Bike trailer vs. bike seat

[golightly1118]

Now that DD is over a year old and the weather is nice, I'm looking at doing more biking. I'm trying to decide if I want to get a trailer, or a seat for her. I hardly ever bike on roads-I try to take sidewalks and trails whenever I can. So far, pros and cons...
Bike trailer
-Can get a double for when kiddo number two comes along.
-More comfy for DD.
-Can get one with storage so I can haul groceries, library books, diaper bag ect. easily.
-Biggest con is safety-I'm scared the trailer would be hit by a car.

Bike seat
-Easier to store
-Seems safer for DD.

Thoughts? Anyone BTDT? Thanks!

[hellokitty]

My DH is a pretty avid cyclist and he firmly believes that bike seats are just a bad idea and dangerous. Stick to a bike trailer. Ours folds down, and doesn't take much space at all.

[Simon]

We took Ds2 (15mo) for his first ride in a trailer recently. He enjoyed himself but I feel lukewarm about it.

First, only Ds2 fit comfortably. We tried our 2 boys in a double Burley but they don't fit in there together (for anything more than a very short trip) and Ds1 is really small for his age. He is about the size of a 4yo or large 3yo and Ds2 is small as well. So, IMO, you can't actually use a double trailer for very long (if Dc2 has to be 1yo and Dc1 is 2.5 yo+). Of course, if the kid adult ratio is 2:1 you don't have many other options. Still, I don't see much value considering their price!

I am also not comfortable with the low visibility of trailers (a car can see me but won't necessarily see a trailer) and the fact that I cannot hear what Dc is talking about/asking for when he is so far behind me.

Benefits of the trailer include having food/snacks plus toys for Dc easily accesisble. I understand and have experienced myself the balance issues with bike seats. But I still feel more comfortable with those risks.

Ds1 is 5yo and rides a trail-a-bike. I would pull them together in the Burley if I needed to, but would not plan on a double as the only source of seating.

[Penny's Pappa]

First, please stop riding on the sidewalk. Bicycles belong on the trails or on the road riding with traffic. Drivers often do not pay enough attention to sidewalk traffic. They're too busy looking out for other cars on the road. There is a high potential for a car to pull out in front of you as they back out of their driveway or turn into you as you cross the street. It is far safer for cyclists to ride in the street where they can be seen and where right-of-way rules dictate traffic flow. Sorry, I don't mean to be preachy, but most people simply don't realize how dangerous riding on the sidewalk can be.

But back on topic!

Bike seats just scare the crap out of me. I cannot imagine they would be stable in any sort of emergency situation where you need to maneuver the bike out of harms way (e.g. a dog runs out in the road). I don't know if a trailer would be any better in terms of maneuverability, but at least if you crash with a trailer your baby isn't slamming into the ground with the bike.

I'd get a trailer and plaster that thing with flags and blinking lights (NOT REFLECTORS!!!) and anything else that will make that trailer more visible.

Stay safe, and have fun.

[hellokitty]

Yes, as an example of what Penny's Papa said, one of my friends said she had a neighbor whose older child was riding ahead on her own bike and going super fast. Well, she crashed. The mom had the baby in a bike seat, and b/c she was rushing to be with her older dd, forgot about the baby. She put the kickstand on, but b/c of the baby, the bike started to topple. Luckily, she caught the bike before the baby slammed onto the cement. Like he said, at least with the bike trailer, your kid is enclosed and won't hit the ground body first.

[arivecchi]

I have to disagree with PP.

I think it depends largely on where you ride. In a city or busy road, I would NEVER use a trailer. Far too dangerous IMO.

I have two bike seats since I live in the city (CoPilot Limo). The CoPilot has high sides, a bumper bar and a harness. If I fell, the kids would not hit the ground. They would be scared but hopefully safe.

Having said that, if I only rode trails or low-traffic roads in the country/suburbs, I would do a trailer. Definitely better if you fall from your bike as the trailer should hopefully not topple over.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/121684-trailers-vs.-bike-seats/

[wellyes]

I have both.
I use a bike seat on roads with cars, and a trailer on bike paths.

If you'll be running errands, I recommend a seat. I rode with DD in a trailer on a road where cars were allowed exactly once, it scared the bajeezus out of me. She's behind you, you can't see the trailer or the kid. Plus towing makes riding more difficult.

I agree with Penny's Pappa, riding on sidewalks isn't a great idea. I actually think sidewalk riding is much harder than pavement since sidewalks tend to be bumpier and have more hazards (trees, signs, garbage cans, dogs, etc). If you are not a confident enough biker to go on the road, I'd probably take a month of daily rides solo until you reach the level of comfort necessary to ride skillfully and safely. Or stick to bike paths if you're lucky enough to be near them :)

[kaharris83]

We're currently trying to decide the same thing, but have some time before DS turns 1 to do some research. I found this http://www.chariotcarriers.com/english/html/sidecarrier.php
and it would alleviate the concern of having a trailer behind you, but it doesn't seat 2 and it's rather expensive.

[lhafer]

First, please stop riding on the sidewalk. Bicycles belong on the trails or on the road riding with traffic. Drivers often do not pay enough attention to sidewalk traffic. They're too busy looking out for other cars on the road. There is a high potential for a car to pull out in front of you as they back out of their driveway or turn into you as you cross the street. It is far safer for cyclists to ride in the street where they can be seen and where right-of-way rules dictate traffic flow. Sorry, I don't mean to be preachy, but most people simply don't realize how dangerous riding on the sidewalk can be.

But back on topic!

Bike seats just scare the crap out of me. I cannot imagine they would be stable in any sort of emergency situation where you need to maneuver the bike out of harms way (e.g. a dog runs out in the road). I don't know if a trailer would be any better in terms of maneuverability, but at least if you crash with a trailer your baby isn't slamming into the ground with the bike.

I'd get a trailer and plaster that thing with flags and blinking lights (NOT REFLECTORS!!!) and anything else that will make that trailer more visible.

Stay safe, and have fun.

I think it depends on your neighborhood on whether riding on the sidewalk is safer or not. In my neighborhood, it's TOTALLY safer to ride on the sidewalk. That's because of how my neighborhood is laid out. There are main roads that run through my neighborhood (a master planned community), and little roads turn off the main roads to get INTO the neighborhoods where the houses are. So I would ride my bike/trailer in the road til I got to the main road, then I would get on the sidewalk. And in my neighborhood - the side walks are quite far off the road themselves. Most of the people here use the side walk for everything because of the way it's set up.

[pastrygirl]

I just got an iBert front-mounted seat at REI for just over $50. They were on clearance. I haven't used it yet, but I plan to only use it on the bike trail. The streets here are too scary for me, with a bike seat OR trailer.

[golightly1118]

Thanks for the info! In our neighborhood, it's far safer to ride on sidewalks-the streets are narrow, busy and windy, so I feel much safer on sidewalks. Also, we're lucky enough to have lots of nature paths-including one that runs right by the library-and that's where I'd be doing the majority of riding.