Recommendations for carrying a Down's Syndrome child on bike

[Bristolian]

I have a Down's Syndrome grandson that is 18 months old. He is bigger than the average child of that age and physically very strong but not in full control of his muscles and, therefore, is prone to making sudden movements of his arms and legs. Something we have recently found is that he really enjoys riding a three-wheeled balance bike (i.e. a tricycle without pedals).

I was talking with my son (the boy's father) today about him maybe getting a bike with a saddle mounted on the top tube for the boy to sit on. He later went into our local, well respected, LBS to see what they could recommend, which was a mountain bike with front suspension equipped with a "Shotgun" seat and handlebar. The only bike they had in stock was £750 which is rather more than my son was hoping to spend - he is not a cyclist so this bike would only get used probably once per week and even then only in good weather.

Looking for a lower cost new or used bike is most probably the way we will go with this and I was wondering if anyone on here has been through a similar scenario and could share some experiences? Any suggestions for make/model of bike would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance

 

[Cycleops]

If it's only going to get limited use I would suggest getting a used seventies mountain bike and then welding a saddle to the cross bar. I say seventies as they were steel and later ones were aluminium. You could add a bar to the down tube to act as a foot rest and a T shape in front to act as a hand grip. You should find plenty locally on Gumtree for little money. Will need a bit of work and things like tyres and brake blocks but would offer a budget solution. You'd obviously have to find a welder capable of carrying out the work.
My two pennies worth .

 

[classic33]

Two to consider.
Kinderkraft Balance Bike/Trike 4Trike Silver Grey
£54.90

Trybike-Steel 2 In 1 Balance Bike Vintage Green

 

[Bristolian]

Hi Cycleops, thanks for the comments. We did chat about doing just that and I know some very talented welders that could easily do a very professional job - I'm planning to speak to them on Monday.

TBH, my son can be a OCD so anyone that says they can do the welding are going to have to demonstrate their skills and guarantee a professional finish or it will be a non-starter

 

[Bristolian]

Two to consider.
Kinderkraft Balance Bike/Trike 4Trike Silver Grey
£54.90
Trybike-Steel 2 In 1 Balance Bike Vintage Green

We already have a balance trike for the boy but my son sees this as an opportunity for some quality father-son bonding time.

Thanks for the info though

 

[classic33]

Is it something like this you're thinking about?



Hammer price £30 earlier tonight.

 

[raleighnut]

I'd go for a trailer

 

[alicat]

How about going to see if The Bristol Bike Project has any suitable bikes or ideas?

 

[Bristolian]

I'd go for a trailer

We did discuss a trailer but, as I explained in my OP, the boy is not in full control of his movements so my son feels that he needs to have him in his eyeline at all times. My personal recommendation would be for a cargo bike where we could mount a seat with restraints, although finding somewhere to store it would be an issue.

Thanks for the suggestion though

 

[Bristolian]

Is it something like this you're thinking about?


View attachment 735933

Not really. My son wants the boy where he can see him at all times due to his unpredictable movements. Those movements also make having some form of restraints essential. Personally, I think a modified cargo bike will be the best solution.

 

[Bristolian]

How about going to see if The Bristol Bike Project has any suitable bikes or ideas?

On my list of things to do tomorrow

 

[classic33]

Not really. My son wants the boy where he can see him at all times due to his unpredictable movements. Those movements also make having some form of restraints essential. Personally, I think a modified cargo bike will be the best solution.

Rules out my other thought of a top tube seat then.

 

[raleighnut]

We did discuss a trailer but, as I explained in my OP, the boy is not in full control of his movements so my son feels that he needs to have him in his eyeline at all times. My personal recommendation would be for a cargo bike where we could mount a seat with restraints, although finding somewhere to store it would be an issue.

Thanks for the suggestion though

Thing is with a quality 'kiddie trailer' they have restraint straps, you don't just plonk the child in and go. Rather like a child seat in a car the restraints are too difficult to open by the child but easy for an adult.
I'd be very concerned about anything that can make sudden unpredictable movements on a bike, a big 'twitch' at the wrong moment could see them both on the ground and as for being in your sons 'eyeline' I'd assume (maybe wrongly) that when in a car the lad is strapped into a 'kiddie seat' whilst your son is driving

 

[PaulSB]

I don't visit CC very often and popped in today for something else. I noticed this thread quite by chance.

My son, Tom, 36 years old, has Downs. I'm 70 next week and have been cycling for +/-60 years. I also have a 3½ year old granddaughter - this is relevant.

As a family, with three sons, we cycled a lot. The eldest on his bike, me with Tom, my wife with the youngest. The limit came when my wife no longer felt confident helping our youngest son.

I would never consider using the type of top tube mounted seat mentioned by @Bristolian It will be dangerous for both father and son. The boy's father is not a cyclist and will be less experienced than many of us. He cannot afford to be distracted by his son's potential movements.

A friend was recently giving away a top tube mounted seat and my wife encouraged me to accept this to take my granddaughter riding. She fits the age range and size for the seat. To keep the peace I fitted the seat and rode with it empty. The idea of having a seat and child fixed between me and the bars terrifies me. I would never consider using such a seat for an able bodied child, let alone one with difficulties.

We used a child seat similar to the one shown by @classic33 earlier for as long as Tom fitted the seat and I felt comfortable with the weight. Correctly fitted and with the child correctly strapped in the only issue is the additional weight behind the rider. There can be an issue if the child quickly shifts his/her weight but this should be overcome by a seat and strapping which fits properly.

When Tom became too big for a seat, I switched him to a trailer bike with great success. When Tom outgrew this I switched to a tandem. I had to give up the tandem riding about ten years ago. Tom makes no input into the riding, his pedal strokes are erratic and he doesn't understand balance. At 60 I no longer felt in full control of the tandem and had to give up this riding.

There are specialist bikes available we could buy and use. Not far off the cargo bike style mentioned. If I could be sure it would get adequate use I'd buy one today. There are limiting factors which mean this would be a wasted investment.

Speaking to a specialist organisation is a very positive first step. These are the experts.

My personal advice would be to buy a decent quality secondhand MTB, hybrid etc style bike. Step-through would be useful - mounting a cross bar bike is tricky with a child seat behind! Invest as much as possible in a new quality child seat. Do not buy cheap or secondhand unless you know personally the previous user.

I wouldn't consider a top tube mounted seat under any circumstances whatsoever.

 

[Bristolian]

@PaulSB - Many thanks for sharing your experience and for your well explained thoughts. Having spent much of today speaking to my local bike shops and on-line suppliers of child seats I am leaning towards a trailer. My son isn't a complete cycling newbie having been a recreational rider in his teens and early twenties but has only done about a year of Zwift in the past twenty years.

Regarding wanting to keep the boy in his eyeline, yes, he is carried in a child seat when in the car but our thinking is/was that when he moves around there it doesn't unbalance the car and my son has an extra mirror fitted so that he can see what the boy is doing and the boy can see his face too.

I think more discussion is needed