Wogster

I turn 50 on Saturday, been married 17 years, we both have bikes, and ride kinda regularly, my wife can't ride right now, because we are expecting our first child in November (I turn 50 this week, she is more then a decade younger)

Two things: Any advice for a new (old) father.....

The other thing, how long before we can introduce the little one to one a baby trailer or one of those sit up rack mounted baby seats, which is better????

bradtx

Wogster, Congrats on the baby! Wait until you can find a helmet that will fit the toddler.

Brad

BluesDawg

First reaction -

Second reaction, congratulations! Not sure how soon you'll want to start towing the kid, but I met a family on BRAG with a 19 month old boy who was doing his 3rd annual BRAG ride.

johnj2803

I am a new "relatively" father and I was also into introducing my daughter to riding.

Strictly speaking, you should not put a child in a bike seat/trailer if he/she has no "good" head control yet. so that safely comes near the 12th month (they have head control between 3-6 months but not good enough) and if the fit of the child carriage is "good".

The reason for this is, children (at least in our state, Florida) are required by Law to wear helmets. So the child has to support the weight of the helmet and her head. So really good head control is a must. Personally, I would add good upper body control too so just she could bear the bumps of the road.

My daughter had her first bike ride when she was 11months and 1 week. I had her wearing a Giro helmet and sat her on an ibert child seat.

Enjoy your coming baby! and congratulations!!

Retro Grouch 

I think that trailers are better.

1. The smallest person has the most "stuff". Bottles, diapers, toys, change of clothes - a trailer will have enough space for carrying all that necessary baby stuff.
2. I think that trailers are safer. They have a much lower center of gravity and you're less likely to kick the baby when you swing your leg to get off the bike.

ahsposo 

Be prepared to have your sleep cycle destroyed.

We had both plus a trail-a-bike. We lived in an old historic neighborhood when our boy was an infant. So we bought a "jogging" stroller for the bigger wheels to negotiate the cobbles and curbs of the neighborhood. The model we chose could also be attached to a bike seat post. Loved it. Started with this very young.

When he could sit up and had some neck strength we bought a baby seat for the wife's bike. And still used the stroller.

When he was walking and running we bought the trail-a-bike. This was a BLAST!

ahsposo 

Oh, congratulations and Good Luck!

goldfinch

https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/b...ng-started.htm

Consumer Reports recommends not taking a child with until he is at least a year old.

miss kenton

I had a similar initial reaction as Blues Dawg,
But --Congratulations! My husband's best friend became a daddy again around the same age. It seemed his biggest problem was being able to keep awake later than the baby at night. Start taking your vitamins now, you're going to need to amp up your endurance!
As a mother of three, I'm not a big fan of those rack carriers, I think the trailer is a much safer bet. The previous posters are correct in that the baby needs to develop upper body strength before he/she can wear a helmet and support themselves in a trailer. Good luck and best wishes!

Wogster

The trailers scare me a little, get visions of some idiot in an SUV rear ending the bicycle with a wheel on top of the trailer, moaning about how they didn't see me, even with the trailer flags. I guess it's all a couple of years away though, by November cycling season is over here, so it would be spring 2013 at the earliest....

goldfinch

I take my dog in a kid trailer sometimes. If there is any time vehicles give me a wide berth it is when I am pulling that trailer.

NOS88

Congratulations! Being a parent is one of my greatest joys, as I'm sure it will be for you and your wife too.

One bit of advice I got when we considered using a trailer was this.... 6 months before the baby's ability to regulate body heat really starts to kick in and make sure he or she can sit upright without head wobble (typically between 4 and 6 months). So, I wouldn't even consider a trailer until then, and even so, I'd probably wait another 3 months to be safe. In terms of a rear child carrier, you're talking about a whole lot of more sophisticated muscle and balance issues. Some bike carrier manufactures indicate that nine month is the lower limit. I suspect this might still be a little young.

Allegheny Jet

Hey this is the 50+ forum and there ain’t no birthing babies here! I guess this time can be the exception, congratulations on the news!

jdon

YIKES!!!

Mine are now in their 20's but back then, the advice was one year to ride a carrier for skeletal and muscular development. I like the trailers. Great for grocery runs too!

If a driver hits your trailer, he/she was going to hit you with a carrier too.

Congratulations

Wogster

Maybe, a bicycle is a fairly large, tall, object, people watch out for them, I find if running a rear blinky during the day, people give a much wider birth, just thinking, I wonder if I could rig a couple of amber lights to either side of a trailer, with a 6V lantern battery, so that when one is on, the other is off, and have them switch every second or so, then put a steady red in the middle. If you hit that, then the cops should pull your licence. Mind you I heard a story once about a lady who hit a train, claimed she didn't see it, she hit it 4 cars back from the locomotive.

Hairy Hands

Congratulations. I had my first at 46 with a much younger wife as well. The first 6 months will be miserable with the pooping, crying, and puking. Little sleep for anyone in the house. I started with a jogging stroller around the 6 month mark, walking at first and then graduating into jogging. She was in a bicycle trailer at the 12m mark using a 5 point harness and helmet. We never went out of the neighborhood as I was scared of the heavier traffic outside the hood. My daughter just turned 5 and other than the fist 6 months it has been a glorious ride. You should feel very lucky that you didn't miss out on the experience. Daddy/Daughter relationship is wonderful.

sdold

Great news Wogster, congratulations! I had my first at 47 and my second just three weeks ago at 50. Younger wives are really handy for that. I agree that 1 year is about right for carrying in a trailer. It's so much fun taking our three year old in the trailer, I can't wait until she is able to ride with her new sister behind us on the tandem.

Terex

We watched our 17 mo. old grandson while our new grand daughter was being born. After 3 days, everything got sorted, but we were EXHAUSTED. Just wait until he/she wants to do hill repeats on your staircase. Brutal...

Congrats, but you should have gotten started about 30 years ago.

The bike mounted racks are dangerous, especially at your age... And get a forward facing trailer. My two oldest kids tell me how terrified they were in my rear facing trailer rides in their youth.

BikeWNC

Our daughter went on her first hike at one week old and her first bike ride when she was 3 weeks old. The ride was the loop around Cades Cove, a 10 mile paved road that gets closed to car traffic two days a week. We put the kid in an infant car seat which was then strapped into a Burley Cub trailer in the reverse position, just like she would be in a car. We took our time around the loop and had to stop once for a feeding but overall she seemed warm and happy the entire time even though temps were in the upper 30s at the start of the ride. I took her at least once a week on various seasonally closed roads throughout the winter without a problem.

I liked the Burley Cub because it had a plastic bottom which was water tight and a good cover. It had plenty of room as it was designed as a two child carrier and made securing the car seat easy. There was also ample storage space in the rear for the diaper bag and plenty of extra layers or blankets.

I pulled the trailer with my old rigid mtb which was perfect for the job.

Wogster

That would have been tricky, my wife would have been less then 10.... Hey if I am too old for the rack, it will need to go on my wife's bike We are 18 weeks, so had an ultrasound today, my wife had one huge question, and that is gender, the cord was in the way so that is still a question. Everything seems to be on track though, so I am happy.

CrankyFranky

I hope the pregnancy goes smoothly! I was a father at almost 50 (like 4 months shy) and having a child at this age is so much better than when you're a lot younger. Except on the knees.
I bought a trailer, but decided that I wouldn't use it for anything other than hauling groceries. Although I like to bike everywhere, I kept my daughter off the bike for fear of running afoul of one of texting-crazed motorists we have here in the eastern US. I think that unless road conditions are near-perfect (meaning 1 to 2 cars/hour, wide shoulders, etc.) I wouldn't expose her to that risk. She grew up, learned to ride @ 5yrs, and after a few worried years of weaving all over the place is now doing well at the age of 13 on her 3-speed. Her half-brother is 41 and now he wants a bike. The circle goes round...
As NOS88 says, one of the greatest joys in life. Be wise and savor every moment.

B. Carfree

Why can't your wife ride at 18 weeks in? My wife rode to work the day before our son was born (she started to have some pre-labor pains and sent me home to get the truck to pick her up). At 18 weeks our son "rode" in the Cinderella metric century. Our OB/GYN and midwife both encouraged her to ride as much as she wanted. We had seen Sheila Young-Ochowicz compete at the 1984 Olympic trials while noticeably pregnant. I'm glad the women didn't crash as much as the men at that event.

I agree with the folks warning you off of the bike carriers and putting the baby into a trailer too early. I did a lot of walking during the first year and a half of my son's life, then we got a rear-steer tandem and got rolling. There is nothing more entertaining than the looks on people's faces when a two-year-old is the captain of a tandem and he takes his hands off the bars and crosses them on his chest.

I hope you are prepared for the sleep deprivation. It is well worth it, but that doesn't make it easy. I hope the pregnancy/birth experience works out well for all.

Wogster

I actually don't think she should be riding, right now, she is nearly 40 and diabetic, that makes things high risk to start, she doesn't use the trainer in the winter, and her energy level is about 20% of normal.

California Crow

Congratulations... you're in for a marvelous time. My only daughter was born just a little over three years ago, when I was 58! (Mom was 41).

Life as you knew it is over. I'd no clue about the special pleasures and the many challenges until it happened. Fasten your seat belt, sit back, and enjoy the ride.

Suggestion #1 - stock up on all the sleep you can right now. You'll not be getting a whole lot for quite a while.

CC

Hairy Hands

I'm glad to see a thread like this. For the longest time I thought I was the only 50 yr old with young child