age for child trailers

GS said:

As a new father I'm excited to start biking with my daughter in a child
trailer. How young can children be to safely ride in a trailer?

http://www.joggingstroller.com/accessories/chariotacc.htm

Chariot Baby Supporter
The fleece Baby Supporter helps children between from about 3-4
months to about 18 months of age sit upright and nap
comfortably. The head support is removable, for when your child
is old enough for a helmet (usually around 1 year old). Works
with 5-point harnesses. Compatible with all Chariot products
except the SideCarrier. (Note that cycling is not recommended
for children under 1 year of age; this accessory is for using
your Chariot for walking or jogging.)

That's a manufacturer's recommendation/CYA move. I certainly don't know
how it relates to "safely" riding.

I think I recall seeing something about helmets not being available for
children under about one year of age for similar reasons.

--kyler

GS said:

As a new father I'm excited to start biking with my daughter in a child
trailer. How young can children be to safely ride in a trailer?

DS was in the trailer when he could easily hold up his head. I don't
remember anymore what age that was. Somewhere under 6 months?

Scott

Kyler Laird said:

GS said:

As a new father I'm excited to start biking with my daughter in a child
trailer. How young can children be to safely ride in a trailer?

http://www.joggingstroller.com/accessories/chariotacc.htm

Chariot Baby Supporter
The fleece Baby Supporter helps children between from about 3-4
months to about 18 months of age sit upright and nap
comfortably. The head support is removable, for when your child
is old enough for a helmet (usually around 1 year old). Works
with 5-point harnesses. Compatible with all Chariot products
except the SideCarrier. (Note that cycling is not recommended
for children under 1 year of age; this accessory is for using
your Chariot for walking or jogging.)

That's a manufacturer's recommendation/CYA move. I certainly don't know
how it relates to "safely" riding.

Nor do I.

Quoted message said:

I think I recall seeing something about helmets not being available for
children under about one year of age for similar reasons.

.... yet try to find ANY evidence that a kid less than one year old has
ever been seriously hurt on a bicycle, or in a bike trailer! If it's
out there, I certainly haven't seen it. And if it's happened, it's
certainly very, very rare. But that won't stop the handwringers' warnings.

It's interesting to me that a jogger can (apparently) push that trialer
as fast as they can run, and it remains "safe." But if a bicycle is
towing it, it will be "dangerous."

Regarding the original question: towing an infant in a bike trailer
needn't be any more dangerous than transporting the kid in a car. It
depends on the riding environment. Obviously, high-speed twisty
descents, gnarly off-road trails, etc. would be bad. Quiet neighborhood
streets or rides in the park can be fine.

Trailers can tip, but it's not easy to do. Hitting a curb on the inside
of a sharp turn can do it, if you're going fast enough. So don't do that.

My daughter (now grown) was going for short bike rides at about 4
months, IIRC, in a sort of sling-backpack. I'm very stable on a bike,
and had no trouble at all. Obviously, her head was well-supported, just
as it would be if we were carrying her while walking. Eventually she
moved into a kid seat on the bike, then onto a tandem with a kid-back setup.

(Of course, this was all before bicycling became officially "Dangerous!!!"😉

All in all, I'd say if the kid is well strapped in and well supported
(especially her head and neck), and if you're appropriately careful, you
can start in just a couple months. But keep in mind, your daughter
isn't going to get much out of the experience until she can sit up and
look around!

--
--------------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

Frank Krygowski said:

Trailers can tip, but it's not easy to do. Hitting a curb on the inside
of a sharp turn can do it, if you're going fast enough. So don't do that.

The wife did this with both kids in the trailer (they were age
4 and 1.5, I think, or 3 and 0.5) The son, who is younger,
slept through the whole thing. The daughter was a little
freaked. Both were strapped in, and just ended up hanging
upside down. The burley did a 180 -- I think the possibility
for injury would be greater for a 90-degree flip.

They were going downhill, and made a turn but one wheel of the
burley caught a curb. Didn't do *that* again 🙂

Scott

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

....

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I think I recall seeing something about helmets not being available for
children under about one year of age for similar reasons.

... yet try to find ANY evidence that a kid less than one year old has
ever been seriously hurt on a bicycle, or in a bike trailer! If it's
out there, I certainly haven't seen it. And if it's happened, it's
certainly very, very rare. But that won't stop the handwringers' warnings.

Probably because people carrying kids under 1 year old in a trailer are
also very, very rare.

Quoted message said:

It's interesting to me that a jogger can (apparently) push that trialer
as fast as they can run, and it remains "safe." But if a bicycle is
towing it, it will be "dangerous."

That jogger is almost certainly not going over about 6 to 8 mph, and can
stop a LOT quicker than a bike can. On a bike, you could easily double
that speed, and triple it on not much of a hill.

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).

David Kerber said:

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I think I recall seeing something about helmets not being available for
children under about one year of age for similar reasons.

... yet try to find ANY evidence that a kid less than one year old has
ever been seriously hurt on a bicycle, or in a bike trailer! If it's
out there, I certainly haven't seen it. And if it's happened, it's
certainly very, very rare. But that won't stop the handwringers' warnings.

Probably because people carrying kids under 1 year old in a trailer are
also very, very rare.

Of course, that's part of it. Trailers themselves are not common. But
what evidence is there of _any_ kids getting seriously hurt while riding
on parents' bikes?

Somehow, the Safety Industry (or its subsidiary, Handwringers
Incorporated) seems to think it knows so much more than any given parent
about what is safe and what is dangerous.

They seem to envision a parent negligently tossing a child onto a rear
rack, held down by a loose bungie cord. In my experience, parents are
quite cautious with kids on their bikes, more so than with kids in their
cars.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

It's interesting to me that a jogger can (apparently) push that trialer
as fast as they can run, and it remains "safe." But if a bicycle is
towing it, it will be "dangerous."

That jogger is almost certainly not going over about 6 to 8 mph, and can
stop a LOT quicker than a bike can. On a bike, you could easily double
that speed, and triple it on not much of a hill.

.... and 24 mph is usually fatal???

You seem to be MUCH more afraid of bicycling than I am.

FWIW, if a parent thinks 6 to 8 mph is all that's safe, they can ride
their bike at 6 to 8 mph. There is nothing specific about being moved
by a bike that makes a trailer dangerous.

But in my limited experience (and the considerably greater experience of
some of my friends) trailers are very stable indeed, no matter what the
speed.

--
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com.
Substitute cc dot ysu dot
edu]

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

....

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

It's interesting to me that a jogger can (apparently) push that trialer
as fast as they can run, and it remains "safe." But if a bicycle is
towing it, it will be "dangerous."

That jogger is almost certainly not going over about 6 to 8 mph, and can
stop a LOT quicker than a bike can. On a bike, you could easily double
that speed, and triple it on not much of a hill.

... and 24 mph is usually fatal???

Hardly. It's simply that a higher-speed tip-over or crash is likely to
cause more injury than a lower-speed one, and pulling it on a bike is
like to be faster than walking or running. That's all I'm saying. It
wouldn't surprise me a bit if the tip-over rate when being pushed by a
person is actually higher than when being pulled by a bike, but the
injuries sustained in the bike tip-over are likely to be worse due to
the higher speeds.

Quoted message said:

You seem to be MUCH more afraid of bicycling than I am.

You don't know me very well, do you????

.....

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).

Frank Krygowski <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Kyler Laird said:

GS said:

As a new father I'm excited to start biking with my daughter in a child
trailer. How young can children be to safely ride in a trailer?

http://www.joggingstroller.com/accessories/chariotacc.htm

Chariot Baby Supporter
The fleece Baby Supporter helps children between from about 3-4
months to about 18 months of age sit upright and nap
comfortably. The head support is removable, for when your child
is old enough for a helmet (usually around 1 year old). Works
with 5-point harnesses. Compatible with all Chariot products
except the SideCarrier. (Note that cycling is not recommended
for children under 1 year of age; this accessory is for using
your Chariot for walking or jogging.)

That's a manufacturer's recommendation/CYA move. I certainly don't know
how it relates to "safely" riding.

Nor do I.

Quoted message said:

I think I recall seeing something about helmets not being available for
children under about one year of age for similar reasons.

... yet try to find ANY evidence that a kid less than one year old has
ever been seriously hurt on a bicycle, or in a bike trailer! If it's
out there, I certainly haven't seen it. And if it's happened, it's
certainly very, very rare. But that won't stop the handwringers' warnings.

It's interesting to me that a jogger can (apparently) push that trialer
as fast as they can run, and it remains "safe." But if a bicycle is
towing it, it will be "dangerous."

Regarding the original question: towing an infant in a bike trailer
needn't be any more dangerous than transporting the kid in a car. It
depends on the riding environment. Obviously, high-speed twisty
descents, gnarly off-road trails, etc. would be bad. Quiet neighborhood
streets or rides in the park can be fine.

Trailers can tip, but it's not easy to do. Hitting a curb on the inside
of a sharp turn can do it, if you're going fast enough. So don't do that.

My daughter (now grown) was going for short bike rides at about 4
months, IIRC, in a sort of sling-backpack. I'm very stable on a bike,
and had no trouble at all. Obviously, her head was well-supported, just
as it would be if we were carrying her while walking. Eventually she
moved into a kid seat on the bike, then onto a tandem with a kid-back setup.

(Of course, this was all before bicycling became officially "Dangerous!!!"😉

All in all, I'd say if the kid is well strapped in and well supported
(especially her head and neck), and if you're appropriately careful, you
can start in just a couple months. But keep in mind, your daughter
isn't going to get much out of the experience until she can sit up and
look around!

Also an infant car seat can be strapped into a trailer.
Strapping it into a car is as dangerouse as it gets.

Frank Krygowski said:

Trailers can tip, but it's not easy to do. Hitting a curb on the inside
of a sharp turn can do it, if you're going fast enough. So don't do that.

I tipped my Trek trailer with my 3-year-old daughter in it. I was
turning at maybe 10 mph and she happened to lean away from the turn at
the same time.

RFM

David Kerber ns_dkerber@ns_ids.net said:

Quoted message said:

It's interesting to me that a jogger can (apparently) push that trialer
as fast as they can run, and it remains "safe." But if a bicycle is
towing it, it will be "dangerous."

Quoted message said:

That jogger is almost certainly not going over about 6 to 8 mph,

Well...*almost*...
http://lairds.org/Kyler/photos/disk0026/img_2090.jpg/image_viewer

--kyler

(R.White) said:

Also an infant car seat can be strapped into a trailer.

Once again, at least one manufacturer (Trek/Chariot) specifically
recommends against this.

--kyler

"Fritz M" wrote: (clip) she happened to lean away from the turn at the same
time.
^^^^^^^^^^^
That's the kind of accident that can be predicted in hindsight :-) Little
kids have no choice or control over the conditions their parents put them
in, so we owe them every possible precaution.

Not doubting your description of the cause, but I'm curious how you were
able to tell the child leaned and caused the accident.

I trust there were no injuries, or if there were, I hope there was nothing
serious.

And, the next question is: how are you going to deal with this risk in the
future?

David Kerber said:

Quoted message said:

You seem to be MUCH more afraid of bicycling than I am.

You don't know me very well, do you????

Probably no better than you know me! ;-)

--
--------------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

Kyler Laird said:

(R.White) said:

Also an infant car seat can be strapped into a trailer.

Once again, at least one manufacturer (Trek/Chariot) specifically
recommends against this.

Is any reason given?

--
--------------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

Frank Krygowski said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Also an infant car seat can be strapped into a trailer.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Once again, at least one manufacturer (Trek/Chariot) specifically
recommends against this.

Quoted message said:

Is any reason given?

The required gravitational force between the trailer's seat and the
child's ass is disrupted if anything separates them.

http://www.trekbikes.com/bikes/2004/pdf/04_trailer_jogger_om_en.pdf

Never place a car seat in the child carrier. Never place
a pad or a mattress under the child. The child must sit
directly in the child carrier seat.

--kyler

Kyler Laird said:

Frank Krygowski said:

Quoted message said:

>Also an infant car seat can be strapped into a trailer.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Once again, at least one manufacturer (Trek/Chariot) specifically
recommends against this.

Quoted message said:

Is any reason given?

The required gravitational force between the trailer's seat and the
child's ass is disrupted if anything separates them.

http://www.trekbikes.com/bikes/2004/pdf/04_trailer_jogger_om_en.pdf

Wow. I don't think I've ever seen a product manual with a higher ratio
of safety warnings to usage instruction.

If motor vehicle manuals were done that way, there'd be at least one
warning saying "Don't allow your passengers to ride on the roof."

Fear of lawyers produces some weird literature, doesn't it?

--
--------------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

Frank Krygowski said:

If motor vehicle manuals were done that way, there'd be at least one
warning saying "Don't allow your passengers to ride on the roof."

I'm sure it's in there somewhere. Mine tells me not to open the doors
or attempt tpo get out of the vehicle while the it's in motion. You
really think I needed to be told that?

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

The required gravitational force between the trailer's seat and the child's
ass is disrupted if anything separates them.
^^^^^^^^^^^^
Does NASA know about this? I believe this could be an important
breakthrough in the launching of satellites, and possibly even the
development of perpetual motion. <BG>

you know? said:

Frank Krygowski said:

If motor vehicle manuals were done that way, there'd be at least one
warning saying "Don't allow your passengers to ride on the roof."

I'm sure it's in there somewhere. Mine tells me not to open the doors
or attempt tpo get out of the vehicle while the it's in motion. You
really think I needed to be told that?

Yes, and you know why too!

Michael J. Klein [email hidden]
Dasi Jen, Taoyuan Hsien, Taiwan, ROC
Please replace mousepotato with asiancastings
---------------------------------------------