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SPIN CITY ROB KEMP looks at the benefits of starting life on two wheels from a young age in the capital
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or many parents the first experiences of cycling with their children comes when they fix a child seat to their own bike and take to the local roads,” says Andy Cremin, project manager of cycling charity Sustrans.org. Of the estimated 610,000 daily cycle journeys made in London, a rising number of them include babies and toddlers being ferried along in child seats, trailers or on purpose-built ‘family’ bikes. One such parent is John Amir, 50, from Herne Hill. “I first took our eldest boy Eddy on the bike seat when he was eight months old. I take his little brother, Kit, who’s 19 months now, in the same seat.” Since becoming a father, John has also opened his own bike shop, BonVelo (bonvelo.co.uk). “My partner Karina and I are both keen cyclists, so it came naturally to take the boys with us on the bikes as soon as we could. We use a rearfit seat – it’s the most comfortable and will take a child up to 22kg, so around five years old if you need to.” While it’s possible to use both front and rear seats on the same bike, it can make things very cumbersome. A more popular solution for carrying two or more children is a trailer or specially-designed cargo bike. “I use a four-seater cargo bike,” explains Maria Ona, a childminder from Isleworth. “I take children aged 10 months to four years – including my own – and have used it since doing a trial run on Wandsworth Common. I chose this model because not only does it cater for four kids, there’s room for bags, too. “I’ve always enjoyed keeping fit but being a mum to three children and working up to 60 hours each week as a childminder, it’s hard to find time to exercise,” adds Maria. “I can
end up cycling 25 miles in a day, so this way I benefit fitness wise, plus I reckon I save more than £1,000 in petrol annually.”
TEACHING KIDS TO RIDE Some parents look to familiarise their toddlers with cycling and using pedals with ride-on toys or push-along tricycles. “But from around the age of three it’s good to try your child out on a balance bike,” says Andy. These simple bikes have no pedals or chain. “Take your child to the park with a balance bike – they’re great for mastering control and learning to ride properly.” Once they’ve got the hang of that, they can progress to a pedal bike fairly easily. “We’ve seen a move towards these bikes and away from stabilisers as kids can rely on them too much,” adds Andy. Sustrans helps run BikeIt Plus cycle sessions at schools across London. “Once your child is at school they can have BikeIt Plus sessions, funded by TFL. For older children, schools can also get free Bikeability courses that teach them to ride safely on the roads – these are also run during school holiday. “We see the parents as the gatekeepers to children cycling confidently,” says Andy. “If you take your children to cycle locally or at any of the great places to ride around London, such as Victoria Park, Hyde Park, Richmond Park, along the canal network or the Olympic Velo Park with its mountain bike, BMX and road circuits, you can give them a great grounding in cycling with confidence.” L Rob Kemp writes for Cycling Plus magazine. He’s also the author of The Expectant Dad’s Survival Guide: Everything You Need to Know (£12.99, Vermilion)
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FROM TOP TO BOTTOM: KNOG STROBE LIGHT £11 FROGBIKES.CO.UK; HARMONY 20 BIKE £279.99 RIDGEBACK.CO.UK; FROG 48 BIKE £280 FROGBIKES. CO.UK; MINI HELMET £29.99 THEHORNIT.COM; RALEIGH BALANCE BIKE £120 EVANSCYCLES.COM
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