RideSafer Travel Vest Questions/Concerns

[patti_b]

I bought the RideSafer Travel Vest for our 42 lb 4.5 year old and did a test run with it this evening. I have a few questions/concerns. Pictures are attached. He is on the driver side for orientation. It is a lap-shoulder installation. I understand per the directions that the top tether is also to be used if under age 6, but that seemed pretty straight forward, so I just didn’t take that extra step for practice.
http://tinyurl.com/2pzyay

1. In the belt guides and positioner, the seatbelt is “scrunched� and bunches up more toward one side. Is this okay?
2. Is the lap belt supposed to be pulled fairly tight so there is no slack?
3. Is the shoulder belt too close to his face?
4. Does the lap belt look like it’s positioned low enough?
5. He kept scooting his bottom forward a little so that his lower back was not against the seat. Is this a big problem?
6. I’m concerned that the adjustment belt on the chest buckles can be loosened so easily, even by accident it seems. It just doesn’t seem very secure.
7. It seems like the shoulder belt could come out of the shoulder belt positioner rather easily.
8. I’m concerned about the statement in the instructions “Children less than 6 years old MUST use top tether and lap belt only if available. If top tether anchorage or lap belt only is not available, use lap and shoulder belt.� Does this mean that lap and shoulder belt is less safe?
9. Anything else not look right in the pictures?

Maybe it’s just because I’m not used to it and don’t totally understand how it in conjunction with the seat belt works, but it just doesn’t seem that secure to me. I need reassurance!

It seems like it would be a lot easier with lap belt only & top tether. One of the cars we will be riding in has lap only & top tether in the middle position, but the other car has lap-shoulder in every position.

Thanks for your help.

Patti

[Joolsplus2]

It's a strange little restraint, takes a lot to get used to it, that's for sure!
It actually looks fine to me.
1 Scrunched in belt guides=fine
2 yeah, fairly tight, no crushing is necessary, but no slack is ideal.
3 if the vest weren't on the belt is too close to his face, but since it's in the vest it's not a problem.
4.the lapbelt rides up a little, that's ok, the vest spreads the forces evenly to prevent abdominal injury
5 a little scooting is fine, the belts are going to stay properly positioned no matter what
6 yeah, mine loosen easily too, but not when we are just driving (and even my 10 yo can't even unbuckle it!)
7 never had the shoulderbelt come out yet... it probably won't happen to you either
8 Um.. .yeah... that top tether for kids under age 6...unless you don't have one..I don't know what they are going for there, it's painfully unclear. Long story short, it's not necessary if you have a shoulderbelt...tests fine either way (same thing with the crotch strap...necessary, but not really...)
9 all looks right to me (what a cutie pie! and i had that arctic cat cover once, lol).
10...if you're leaving it in the same car for more than a couple trips, you might want to leave it mostly hooked to the seatbelt...you just have to undo the buckles and the lapbelt clip on the buckle side... that may (or may not be, depends on the car and the situation) be easier than undoing the whole thing every time... a top tether might help keep it in place better for that (we never have one when we use it, so I'm just guessing).
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/Leah.aspx

[patti_b]

Thanks Julie! I knew you would reassure me :)

Do your kids use the head support? Mine said he doesn't like it. Does it provide any amount of protection, or is it just for comfort?

One more question, in an SUV with 3 rows, is he safer in the second row w/ bucket seats, so no middle, or the 3rd row in the middle, but closer to rearend impact?

Thanks again!

Patti

[Joolsplus2]

Nah, we travel as light as possible, so no head support (yup, just comfort...)
I'd use it in the captain's chair in the middle... really 'any' seat in the back is very safe, and you'd go nuts trying to climb back there to buckle him in the back!

(Crash stats are, and I'm not exactly sure how to make them into real numbers, but frontal crash deaths are 20 per million, side crash deaths are 14 per million, and rear crash deaths are 2 per million, so *in general* you'd want to go with the center whenever possible...but that doesn't take into account what car you drive or restraint you use or anything, just raw numbers, and shows the third row is probably very, very safe for a properly restrained rider).

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/Leah.aspx

[gcampbell72]

Hope no one minds if I jump in with a related question.

We just got a RideSafer vest and we're loving it. This post has been super helpful and addressed a lot of the questions/concerns that I had about the "installation". I do have one additional question, though... at the shoulders the vest seems to sit several inches off of my DS' shoulders (and I noticed it is the same in the photo linked to this thread). Basically the vest fits my DS fine before he gets in the car, but when he sits down the whole vest shifts upward and ends up around his ears. I still get him harnessed well, but my husband is refusing to use the vest because he is concerned with the fit at the shoulders.

I would greatly appreciate any advice!

Thanks!

Cathy
(mom to Owen, who LOVES his new space vest!)

[Joolsplus2]

My kids' always ride up on (well, off!) their shoulders, and it doesn't concern me a bit...the seatbelt is still properly in place, the vest will still spread the crash forces out widely to prevent injury. Even on adults, it's not important that the shoulderbelt be on the shoulder, it only really needs to be on the chest.

It's probably hard to make a vest that fits all torso lengths of all kids from 35-60 pounds (or 50-80 in the larges)...but they test it with several dummy sizes that probably have the vest ride up, too, and it has exceptional crash ratings.

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/Leah.aspx

[gcampbell72]

Wonderful! Thanks so much for the clarification.

We are really loving the RideSafer vest. We purchased it based on all of the great information on this board, and it has really come in handy for travel and local cab rides!

Thanks again!

Cathy