Keeping child warm on a bike

[Twilkes]

My boy is 16 months old and I take him on 1-2 mile trips to and from nursery and sometimes to the local museums etc. Now it's getting colder he's starting to suffer a bit more, last time his face went white, then red when we got inside, then purple like he was bruised! Passed after ten minutes though. It's probably made worse because it's a mid-mount seat so he's getting as much of the wind chill as I am.　


So what can he wear that will keep his face warm - just an old fashioned balaclava or is there anything else available? He wears a helmet, is there anything that can drape over the helmet to keep his face covered, like a see-through cape or mini beekeepers hat?

 

[Sixmile]

Would a standard buff/neck tube not work? It'd stay in place better than a standard scarf. Then maybe a pair of sunglasses to keep any wind off the rest of his face. I take it he's on a seat in front of you?

 

[Twilkes]

Yes it's a WeeRide so he's right down between my arms, face into the wind. I could try some kind of necktube but it's specifically his cheeks and mouth that seem to suffer so I don't know if they would be covered. I might just have to try him with a lightweight balaclava, but he's not great with things on his head/face at the best of times, will see how it goes.

 

[mjr]

Can you fit a windscreen on the handlebars? I've seen some in use around here.

Some balaclavas cover cheeks but even I find those claustrophobic and I'm not that bad with it. Also, wearing stuff under helmets is often (but not always) against the manufacturer's instructions because it can aid the helmet slipping - there's plenty more about that and which manufacturers say what in the helmet debate thread IIRC, so I'll not go into that more here. https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/the-cyclechat-helmet-debate-thread.187059/

 

[Twilkes]

That's a pretty good suggestion actually, I could probably cobble together a DIY version of something like this: https://www.weerideuk.co.uk/weeride_windshield.asp

As a bonus it would make me feel like I was one of the motorcycle riders from C.H.I.P.S.

 

[Milkfloat]

Teach the little blighter to pedal!

On a more serious note, you could put him on a back mounted carrier or even in a covered trailer if you did not want to go with windscreen option that is very common in the Netherlands. Other than that, wrap him up so at least his core is warm.

Fireman Sam has some natty merchandise with a visor.