is that if they can hold their head up steadily with the hat on their head then they are old enough to go on the back of a bike hth

Hi, i wanted to know whether other mums had a problem cycling with their younger (slower children), I’ve peen thinking about designing a product that helps with this and would really appreciate it if you filled out my survey.
TIA

docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfJWDbgELbp5UNh9v61pHG_sFLnGBQmKWlGN8F3qa5bzxNQtw/viewform?usp=pp_url