The Piggyback Rider Standing Child Carrier

by Piggyback Rider

• Super fun the your child and super comfy for the parent!
• Made with safety in mind - child harness, hand hold straps, wide foot bar for stability, sternum slider
• No more big bulky child carriers! Folds to the size of a rolled towel and weighs less than 3 lbs!
• Weight distribution allows for a natural upright walking posture. Children love the height advantage, rest, and quality time.
• For children 2.5 - 7 years old, up to 60 lbs. Makes a great gift for parent or child!

Product Description

Color: NILOC Model

The Piggyback Rider creates a mutually enjoyable, effortless way to carry a child on your back; replacing bulky backpack carriers and strollers. The trend-setting, streamlined, unisex design functions like a standard backpack, with a shoulder-strap mounted foot bar, integrated grab handles and safety harness for security. The child's weight distributes at your core, allowing a natural upright walking posture, while children love the height advantage, rest, and quality time. Portable and lightweight, the Piggyback Rider is for every outing and every season. The simplicity and ease of the Piggyback Rider revolutionizes child carriers and engages parents and children in active transport.

Features:

<
• Portable, compact, durable, lightweight
• One size, fully adjustable
• Size of a rolled towel and weighs less than 3 lbs
• For children 2.5 - 7 years old, up to 60 lbs
• Integrated comfort and safety: four secure hand holds
• Includes a convertible multifunction carry bag / mud-flap / pouch
• Limited lifetime warranty.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Tried it out at Disney July 27, 2011

By Darrell Wallace

Color Name:NILOC Model|Amazon Verified Purchase

As we were preparing for a trip to Disney, I had an idea for a way to carry my son around on some sort of backpack frame. He just turned five and is too big / too cool to ride around in a stroller. Fortunately, as I did a little searching, I found this thing. Though a bit pricey, it basically does what it claims.

Pros:
* Lightweight and compact
* Better load distribution and safety than putting child on shoulders
* Far more maneuverable than a stroller (Picture sprinting out of Disney parks post-fireworks. For that, this thing was AWESOME.)
* Gives the kid a great vantage point for parades, fireworks, etc., when you are in a sea of adults.

Cons:
* The child has to stand up. This isn't really as useful as I had hoped when the kid is exhausted. He wanted to sit down, so he still ended up on my shoulders when he was too tired to walk / stand.
* Not always fast / easy to put on - the hooks have what I will call "safety latches" - little indents that make them difficult to accidentally unhook under load. These also make them a bit difficult to deliberately unhook. It works fine with a little practice, but it generally goes best if there's a third person to help with the hookup between the parent / child harnesses.
* 40-60 pounds is a lot to carry around on your shoulders if you're not used to it. Unlike a "frame" backpack that distributes the weight to your hips, this puts all of the weight on your shoulders. After walking about 7 miles through Epcot following my wife's military-precision "touring plan," the kid was feeling pretty good, but I was pretty tired.
* The straps can get tangled and twisted. The bar orientation gets wonky if the straps twist. Still not 100% sure we got it back to where it's supposed to be.
* Safety - Though it's probably safer than just throwing the child on your shoulders, I did worry at various times about what would happen if I lost my footing. With an extra 45 lbs hanging from my upper torso (sometimes squirming excitedly), walking or running on unfamiliar and uneven pavement, the potential for a fall was probably a lot higher than I should be comfortable with. I did try to use care to use handrails, etc., but I think it's a genuine concern. My wife ended up not trying to carry him around at all, partly because of him being too heavy for her, but also because the weight ratios would have been harder for her to balance.

The whole setup got a lot of attention around the park. Both parents and park employees stopped me to comment on what a cool solution it was. I wore the adult harness and bar almost all of the time just out of convenience. I was able to either sit on the bar or flip it up vertically beside me on most of the rides, thereby eliminating the need for me to put take it off and on throughout the day. On total, we found it to be a good purchase, though the requirement that the child always stand turned out to be a bigger deal than we had anticipated. However, if only just for being able to quickly enter and exit the parks I would buy this item again.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice, but needs some work July 12, 2011

By DK

Color Name:NILOC Model|Amazon Verified Purchase

I wanted this to be perfect, but it's just not quite there yet. My daughter is around 36 pounds. She was able to stand and hold the shoulder straps easily. In fact, she was thrilled with the experience and asks for a ride occasionally around the neighborhood. Unfortunately, daddy's back isn't quite up to the challenge for long periods.

The biggest problem with this carrier is the back support. When you buy a hiking backpack or a standard child carrier, there is a belt for your waist that carries most of the weight. Your shoulders are then used to stabilize the pack and it's much easier on your back. With the Piggyback Rider, all the weight is on your shoulders. 36 pounds isn't a ton, but after 30 minutes or so, it sure feels that way.

Another huge problem is the child's feet. For my 38" tall child to stand comfortably and see over my shoulders, the foot bar sits right under my butt. At first that doesn't seem too bad, but after walking around for awhile, my daughters shoes were rubbing against my thighs and they became irritated. After a whole day walking around Disney World, it was downright painful!

Finally, there is no easy way to get the kid attached to the shoulder straps if you are slightly overweight or have bad balance. You have to kneel down and contort your body in order to snap them in, then somehow stand back up while they're on the foot bar without falling over. With practice and better health, I'm sure this would be easier, but for now, I will continue having my wife snap her in while I maintain my balance.

My daughter loves this contraption and she had no problem staying balanced and holding on. The child harness part allows her to lean back and I had no fear at any point she would fall off. That is the best part of the carrier. There are a few modifications I would have made to make it easier on the dad, but I'm not going to stop using it. It's super convenient, compact and easy to use once you're going. If you have a strong back, you will be okay. There is still the irritation from the feet, but it will be okay in moderation.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Mom of 3 November 18, 2011

By Carrie L. Walters

Color Name:NILOC Model

This is a great product and long-overdue! It took some adjusting but I found the perfect height for the bar which was right above my tailbone. We go geo-caching a lot and this has come is very handy for my 2.5 year old. He will actually ask to go for a walk on the Piggyback Rider. I wish I had this for my oldest child when he was at that stage to be too big for the stroller but too little to walk for long periods. It is especially helpful when I am on my own with the three kids. I have one on my back and the other two safely holding my hands. I highly recommend this product!