Biking with kids update II
I managed to install the front bike seat (i-Bert front child seat) yesterday during nap time, and test it just after Patrick got home from school. It works well enough that I've removed the old rear-mounted toddler seat.
Notes on this seat:
* I can still use my front panniers!
* Installation was quite easy - it's basically a shelf that attaches to the handle bar stem & the seat clips onto this shelf. So the child & seat turn with the handle bars.
* I might get around to raising my handlebars slightly - I think this would be more comfortable for me, give my left gear shift a bit more space & make it slightly easier to get Ian's feet in. It might also keep my chest from bonking Ian's helmet when pedaling uphill.
* I do have to bow my knees out a bit when I ride, but not a significant or uncomfortable amount. If I don't bow enough, it's not a painful knee bonk as the curve of the seat just guides my leg wider.
* I did lower my seat a bit so my feet touch the ground with the ball & toes of both feet while seated; I'll probably loose a bit of power, but given that I'm usually biking with a 4-yr-old, this isn't much of a problem - I'm usually going as slow as possible while maintaining balance now, and walking up hills with him doesn't bother me.
* Putting Ian in is a bit complicated - sliding his feet under my handle bars is no more difficult than threading his feet into an infant swing at the park. Putting the 3-point harness over his head works best when the chest slider is slid all the way down [with or without his helmet on], and the shoulder tightener is all the way loosened; this means there's a bit of fiddling with two strap adjustments each time I put him in or out. I prefer to put his helmet on when he's on the ground, as buckling it when I'm behind him invariably results in pinching his neck. The instructions recommend tightening the shoulder tightener, adjusting the chest slider, then bucking to the crotch buckle. I've yet to remember to do it this way - I tend to do crotch buckle, shoulder tightener, chest slider.
* Keeping the bike stable & balanced while putting him in is also a bit dicey. The best method I've found, of the 4 times I've put him in, is to put the kickstand down, and stand on the side opposite the kickstand. Tilt the front wheel towards the kickstand side. Put in child & mess with harness straps. Keep in mind I usually have only a left-side [kickstand side] front pannier on before I add the child.
Next step is to open the Trail Gator box, and install on my bike and Patrick's. And try to find where I put my rear pannier rack, as my panniers are MUCH more secure on that rack than on the front rack. [Yeah, they're the same brand, but Performance changed their pannier attachment mechanism in the intervening 10-ish years between buying the panniers & rear rack, and needing to add a front rack due to a rear child seat.]