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Visibility for Small Rider?

Old 07-01-13, 07:02 PM
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Visibility for Small Rider?

Hi,
My 6 year old daughter and I sometimes bicycle together. She is 4 feet tall and has a 20 inch Specialized Hotrock bicycle. Occasionally we have to ride on streets (We stick to trails as much as possible). I would like to make her more visible to automobiles. As far as I can see there is no way to mount a trailer-style flag on her bicycle. I have mounted white and red flashing lights on her helmet but they are not that visible during the day and her profile is low on the road anyway. What are my options for protecting her on the road (and trails too)? Are there vests with extremely bright LED lights that would fit her? Is there a way to mount a flag on this frame? Thanks!
Best,
Neil
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Old 07-02-13, 08:18 AM
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Are you talking about those tall bicycle safety/security flags? Is there no vertical tube on your daughters bike to zip tie the flag post to? Or you might be able to use the upper and lower rear triangles together to zip tie the flagpost to. Zip tying to both the upper and lower will get the flagpost vertical or close to vertical. Hope that helps.
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Old 07-02-13, 11:32 AM
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A few ideas:
This company sells reflective shirts for kids:
https://www.ruseen.com/store/kids-shi...ts-o4_133.aspx
I've also seen bright yellow and bright white "hi-viz" shirts in the Champion kids clothing at Target (you might need to look in the boy's department for the yellow)

All of the LED vests I've seen are adult size, although you could possibly cinch down one of the Nathan brand running vests, since they're intended to be low-profile: https://www.amazon.com/Nathan-Proton-...words=led+vest

You could also add reflective decals to existing clothing:
https://www.amazon.com/Lightweights-P...ights+clothing
https://www.amazon.com/Lightweights-B...ights+clothing


Or the helmet:
https://www.amazon.com/Lightweights-R...ights+clothing
https://www.amazon.com/FlashBrite-Ref...s+for+clothing

You could also attach a seatpost-mounted rack and attach a light or visibility triangle to the back of the rack.

Or use something like this:
https://www.amphipod.com/products/viz...iangles-2-pack
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Old 07-04-13, 09:24 PM
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Originally Posted by mel2012
A few ideas:
This company sells reflective shirts for kids:
https://www.ruseen.com/store/kids-shi...ts-o4_133.aspx
I've also seen bright yellow and bright white "hi-viz" shirts in the Champion kids clothing at Target (you might need to look in the boy's department for the yellow)

All of the LED vests I've seen are adult size, although you could possibly cinch down one of the Nathan brand running vests, since they're intended to be low-profile: https://www.amazon.com/Nathan-Proton-...words=led+vest

You could also add reflective decals to existing clothing:
https://www.amazon.com/Lightweights-P...ights+clothing
https://www.amazon.com/Lightweights-B...ights+clothing


Or the helmet:
https://www.amazon.com/Lightweights-R...ights+clothing
https://www.amazon.com/FlashBrite-Ref...s+for+clothing

You could also attach a seatpost-mounted rack and attach a light or visibility triangle to the back of the rack.

Or use something like this:
https://www.amphipod.com/products/viz...iangles-2-pack
Thanks Mel. I will check these out.
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Old 07-04-13, 09:28 PM
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Originally Posted by Purpleorchid
Are you talking about those tall bicycle safety/security flags? Is there no vertical tube on your daughters bike to zip tie the flag post to? Or you might be able to use the upper and lower rear triangles together to zip tie the flagpost to. Zip tying to both the upper and lower will get the flagpost vertical or close to vertical. Hope that helps.
Hi Purple Orchid,
Yes, I am thinking of the tall safety flags. The angles for the tubes are all at odd angles and lengths unlike on my adult bike. Her bike is a has a little kid style configuration. Thus there does not seem to be a good place to tie down a flag.
Thanks,
Neil
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Old 10-01-13, 01:38 PM
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Not sure if you solved your visibility issues, but I was recently made aware that Ikea sells very inexpensive reflective vests for kids, so you may want to pick one of those up as well, either the 3-6 year old size or the small adult:

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40200912/
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50200916/
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Old 10-02-13, 03:29 PM
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DIY two point flag holder attachment is pretty easy

You can devise a two point flag attachment if you are good at cobbling things. I used a flashlight mount and a short piece of 1/2 " PVC irrigation tubing and cap to attach a flag to my trike. You can look at the exact flashlight holder on ebay if you plug in the auction # 150788023732 I actually bought a couple of the same item from an outfit in Hong Kong (www.banggood.com) (SKU025652) for $1.69 including shipping but the long delivery time will make you think that China post must use pigeons to transmit airmail.

If you mounted two of these on the rear frame, the flag could be held firmly upright since the flashlight holders can be swiveled to any angle. The original nylon flag holder on my fairly expensive recumbent trike lasted less than a week before it broke. I could have ordered an aluminum replacement for around $14 but made my own for less than $3. The cobbled one has survived a couple thousand miles.
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