Has anyone heard of or tried a bike seat that attaches in FRONT of your seat? I recently saw one at the store and I wondered about the safety of it. It seems like I would prefer to have my child in front of me if I could?
Thanks for any advice!
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Has anyone heard of or tried a bike seat that attaches in FRONT of your seat? I recently saw one at the store and I wondered about the safety of it. It seems like I would prefer to have my child in front of me if I could?
Thanks for any advice!
I'd be curious to know how safe they are. When we were in Amsterdam (where everybody rides a bike), all we saw were kiddy seats in front of the handlebars!
The Centric Safe Haven is a front-mounting seat that perches in between your seat and the handlebars. It has a place for a child to rest her head when she gets sleepy -- does that sound familiar? We purchased one of these a month ago but have yet to attach it to my bike (it's still too cold/snowy up here in Massachusetts). My understanding is that it's safer than rear-mounting seats b/c the center of gravity is better placed, and because the child doesn't lean out to see in front of you. Plus, if you do wipe out, your arms are around the child.
I'll report back once we try it out.
I've read mixed reviews. In an impact, there's a good chance that you land on TOP of the child, which might not be great. You might be able to keep your arms around them in a straight fall-over, but if you get hit, you'll fly, and the child is left with whatever protection is offered by the seat itself. As well, the front-seater models are more quickly outgrown.
I'm more a fan of the Rhode Gear Limo (the second seat shown on http://www.sunrisecyclery.com/produc...essories/kids/ ). It's got a lot of solid side protection, and it's really easy to use. And it's easy to remove temporarily if you want to ride without it. Oh, and if there's bugs where you're riding (I ride on a rail trail), the child doesn't get a faceful of them because your body acts as a windbreak.
HTH,
KathyO