I'm sure you have all seen the post on Cycle Mumbreeze that shows bicycle child seats in the wild in Kawasaki, Japan. No? Go look right now. They're so. dang. cute!
See? Super cute. Via "Nemo's great uncle" on Flikr,
under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 license.
I have found a source that ships internationally for the white metal basket seat in the Cycle Mumbreeze post: Bicycle Hero. They also sell through their eBay store. The cost is about C$70 (including free shipping), and it comes with a three-point harness instead of just a lap belt - both wins over the Bobike option I was considering, IF it works. I also really like the big mesh leg protectors. We'll see how well it works for Dom when it arrives... it may get quickly inherited by Angel's toddler if he won't fit. =)
Meanwhile, here are some more Flikr photos of it in use, mostly showing only lap belts attached. It looks like it attaches to any rear rack, and like it ought to be big enough for my little guy... cross your fingers for me!
Update!
ReplyDeleteThe child seat has arrived from Korea. It was minimally packed in a cardboard box with some newspaper packed around it, and came through okay.
It lacks installation instructions, but is really self-explanatory to install (once I replace the inevitable missing nuts for the screws).
The harness is actually a single strap that loops through the seat and has a chest buckle - so it's more of a four-point harness, I guess.
The seat and the straps are big enough that my tall almost-five-year-old will fit easily and comfortably (if the foot rests aren't too short for him once we get it fully assembled) with some room to spare for him to grow. I don't think my seven-year-old would fit.
The seat and pad are both marked Made In China, and a brand-sticker on the back of the seat says Europe (LOL).
The design allows you to swing down extra side parts (when a child is not seated in it) to cover the leg openings, so that it can be used for groceries or what-have-you.
I'll take a bunch of photos as I install it and of it in use so others can decide if it might work for them. But I think it will be perfect for carrying my little guy on the back of my bike while my little girl rides her own bike when we're doing the school run.
Another update: the big barrier to installing this seat on a Raleigh-built bike from the 60s or 70s is having a rack that can safely carry the weight of a child! We took a careful look at the options today at redbike, and after weighing what I have learnt about the NOS racks that are available and how they are attached, I made a decision...
ReplyDelete...and ordered the BoBike Junior for installation on my bike.
However, we are going to try to install this seat on one of Angel's bikes for carrying her gorgeous toddler. Fingers crossed that racks that fit properly will be less of an issue.