Comments on: Learning to Ride a Balance Bike

By: Making Good Progress | This Mama Makes Stuff

Making Good Progress | This Mama Makes Stuff — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 06:45:57 +0000

[...] on the Strider Part 1, Part 2, Part [...]

By: Major Progress on the Strider Run Bike | This Mama Makes Stuff

Major Progress on the Strider Run Bike | This Mama Makes Stuff — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 14:42:40 +0000

[...] He’s had his Strider Run Bike for four months now. He started off slow, then a couple months later, he started making some noticeable progress. [...]

By: Tanya

Tanya — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 03:19:10 +0000

This post caught my eye when I was looking at your current blog post. My 6 year old still rides with his training wheels. We’ve tried taking them off once and he was just not confident enough. Thanks so much Rob from Balance Bikes 4 Kids for the suggestion. I’m going to try this with him.

By: Laura D

Laura D — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 05:39:38 +0000

We ended up getting a Strider for Charlie (2 1/2) and he took right off! The older kids at the park on training wheels always whine to their parents “that little boy is on two wheels!” after he flies past them. Only problem is he complains about a sore bum – need to look into a seat pad or thicker diapers.

By: sara

sara — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 04:35:10 +0000

one more note about my above comment — those family bike rides my 3 year old participated in were up to 3 miles long and included mountain biking on rocky trails!! that’s impossible on training wheels. we love the pedal-less bike at our house!

By: sara

sara — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 04:29:31 +0000

I found that my 3 year old on a pedal-less bike was keeping up just fine with us — MUCH better than he would on a bike with training wheels. Training wheels basically ruined family bike rides. The pedal-less bike made it so that we could all go more or less together (oldest child is 9). Sure, he was at times slower than the other kids because he was 3. But he kept up much better on the pedal-less. And now he is a fearless and fast rider of a 12-inch regular bike (no training wheels).

By: Allison

Allison — Sun, 30 May 2010 03:38:12 +0000

Just for the sake of the other side – my oldest just learned how to ride a two wheeler. We simply removed her training wheels, and within a few days she was doing great. It wasn’t a big deal for us at all, worked great and now she is a two wheel rider.

My main question about these, is when I look at the video of your adorable boy, it doesn’t look very fun. For instance, if we were going for a family ride around the block, unless we were going downhill, my child on that bike would not be able to keep up. How do you handle that? Is it just more for around the driveway and not for longer rides?

By: kelly jo

kelly jo — Sun, 30 May 2010 00:32:30 +0000

Awesome for him!! My daughter got her Strider around 20 months or so and took a while to warm up to it, but now she’s flying down hills, feet up the whole way! We can hardly keep up with her on foot. It’s such an amazing concept! She rode it today and introduced her new little friend to it (she’s now 2 1/2) and I think her parents will be getting her one soon too!

By: Rob from Balance Bikes 4 Kids

Rob from Balance Bikes 4 Kids — Sat, 29 May 2010 15:05:09 +0000

Thanks for advocating the use of balance bikes for learning to ride. The Strider bike is a great bike for the 2 1/2 and under set. It’s the only one our store recommends for kids that age.

One tip for parents who’s children may be over 6 and still trying to learn to ride – if your child has outgrown a balance bike or already has a bicycle. Do the the following:

1. Lower the seat low enough for them to put their feet flat.
2. Remove the training wheels and the pedals (easy to do with a wrench).
3. Find a gradual, smooth hill on the grass if possible that flattens out at the end.
4. Let them coast, skimming their feet down the hill.

Once they’ve gained their sense of balance and can make it down the hill, they can push themselves along with their feet for a little while. Put the pedals back on and they should be riding in no time.

If you’re thinking about getting your child a balance bike, you can check out our balance bike sizing guide to find the right bike.

By: mommymita

mommymita — Sat, 29 May 2010 12:04:37 +0000

Can’t even get my 2 & 3 on a bike with training wheels. Maybe we’ll just take off the training wheels and pedals – is that how you did your homemade version?