In the second instalment of our reviews of the Out’n’About off-road buggy range, our Finance Manager Katie has been testing out the Nipper Single V5 on the local muddy crags and further afield in the wilds of Scotland. Read on to find out what she thought.
We’re thrilled to be testing the whole Out’n’About off-road pushchair range - read our other reviews of the Nipper Double and the Nipper Sport - so that you can make an informed decision when choosing the right off-road pushchair for you.
When you’re ready to buy use our exclusive link to get a whopping 10% discount off your new Out’n’About pushchair!
Discount code: BLAZETRAILS10
So, let’s find out what Katie thought of the Nipper…
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HI! we’re Katie & Ryan, first time parents to our Son, Brook, who is 14 months old.
Prior to having Brook we loved getting out on the trails on our mountain bikes. Since then, we have found a love for hiking instead and showing Brook the great outdoors. With the Yorkshire Dales on our doorstep we are lucky to have so many trails to explore.
As first time parents we didn’t know what to look for in a pushchair so we ended up getting a pushchair bundle from a well known brand, but we soon found that our first pushchair was nowhere near suitable for walks we liked to do - it was even hard going pushing through our village with the cobbled side streets and getting it up and down the curbs.
Also, as Brook has got older (& heavier!) we have also found it harder to baby-wear him for longer walks.
When we got the opportunity to test the Out’n’About Nipper pushchair, it seemed the perfect product to help get us back on the trail and give us our hiking freedom back.
Unboxing the pushchair
The pushchair was really easy to put together, with it only taking around 10 minutes to fully assemble. Brook was keen to test it out straight away, and approved of the comfy seat liner and various seat recline positions.
Hardcastle Crags
Our first big test was our favourite local walk, Hardcastle Crags. Although the full loop isn’t technically pram friendly we thought we would see how the Nipper would cope. It felt effortless pushing the pushchair up the fire road to the trail.
The trail was quite muddy in places and the Nipper seemed to glide through the mud fine - no more getting stuck in muddy puddles thanks to the big wheels! We were also really pleased with the mud clearance, as the pushchair itself never seemed to get muddy, just the wheels, which makes it so much easier to clean after a muddy walk.
For an off road pushchair it’s also surprising at the gaps it can fit through. We had no problems getting across any of the bridges or between big rocks.
When we got to the rocky section, we found it much easier to push with the front wheel locked. The three wheel design made the pushchair feel very balanced and sturdy even when going across the rocks.
Our main obstacle was where the trail goes to single track, as the verges were overgrown, so it made it harder to push the nipper along this small part of the trail, along with a couple of “stepping stones” to get across.
Overall, we were really pleased with the performance of the pushchair on this walk.
Brook loved the walk in the nipper. He looked really comfortable with the padded seat liner, and the straps kept him in place on the bumpy trails.
Local walks
Our local village and town have lots of cobbled side streets, and curbs to get up and down and the Nipper goes over them with ease. It has meant no more getting wheels stuck in between the cobbles and struggling to get up the curbs.
We’ve found it really easy to manoeuvre around busy shops and high streets. We’ve had no issues getting through doors or around shop aisles etc. The steering is effortless and it’s really easy to push one-handed if needed.
Cairngorms
We’ve just taken the Nipper on our holiday to the Cairngorms. What an amazing place to further test the pushchair.
We found the pushchair folds down very compactly and takes up a lot less boot space than our old pushchair, which left much more space for our other holiday essentials when packing for our week away. If you have a small boot you can also really easily remove the back wheels to allow for more space again.
The pushchair has a large hood to shelter Brook from the sun. It also has a large window to look through to check on him during our walks. It also has a couple of large storage pockets in the hood, perfect for storing snacks for our longer walks and days out.
We have found the air filled tyres have made a much more comfortable ride for Brook. He has slept through many of our walks, rather than being woken up due to getting the pushchair caught on rocks etc.
The seat reclines completely flat, so perfect for his naps when out and about.
The pedal break works really well and is easy to access when stopping to take in the surrounding scenery, taking family photos and finding the perfect picnic spots.
So many people commented on how comfy Brook looked and how great it was to see us being able to get him out and about on the trails exploring what the Cairngorms has to offer.
Other pros
The padded handle is comfortable. The wrist strap is also handy when pushing down hills for added security.
There seems to be plenty of storage, from the hood zipped pockets, the drawstring basket and also we’ve found if you have the seat upright, you can store things behind the seat too.
The seat recline is easy to use. With the toggle design you aren’t restricted to three seat recline settings we had on our old pushchair.
The harness is easy to secure with 4 separate straps to clip in. It’s also really easy to adjust the straps.
Cons
We struggled to find cons for our review, and we’ve really had to nit pick for the following cons…
My husband finds the handle narrow compared to our old pushchair. This may just be personal preference and getting used to a new pushchair.
The zip on the hood pocket can be a bit temperamental. It seems to jam halfway on our pushchair if you unzip it all the way.
We have managed to snap the seat board in the pushchair when putting the pushchair up. It looks like this is not easily replaced, so if we could suggest an improvement it would be to make this more durable or easier to be replaced.
Summary - ‘Go Anywhere Together’
We love the Out’n’About Nipper and the fact it has given us so much more freedom to explore the trails - the Out’n’About motto feels authentic, we really feel like we can ‘go anywhere together’.
We wish we had known about this pushchair and what to look for in a pushchair when buying our original one.
We will definitely be recommending this pushchair to anyone who is looking to carry on enjoying the outdoors with their little ones.
We want to say a big thank you to Blaze Trails for giving us the opportunity to test the Nipper. As a new Blaze Trails organiser, I’ll be organising some pram friendly walks around Pendle, Craven and Ribble Valley. Find the Blaze Trails group here.
We will definitely be getting the Nipper double when our new baby arrives later in the year as it suits our lifestyle so well. We can’t wait to get out on many more adventures thanks to these great pushchairs.
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This review is part of a paid partnership that enables Blaze Trails to keep supporting parents to get outdoors - BUT we are very clear with our partners that any reviews will be honest. We don’t sugarcoat things and will be clear about the pros and cons of any kit we review. We’re all parents and want other parents to be able to make informed decisions about what kit they might want to try.
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Don’t forget you can get 10% off across the Out’n’About off-road pushchair range with the code BLAZETRAILS10:
