3 sleeping kids on a 40km bike ride

thanks to this great dutch carrier bicycle (www.bakfiets.nl) i can ride my 3 little ones to any place within 50km. they love it! who needs a car...

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• carrier
• bike
• sleeping
• kids

[xtravaganzagold]

"who needs a car"

if you continue to ride with children without using helmets , you will definitelly need once a car , or an ambulance ..

please dont risk your children's safety

[frankvanschaik]

i see i come across like a risky dad, which i'm not... i'm carless not careless!

i wonder who of you have experienced the daily dutch reality of bike-oriented traffic. i can imagine cycling in many car-countries can be a dangerous adventure. but the number of traffic victims in the Netherlands is 'low' (in 2007: 43 deaths per million: 709 deaths, of which 147 cyclists, of which 2 under the age of 9) and decreasing for the past 15 years. in the US: 142 deaths per million (steadyish since 1998)...

[frankvanschaik]

however, the helmet issue is another thing. i know it is much safer, and we actually have used bike helmets for the oldest two for more than a year (after a small bike accident which resulted in a bump on their heads), but to be frank (..) we stopped because of the hassle. but the oldest one definitely puts one on when he rides his own bike.

anyway, this video was basically meant to show the beauty of the bike and the possibilities.

frank

[frankvanschaik]

from the filmer:

hi papooses & xzaz,

thanks for the discussion. i've noticed us dutchies are notorious for being easy-going with (perceived) risks, for ourselves as well as for our kids. we've travelled with our kids outside Europe a few times, and have always got remarks about it. we tend to call it "loving neglection": let them face (small) risks and find out the (small) consequences, and they grow up as independent individuals who dare to take initiative.

(+ see next reaction)

[DavidHembrow]

Frank, don't worry about it. Children in the Netherlands face far fewer problems than those in the countries where the complaints are coming from (google for "why are dutch children so happy" to read a BBC article about this), and the Netherlands has the safest cyclists in the world due to the quality of the infrastructure (with no helmets required). What you are doing is normal and reasonable in context.

The people complaining don't understand as they have not seen it in context. Come and see!

[IhaveaKugelschreiber]

Don't know why the paranoid police have hooked onto this video, but I find this absolutely beautiful. Your kids will look back on these days, riding with dad on luscious green trails sleeping in a cargobike, as the best days of their lives, and your relationship with your kids will benefit from it.

I wanna do a trip to Europe, check out a nice place to live in case my daily struggle to combat with cars becomes too bothersome.

[jonasjar]

To me this looks like a symbol for the best things in life, this is the meaning of a civilized society.

[tubberus]

Kudos for being an model father and an enduring cyclist

[r0bertN]

NL: Ik vind die bakfiets ook echt een geweldige uitvinding! Ik leg er geen kinderen in, maar wel andere dingen zoals mijn boodschappen =)

Best leuk om al die "buitenlandse" comments te lezen!

Zeker als ze positief zijn, Whaha!

ENG: I also think that the carrier bicycle is a tremendous invention!

I don't use it for kids but for other stuff such as groceries =)

It's nice to hear all the "foreign" comments.

Especially when they're positive, whaha!

[TequilaThunder]

I don't think it's too unsafe.  The kids would absorb most of the shock if there was an impact, and the driver should be ok.

[swimmy3181]

I miss The Netherlands!! My husband and I were there in May '08 and loved it! I wish we could raise our family there! I love this video!!

[1crazyfocker]

its funny how there is not one video on youtube that does not have at least one moron statesomething that "you the video taker/poster" is doing wrong, yet i bet they are a lot worse of a parent then you are(if they even are parents) plus you are spend real time with your kids, I bet they barely spend 1/4 the time with there kids, let alone spend that time in a bonding way, anyways great video, the bike looks great, was thinking of getting one, or building one, thanks for shareing

[nye1956]

Frank this video clip is beautiful, thanks for sharing it and keep it up! :o)

[klasina]

Aaaah how cute! I was looking for the third kid but it was on the 'pakjedrager' haha ;-)

And as a dutch mom i can only say you look everything BUT careless. You are taking your children on a 40km bikeride in fresh air while they can sleep and grow all at the same time (Y)

[ididtube]

I confirm that from the Dutch perspective, the absolute insistence on bicycle helmets looks like an peculiar American obsession.

Have a look here for an interesting reading:

policy.rutgers.edu/faculty/puc­her/irresistible.pdf