The increased attention and interest in the bicycle->ke3798 segment these days is spawning related enterprises, including start-up inventions that hope to attach themselves to the growing market. One of these inventions comes by way of Swedish designer Lycke von Schantz, who has come up with the rather interesting item called the Pahoj, a simple bicycle seat for young children that can also be transformed into a stroller, giving parents the opportunity to spend some quality time with their children.

The idea is fresh, that much I’ll concede. There's something convenient about attaching a child seat in the bike of a bicycle and then detach it so you can use it as a stroller when you decide to travel by foot. I’ll also admit that the design of the Pahoj is actually pretty sweet. But as far as its overall purpose, especially that part about it being a bike seat in some form, that's the part that I'm not quite sure about.

The overall function of the Pahoj is to act as a bike seat and a stroller for young children. That's pretty clear to me. But what's also clear is that children who ride strollers are usually very young, maybe around the ages of six or seven years old or younger.

I don't know if I'm in the minority here or not, but as far as I'm concerned, there's no conceivable situation, no matter how convenient or comfortable they seem, for young children to ride bicycles as independent passengers using an item that can be taken out of said bicycle. The list of things that could go wrong is enough reason for me not to tempt a young child's safety->ke2860 just because it's convenient to do so.

I wish Lycke von Schantz luck with his future inventions. I really do. I just can't get on board with this particular one.

Continue reading to read more about the Pahoj two-in-one bike/stroller.

Why it matters

The idea is fresh, that much I’ll concede. I’ll also admit that the design of the Pahoj is actually pretty sweet. But as far as its purpose and the potential safety issues are concerned? That’s where I draw the line.

I get the novelty of being able to bring your kid to your bike rides. It’s a nice way to bond, especially if you can take your child to places that he or she can appreciate.

But as I look at photos of the Pahoj, one question keeps coming back to me: is this thing even safe?

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m the type of person who puts safety above all else, especially when it comes to young children. The Pahoj concept looks and sounds great in theory, but there’s no way that you can convince me to strap on the Pahoj into the back of my bicycle and take a child with me in my bicycle trips. Absolutely no way.

It doesn’t even matter that the Pahoj reportedly has been safety tested at BRIO´s former test lab in Osby, Sweden. Brio, in case you don’t know, is a company that specializes in wooden toys. I’m sure that the toy company did its due diligence in subjecting the Pahoj to its safety tests. I have no issues with Lycke von Schantz’s plans for the Pahoj. In a perfect world, I can even see myself rooting for his invention to get the necessary Kickstarter funding to get his business off the ground.

But we don't live in a perfect world. We live in a world where accidents happen when you least expect them. We also live in a world where young children have no place in bicycles where they’re pretty much exposed to the outside elements with very little protecting them from potentially dangerous situations.