Re: Kid's trailers for push bikes

[Graeme Dods]

On May 29, 1:40 pm, wrote:
> G-day all,
> I am in Australia and I'm looking at getting a Pacific Steel kiddie
> trailer for my push bike,
> I have a Question to any one with any info on these sort of trailer's.
> How do you find them?

You may be better off asking on aus.bicycle (which I've copied this
to). That said, there are a couple of Australian residents here too,
like me (Perth). I've got one of the trailers you're asking about, but
the aluminium version. I'd imagine the aluminium version would be
lighter, so if you have to carry it anywhere then consider that model
(I have to lift it to get over the gate in to our back yard).

The one I have can be converted to a stroller/pram. We've not really
used that capability but with a second child on the way that will
probably change.

There are other flasher looking trailers but the Pacific trailer suits
us fine, particularly as it was a reasonable price.

Graeme

[OzCableguy]

"Graeme Dods" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> There are other flasher looking trailers but the Pacific trailer suits
> us fine, particularly as it was a reasonable price.
>
>

I concur. I bought one mainly because it was about half the price of others
like Giant Peapod and didn't seem to be that much different in quality &
features anyway. Although kiddy trailers are hardly new these days it's
still the envy of every other kid we pass and I always get people asking me
about it every time we take it out.
I've got 2 kids below cycling age so a trailer was the best option for me
and I've been taking them out since they were 2 & 4. Now they're 3 & 5 and
the 5 yr old still isn't quick enough on his own bike to be keep up so he
still rides in the trailer on the longer rides.
It folds up quickly & easily when not in use to save space in the garage or
to back into the back of the car. It's nice & stable and has never tipped
over. The only negative I could give it is the roofline could be a bit
higher. The 5 yr old has never been able to fit comfortably in with a helmet
on.

--
www.ozcableguy.com
www.oztechnologies.com

[Graeme Dods]

OzCableguy wrote:
> The only negative I could give it is the roofline could be a bit
> higher. The 5 yr old has never been able to fit comfortably in with a helmet
> on.

I never bother with a helmet for my son when he's in the trailer
(oooh, terrible father!). The helmet would push his head forward and
make it very uncomfortable and, like you say, it would rub against the
roof. He's almost touching the roof even when helmetless.

I look on the trailer itself as being as effective, if not more so,
than a helmet. It is pretty much a large roll cage on a very stable
base. On top of that, your sense of self preservation goes up several
notches when you've got your offspring in tow! Possibly the positive
side of risk homeostasis :-)

Graeme

[PeteSig[_2_]]

"OzCableguy" wrote:
> I've got 2 kids below cycling age so a trailer was the best option for me
> and I've been taking them out since they were 2 & 4. Now they're 3 & 5 and
> the 5 yr old still isn't quick enough on his own bike to be keep up so he
> still rides in the trailer on the longer rides.

Your next step should be a trailerbike, or get a tandem and fit it with a
kiddiecrank conversion. At 5 they're about ready to start pushing a bit, but
not to do any distance on their own. When my son was 6 we did a weekend trip
on the tandem and daughter on the Alleycat trailerbike and one day we did
60kms. A 3 yo and 5yo in a trailer will start to get VERY heavy!!!

> It folds up quickly & easily when not in use to save space in the garage
> or to back into the back of the car. It's nice & stable and has never
> tipped over. The only negative I could give it is the roofline could be a
> bit higher. The 5 yr old has never been able to fit comfortably in with a
> helmet on.

Yes, when my two were in the trailer the law was less clear on about helmets
for them. I made an executive decision that wearing a helmet in the slung
seat would entail more risk of soinal damage through neck displacement than
the risk of 'falling off' the trailer.A later bike path incident where the
trailer rolled 270 degrees with the boy upset but securely held by the
5-point harness reinforced this decision.
--
Cheers
Peter

~~~ ~ _@
~~ ~ _- \,
~~ (*)/ (*)

[David Martin]

On May 31, 9:07 am, "PeteSig" > wrote:

> Your next step should be a trailerbike, or get a tandem and fit it with a
> kiddiecrank conversion. At 5 they're about ready to start pushing a bit, but
> not to do any distance on their own.

Depends what you mean by distance. My then 4yo can do ten miles on a
single speed 16" wheel kids bike (on the flat). He was a bit put out
when I strapped it onto the rack of the tandem for the uphill road
bits on the way back. But a childback tandem is an excellent thing.



> Yes, when my two were in the trailer the law was less clear on about helmets
> for them. I made an executive decision that wearing a helmet in the slung
> seat would entail more risk of soinal damage through neck displacement than
> the risk of 'falling off' the trailer.A later bike path incident where the
> trailer rolled 270 degrees with the boy upset but securely held by the
> 5-point harness reinforced this decision.

That is the first case I have heard of with someone flipping a
trailer.
We didn't use helmets in the trailer for the same reason (and didn't
have to worry about silly laws either being in the UK, but we won't go
there).
Otherwise, the trailers are excellent. We had a Winther Dolphin
(suspension, bombproof, cost more than my bike) and it towed like a
charm.

...d