Pre-shotgun: The most popular child seats from 9 to 24 months

If you’re raising a mountain bike kid, you’ll wanna get them onto your bike as soon as possible.

We’re obviously big fans of our shotgun seat for kids 2 years and older, but what about before 2 years – say, pre-shotgun?

Whilst there are many restrained baby seats out there for children 9-months and up, unfortunately not many are designed to fit modern, full suspension mountain bikes.

Read on to discover which restrained child seats are the most recommended by our MTB parent community, and learn what to look for to ensure compatibility with your full-sus rig.

The most popular child seats from 9 to 24 months

To learn more about the world of restrained seats – we asked our community of mountain bike parents which child seat they prefer pre-shotgun, and the result was overwhelming.

Just a note: For this research, we’ve focused on front (not rear) child seats that’ll work with full suspension setups with standard 1 ⅛ MTB headsets and single crown forks.

And whilst no child seat can offer a guaranteed-fit for all modern full-suss bikes, there’s certainly one brand that seems to fit more often than others.

Whilst some parents mentioned weeride, ibert, bobike and urban ikias their fave – the vast majority mentioned the Thule Yepp Nexxt Mini as their go-to child seat from 9 to 24 months.

About the Thule Yepp Nexxt Mini:

The Yepp has a 5 point harness with a magnetic buckle, is compact in size, and most importantly – mounts to most modern mountain bikes with a quick-release bracket attaching to spacers on the steerer.

The Yepp certainly seems to be one of the most popular options, before the transition is made to an unrestrained active participation seat, like the shotgun seat.

But before you pull the trigger on a stem mounted child seat like the Yepp, it pays to take a quick look at your bike to make sure it’ll fit.

3 things to check before fitting a front mounted child seat to your MTB

1. Stack height

Check the available space below the stem and above the headtube. Every front mounted child seat is different, but the Yepp needs 21mm of available space to mount.

2. Stem length and drop

Even if you have space available below the stem, you’ll still need to check the child seat bracket or clamp won’t be obstructed by the drop of your stem. Worst case scenario, you’ll need to swap for a longer stem with more rise.

3. Frame size and steering freedom

If you’re clear in terms of stack height and stem clearance, the last check is more to do with your physical height and the geometry of your bike. Many shorter parents with small bikes can find there isn’t enough space to position a child seat in front of them when riding. Another thing to consider when choosing a restrained child seat, is whether the steering is impacted once the seat is fitted. If in doubt, test it out.

Disclaimer: The info above is to help parents, but every child seat is different. Refer to the instructions supplied with the child seat in question for full fitting information.

If your bike ticks the boxes above in terms of accommodating a stem-mounted front child seat like the above, you’re in for a great time as you introduce your child to the joys of riding bikes together. Rad!

What’d we miss?

What other child seats have you found work with your full suspension bike? Drop us a note in the comments below to vote for your fave. And a special thanks to our customers who shared their setups via our Instagram account and Shred Til Bed Facebook community.

Enjoy the trails!