Beyond the Burley: Front and Rear Bike Seats
We've had tons of suggestions here on urbanMamas on bike trailers or when to start babe in the trailer/bike seat, but an urbanMama recently emailed to get your experience specifically on bike seats, both that attach to the rear or front of the bike:
My little guy just turned one - after a long bike hiatus, I'm itching to get back on the road, hopefully with baby in tow. Bike trailers are the norm these days... however my 'sling baby' who
I've worn since birth likes to be close to mama and tends to get cranky
in his carseat and stroller. I seriously doubt he would enjoy being
dragged along behind me on the street.
I am looking into options for riding with baby beyond the Burley such as the Ibert front bike seat, or a rear baby seat. I almost never see these around, and do not personally know of anyone that has used them.... I wonder why that is, and if any of your mama readers have any advice/experiences to share regarding baby bike seats?
I am looking into options for riding with baby beyond the Burley such as the Ibert front bike seat, or a rear baby seat. I almost never see these around, and do not personally know of anyone that has used them.... I wonder why that is, and if any of your mama readers have any advice/experiences to share regarding baby bike seats?
we use one of those molded plastic seats that goes behind my seat for my daughter. we really like it, and i prefer it to the trailer. she has a better view and it feels better to have her closer. the advantage of the bike trailers is that it can hold two kids and it is easy to move it around to different bikes.
Posted by: jdey | June 07, 2009 at 09:20 AM
I've got a bobike mini - the kind that attaches to the handlebars. My daughter (who now is almost 2 - we've had it for about a year) and I both love it. She can see where we're going, we can talk and touch during the ride, and I feel good having her so close to me.
Posted by: michelle | June 07, 2009 at 01:17 PM
Wee Ride was my choice when my guy was smaller. It's a front riding seat between you and the handle bars. Two things stand out with this model...there is a padded head rest if your little one falls asleep on the ride and the foot holders are adjustable. It's also easy to take off for riding without the kiddo. I ordered it on line and think it was about $50 new (3yrs ago).
I absolutely loved having him in front with me.
Hope this was helpful.
Posted by: Km | June 07, 2009 at 01:18 PM
I have no experience with the front seats but have been using a Bobike Maxi rear seat with my boys for the past 4 years and love it.
Some people prefer trailers over seats because if the bike goes down, kiddo in seat goes down too. And they definitely change the center of gravity of the bike, but it doesn't take that long to get used to it, at least in my experience. And it's not like trailers are infallible - they can flip more easily than most imagine - and I see plenty of people (myself included) using them in less than ideal ways (the windscreen up so rocks can kick back into the trailer, kids unhelmeted/unstrapped).
I do use the Burley and love it, especially when it's wet out or if we've got lots of gear with us, but I really like having them right behind me for ease of communication and because I like getting squeezes and hugs from behind while riding. Now if only I could do something about my son finding it hillarious to stick his cold hand up the back of my shirt or down the back of my pants!
Posted by: jj | June 07, 2009 at 02:37 PM
I just bought a Topeak rear mount bike seat for my 15 month old daughter and love it. I ended up getting it from Seven Cycle for $129 (install included). I was going to get the Bobike Mini because people seem to love them but it was out of my price range. Which by the way, if you are interested in the Bobike Mini, Joe-Bike in SE was selling it for $50 less than Clever Cycle.
Posted by: christine | June 07, 2009 at 03:22 PM
i own the ibert front seat and i love it! we bought it for my daughter for her 1st b'day and she is now 2. she still fits in it great! it was cheaper and loved the design more than the bobikes. good luck!
Posted by: Tiffany | June 07, 2009 at 07:21 PM
Echo the front seat recommendation! I have a Bobike with my daughter. She'll be 3 in August, but is a skinny winny lightweight at just over 22 lbs. She's going to be too tall by the end of the summer for me, her 5' mama, and she is not looking forward to a different seat. She and I both LOVE having her up on front, checking everything out, and being able to talk to each other the whole time.
The only downside has been very long rides where she gets sleepy and has nowhere to lean her head. It has never stopped her from falling asleep, nor dampened her passion for going for rides in the slightest.
We both love it!
Posted by: Melissa | June 07, 2009 at 07:58 PM
Must admit my husband is the cyclist, and our son has a burley, But I gotta mention, the other day I saw a Mama commuting home with an infant in a seat behind her, she also had a messenger bag that she kept shoving behind her as she was riding.
The bag was almost hitting the poor kid in the face (probably did at some point). Not a caution against using the rear seats, just suggesting you don't also cary a bag on your back if you have your child back there as well, you can't see what is happening.
Posted by: Lisa | June 07, 2009 at 09:37 PM
We have the bobike front seat and love it. My husband is the one that takes our daughter who is almost three....she's been on it since she was one. She too is lightweight and still way under weight maximum which I think is 35 lbs. She loves it and although it made me nervous in the beginning, I am okay with it now. We also have the copilot that goes in the back. My husband tried that with our daughter one day and she said she didn't want to go in her carseat. That was the end of that. My husband loves, loves talking to her as they ride and pointing things out, and because she is in front, they are really sharing in the ride together. Highly recommend the bobike.
Posted by: Jennifer | June 08, 2009 at 06:07 AM
We used a Topeak rear seat for three years before going to a Burley trail-a-bike when daughter turned five. We started out with a Burley trailer but she hated it. She loved sitting up with me in the Topeak, especially since it's so fun to slap mom's rear end. We could talk about what we were seeing (cats and the like) and generally had a great time tooling around town. The Topeak worked great for us because it's easy to take on and off, so we bought an extra rack for my husband's bike. We also liked the idea of the suspension, although I have no idea if it really made a difference. She seemed very comfortable.
Posted by: 3 makes a family | June 08, 2009 at 08:09 AM
Ha! Lisa may have been describing me when she mentioned the mama with messenger/work bag scrunched on my back. For some reason I've never gotten around to using panniers or a basket...kids never seemed to mind too much. Anyway, both my girls have ridden in the Topeak seat very happily from about 1 to 4. We finally said no more to the 5 year old b/c her knees were practically hitting her chin. I have a burley too and a tagalong but the seat has always been easiest. Especially in years 1-2 the seat seems more comfy...the trailer always seemed to swallow them then, and yes, feels so far away. It's easier to sing together when you're close together!
Posted by: MollyH | June 08, 2009 at 11:15 AM
So many great suggestions here! I recommend getting yourself moving in the upcoming Sunday Parkways (June 21st) and asking folks what they like about what they have. I was always unsure about how the front seat would work for us (would my son grab my hands while I was stearing?) but I saw oodles of that type of seat at the last parkways and all of the kiddos looked delighted and I didn't once see someone grabbing their parent's arms. So many cool options =)
Posted by: Jennifer at Milagros | June 08, 2009 at 12:47 PM
We have a Burley trailer and our son hated it from ages 1-almost 3. I think there wasn't enough back support - he kept getting slouched down too far and would cry. Now that he's three he loves it. He can look at books and have fun. Plus, there's room to store stuff.
I prefer to take him out in the Co-Pilot on the back of my bike. It's just easier to get one bike out of the garage instead of hassling with the trailer - and he likes looking around. It takes some getting used to balancing it when you stop. And you can't use much of a backpack or panniers.
Posted by: Scotti | June 08, 2009 at 03:05 PM
"Ha! Lisa may have been describing me when she mentioned the mama with messenger/work bag scrunched on my back. For some reason I've never gotten around to using panniers or a basket...kids never seemed to mind too much."
Ha! I was thinking it might be me, though I don't have an infant back there, but a three year old who's more than capable of pushing it out of his way when it bothers him. But mostly he doesn't care and likes to rummage through it or use it as a cushion for his head. I am in the process of getting panniers though, especially now that I had to adjust the Bobike seat position and it's much closer to me than before.
Posted by: jj | June 08, 2009 at 03:40 PM
We have LOVED our Co-Pilot rear seat! I'd definitely recommend one. Sadly, we will be selling ours as my daughter is tall and has now outgrown it. She is truly upset about it! She loved riding on the back and seemed to feel a sense of freedom in it as she was on my bike, but still had her own little space.
Posted by: kmw | June 08, 2009 at 06:51 PM
I used a Co-Pilot rear seat when my daughter was that age and really liked it as she had a place to rest her head when she fell asleep. We never had problems with her helmet fitting in there either. In fact, I am selling my seat, so if you are interested.... We now have a bobike back seat. It has a lower back (helmet bigger now), but we just rode home and she snoozed without any issues. We made the change b/c we now have a longtail bike that the co-pilot wldn't fit on..
Posted by: slm | June 08, 2009 at 08:51 PM
How about beyond biking with two kids? After I finally got the hang of biking two kids around, we went and had another. Is the Xtracycle still best option or do we have to upgrade to a triple tandem or something to that effect? Mostly I am don't think I am strong enough to bike around three kids, and I am not comfortable with the thought of my 6 year old on his own bike outside of our neighborhood. But, never say never, I guess.
Posted by: Hau | June 08, 2009 at 11:06 PM
I think this is the bike for you Hau:
http://www.xtracyclegallery.com/2008/10/19-derek-pearson-xtracycle-limo.html
Posted by: Tony at Milagros | June 09, 2009 at 05:56 AM
We have a handed-down Topeak rear seat that both our kids loved and that we still put the youngest in at times. They love being close enough to talk and see everything that we see (plus it has a bell). It's lasted through 4 kids.
We also have a double trailer that we used for both kids until space became an issue. Neither of them liked it until they were about 2yrs, I think they felt they were too far from us. Now we have a trail-a-bike that we can hook the trailer to and make a train if needed. We have different configuations to choose from depending on who and where we are going. I can take the kidergartener to school on the trail-a bike with the 2yr-old in the trailer behind. When both parents are going we have one kids per adult. Saddle bags are a necessity for me.
Posted by: kenton mama | June 09, 2009 at 08:37 AM
Tony, Love, love it! Now trying to convince Joe that we need yet another bike.
Posted by: hau | June 09, 2009 at 11:00 PM
We are on our third year with the BoBike Mini front seat - fantastic! We sing together while we ride and I can interact with her as we roll along. I added the windshield (which has been great to shield her from wind and bugs - especially near the water) and handlebar/head rest which she used for napping when she was smaller. As long as you have an average size child you can use it for 3 summers no problem. Worth every cent! I'll be sad when we need to switch to the rear seat...
Also - a tip on purchasing - I decided to buy from a British site as I couldn't find all the options easily in the US - plus they have fab colors:
http://www.conwasa.demon.co.uk/bobike/index.htm
They had great customer service and we received the seat in less than 2 weeks.
If you choose to purchase in the US the distributor is based in Lake Oswego and I believe you can purchase there:
5700 Willow Lane, Lake Oswego, OR 97035 503-636-4673
http://www.koolstop.com/bobike/index.php
Posted by: Jen Jako | June 09, 2009 at 11:25 PM
Can folks recommend a bike shop in the Tigard /Lake Oswego area that sells child bike seats?
Thanks.
Posted by: Paul | June 13, 2009 at 09:40 AM
We have a trailer, which seemed safer to me and is convenient especially on longer rides when there is lots of added stuff to drag along. Our almost-two year old sometimes likes it and sometimes doesn't.
A friend has a metrofiet - a local version of the dutch bacfiet - that has the big sleigh type bucket cargo and seat in the front. It seems like a great solution for the kid, has a rain cover, etc. They love it. But this is a very expensive bike. It is also a heavy bike, so for long trips, even they resort to a trailer or bike-mounted small seat.
Posted by: T | June 14, 2009 at 03:16 PM
Anyone have a Madsen Cycle? http://www.madsencycles.com/
I test-rode one at Bike Gallery with my 2 girls (3.5 and 7) and it seemed to handle really well for flats, not sure about big hills. But it holds up to 600 lbs, It's about $1,200 if I remember correctly...and it comes in a really pretty blue color. ;) Now hubby and I are just trying to decide if it's worth it (i.e. how long the now 7 year old will want to ride in it).
The other idea we've had is to get an "inexpensive" tandem, and adjust the back seat to be low enough for the 7 year old, then have either a trailer or a back seat on it for the 3.5 year old.
We've LOVED our (front) Bobike mini for the 3.5 year old, who has, sadly, outgrown it. Used the heck out of it for almost 3 years, so felt it was worth the investment.
Happy family biking!
Posted by: Carolyn | June 15, 2009 at 08:14 AM
We have the Bobike mini for our 1 year old. He absolutely adores it. He babbles happily the entire ride and laughs when people wave to him. The nice thing about it is it switches really easy from my bike to my husband's. We both have an adapter that stays on the bike and it's a very simple process getting it on on off. We have no garage (just a shed) so a trailer was not a very practical option.
Posted by: Anne | June 15, 2009 at 05:05 PM
From the original poster - thanks to everyone for all the great suggestions!
Posted by: emily r | June 16, 2009 at 11:13 AM
In searching for a front-mount bike seat, I was really surprised at how "particular" they are. I discovered, sadly that Ibert was not going to work with my bike (you need a threaded stem and 3/4" of space for the mount) and Bobike Mini could have worked with some jimmy-rigging and $150 worth of accessories. I ended up commandeering my husband's bike, and the Ibert works just fine with his bike and my 14-month old just loves it!
I chose Ibert over Bobike Mini because of the price and more legroom. I tried my neighbor's Wee-ride - very affordable but there was absolutely no legroom and I had to ride bow-legged.
I would recommend for anyone looking to install a seat, save yourself some time and take your kid & bike into Clever Cycles. They can tell you what the options are for your bike, and fit your babe into a helmet. They have extra pads and such for tiny ones that other shops did not carry, and can teach you some tricks for getting your kid to like the helmet. I shopped around town for a better prices but was not able to find a better deal on the Ibert... in fact River City was selling theirs for $20 more!
Posted by: emily r | August 12, 2009 at 11:06 AM