10 replies to this topic

[jonnybmac]

I put this here rather than in the trials gear section due to it aimed more towards oset sized children.

I've took the plunge and ordered a 12.5 oset, will take delivery in a week and a half.. But now the hard part in sourcing the kit to protect him. I need to find a trials helmet small enough to fit on my 25 month old son's head. He is quite big for his age I would say, although I've yet to look at his bike helmet size I just want to know what helmets you guys use and the smallest fitting?



My local dealer stocks wulf sport, and their smallest size is 54cm.. I think that may be a little too big, is there any smaller sizes such as xxs?

As for armour, would you recomend a spine protector or tabard? my dealer said all it would do is limit his mobility, and considering he flys down hill on his strider I guess he'd be actually going alot less in terms of speed so not essential.

Boots? can you even buy boots for a child so young?

What about a neckroll or am I being too overly protective?

Edited by jonnybmac, 21 October 2011 - 11:47 AM.

[Pete_Scorpa3]

The Wulf Trials helmet is quite small, it's worth trying on.



The girls wear pushbike helmets if they are playing around in the garden but a proper lid when riding 'real' off road.





Many will say they prefer a full face lid, but the eldest found she rode into things as it restricted her vision. A full face does give better protection!

[flypigs]

We bought a few HJC kids helmets on closeout in xs, s, and m, and mixed up the cheekpads along the way to try to keep the best fit. On the 12.5, I really would have been ok w/ a bicycle helmet - in our case, both boys were going faster on bikes than on the 12.5's. It did work well to get them used to full-face, and they will happily wear the moto helmets on their bikes if they're going to a skate park.

The first son started out with just ordinary kids boots, but soon we ended up w/ some Fox PeeWee comp5's for about $70us. They are well worth it, and the sole pad removes to make them significantly bigger as the kids feet grow. When the younger son started riding, we quickly got some Shift Speedsters, which were similarly cheap. Neither of these boots has adult style protection, but they are light and comfortable and give reasonable protection.

We tried gloves, but with hands that small, they just made it harder to manipulate the throttle and brakes, so we are usually not wearing them.

Any elbow pads are good to prevent scrapes, but kids (I can only speak for 5 and under) are so darn flexible and resilient that I think only boots and helmets are absolute necessities.

(but the boys have requested and received chest protectors because they think they're cool)

I don't know if age 6 will become time for neck protection for our oldest.

Pete

Edited by flypigs, 21 October 2011 - 01:46 PM.

[jonnybmac]

Hey and thanks for the replies. Do you think the wulf is just small fitting or will all 54 be okay? Reason i ask is because i think the nau do an xs too and would prefer to have one with a clip rather than a buckle to be honest. Think im just going to go knee and elbow pads and maybe look towards boots when his feet grow a little bit more.

Thanks again

[jonnybmac]

Aldo flypigs, think im going to jyst use his fingerless cycle gloves, worth amention as they are quite good fit and offer good grip for my boys little hands

[jonnybmac]

What hjc helmet did you get? hjc cs-5n?

[flypigs]

Fingerless gloves - That's a pretty good idea to give some protection, but give good function (and if any of you have tried to put gloves on a 3 year old, it is a VERY frustrating venture!).

And JonnyB, yes, I think that was the model of HJC that we got. They are pretty basic, but again for the speeds and potential impacts of this age (3 and 5), they work.


Looking forward to outfitting older kids in better gear is going to be a very expensive avocation.

Pete

[jonnybmac]

I make it a game for him to wear his protection. I always ask what we need to do before he steps on his strider.. he always says knees, elbows, head, hands whilst pointing at them.. It does get abit fiddly trying to get all their little fingers in the right places but its worth it. I cant ride my bike without gloves (prob a personal preferance) so I figure its better for him to have some too

[Pete_Scorpa3]

jonnybmac, on 22 October 2011 - 05:23 PM, said:

I make it a game for him to wear his protection. I always ask what we need to do before he steps on his strider.. he always says knees, elbows, head, hands whilst pointing at them.. It does get abit fiddly trying to get all their little fingers in the right places but its worth it. I cant ride my bike without gloves (prob a personal preferance) so I figure its better for him to have some too

Boots are also a good idea. I let the kids get away with trainers if they are riding in the back garden but they always wear their boots if we are going off road proper.

[jonnybmac]

Yeah im going to have to invest in some boots, it just worries me at his age hell grow out of them within a few montgs as thats what hes like with his shoes and at 70 quid a pair they aint cheap.. Or can you get them cheaper

[fastducs]

full protection if you want them to continue riding after their first serious get-off.
Adult elbow pads make good knee pads for kids.
Elbow pads are a must. Check out hockey elbow pads for small sizes.
Fox comp 5 boots come in very small sizes.
Chest protectors come small, but you will have to shop around. Hockey gear comes in very small sizes, which was my son's first chest protector.
Full-face MX helmets come very small. So do ski helmets, which was my son's first trials helmet.