It’s rarely easy on the body, but hoisting your toddler up your shoulders to give them a piggyback ride is a great way to bond. So we do it. And, yes, wearing a helmet that lets them “drive” you like a motorcycle is absolutely inane, but we bet this Piggyback Driver is going to sell a whole bunch of helmets anyway.
Don’t worry, the helmet won’t actually wire itself to your brain and steer you in the child’s desired direction, so it won’t quite turn you into a remote-controlled cockroach yet. Instead, it merely uses light indicators to show you which direction the child is turning, which you can either follow or ignore if you’d rather not walk through the playground for the fourth time in a row.
The Piggyback Driver comes with handlebars to give the child imaginary steering controls, all while making it easier for them to hold on so they don’t slip off your shoulders. Lights on the left and right sides serve as the turn indicators, so you might have to glance up a bit to see exactly which side they’re turning the handlebars towards. A turbo button prompts the lights to pulse as a way to let you know your driver is looking for a little more speed, with a big red button unleashing a sound to warn pedestrians of the incoming piggyback rider.
As of now, the Piggyback Driver is a working prototype created by an outfit called Party New York. They’re looking for manufacturing partners to help bring it into production, so there’s a good chance this thing might hit store shelves at some point.