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Post by KiwiBeard on Mar 24, 2015 22:42:29 GMT
I am thinking about getting a Balance Bike for my almost-3 year old.
Anyone have any experience with them for their own kids? The BTwin ones look pretty good, especially the Woony ones.
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Post by r0b1et on Mar 24, 2015 23:02:45 GMT
My wee ones have had one (that was given to us). both liked it, but neither really got the hang of pushing and then balancing... so it's not avoided the stabilizers.
But I think that some will love them, mine liked it, but just didn't spend the time I don't think.
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Post by erictherat on Mar 25, 2015 7:17:37 GMT
little kids grow out of bikes fast. rather than spend a lot of money on something with a short life, get a second had one - there are loads of cheap ones on e-bay. - dont generally need to spend more than a fiver.
for my first, i bought a 10" bike, removed the cranks and voila - balance bike. then you can put the cranks back on, add some stabalisers and you have their first bike.
my second born is 2 and bike mad. unfortunately he is VERY small - he still fits 12month clothes. need to sort him a bike for summer, but no idea how i can get one his size. he got a 2 wheel ride on he loves, but really wants something he can pedal.
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Post by KiwiBeard on Mar 25, 2015 8:38:14 GMT
Might have to spoil the surprise and go take her out to try one. She is quite tall for her age, so I think the standard 12" size BB might be too small very soon.
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Post by joby on Mar 25, 2015 10:22:10 GMT
Both my kids struggled when the stabilisers came off as they couldn't master the art of balancing and pedaling at the same time. In both cases I ended up taking the pedals off so they could use their bikes as balance bikes. Once they had mastered that, the pedals went back on and they could ride instantly.
It would seem that pedaling is the easy bit and it's balance that you need to work at.
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Post by r0b1et on Mar 25, 2015 10:39:02 GMT
Yes, probably true, my eldest though lost her balance ability when she started pedalling, she could do it on the balance bike, but on the pedalled bike, she wasn't close... I think it was too much to think about.
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lfc383
Peloton Rider
Posts: 72
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Post by lfc383 on Mar 25, 2015 11:37:43 GMT
Both my girls had them but neither one really got the hang of them however I know of other kids that have and wizz around on them.
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Post by Radchenister on Mar 25, 2015 12:38:33 GMT
We've had one knocking around the house for years, it's been well used by both kids - I'm going to refurb it and give it to one of my pals for his little lad. I once met a lady who set up a business promoting early years Balance-Bike training in primary schools (at a function nearly a decade back now), at the time I was involved in governing the local school - so tabled that we assist her in trialing the scheme for roll out; the governors were really supportive and all went for it and it proved very popular, they still do it today - the reception / year 1 teacher is exemplary as a teacher and had been a keen cyclist for years, so it was perfect.
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Post by denkfaul on Mar 25, 2015 12:58:43 GMT
How old were all your little ones when you first put them on a balance bike? I've got a (tall) 15 month old who's pretty comfortable walking around and pushing himself on a ride on train toy. He loves going for rides with us up front on the bike seat, would trying him out on a balance bike in a few months be too soon?
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Post by Red Devil on Mar 25, 2015 13:19:57 GMT
I got my twins two of these thefirstbike.co.uk/bikes/ Very good quality and have a large range of height adjustment. At six they are now too small. If anyone is interested in making me an offer let me know,
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Post by Radchenister on Mar 25, 2015 13:26:29 GMT
It depends denkfaul! Best just have one laying around the house and let them play with it, let it pan out naturally and keep an eye on it, get involved sometimes, leave them to it at other times - a smooth surface and nothing to bump into is the main thing to begin with, they will crash and cry etc anyway. When they get a bit better, perhaps set up little cones etc but keep it fun. As they get onto chained peddling on their first proper bike, there's various ways - with no.1 son he was left on stabilizers for quite a while, as too young for that bike really - he also had his balance bike to scoot on, eventually we let him loose on a short grassed school playing field with me running about a lot supporting until he got it. With my daughter it was a bit different, we got her going later, as we were less zealous about pushing it and it just panned out that way due to the seasons etc - when she got keen to be like her dad and brother (I had started cycling properly by then), we did a more intensive progression; first I used to get her spinning the turbo with GCN for a while, nicknamed her 'turbo girl' for a week or so - she'd jump on an off it just for fun, that's good for learning to peddle. Then after a week or so, the big day involved a few runs on some nice smooth tarmac that they had just laid in a very quiet dead end resi street right near here, transforming a scrappy surface so that suddenly we had a shining example of wheel rolling perfection near our doorstep. Didn't push it but there was a plan; I'd wait until she'd ask if she could have a go on her bike down the lane and then go out and offer encouragement / keep an eye on safety etc, letting her get acclimatized to the road with stabilizers on. When it was stabilizer removal day - it was 20 minutes turbo in the morning and then clearly understood that it got real later, beginning with going up and down a few times with the stabilizers after lunch, to get a feel for the pace (there's a small rise on the return run), then just a few runs with me supporting her with the stabilizers removed, she was off in no time - mainly through being reminded to keep peddling like she'd learned on the turbo, this was the main thing with her, because it makes balance far easier. Worked well and she was rocketing about in just a few minutes, then it's all about learning to avoid crashing and braking, peddling harder up hill and coasting down (without hitting the back peddle brake we had on the bike). Warning time ... keep them away from roads that are moderate / busy, they have zero road sense and so do some drivers when it comes to tolerance, we have a silly fast road past the house and a very quiet side lane, we've got the two extremes of danger within just a few paces; that really needed careful handling, there was a metaphorical firewall instilled via a talk and lots of shouting , set 20 meters back from the end of the lane but it wasn't ideal, would have preferred a school play ground or park area really. Another key factor is best not push it too hard and it's all about stealthy learning packaged up as short spells of play. Hope that helps!
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Post by phred1812 on Apr 2, 2015 16:50:42 GMT
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Post by erictherat on Apr 2, 2015 17:42:32 GMT
problem- my little man is bike obsessed (i wonder where he gets it from). He is 2 next week, and would love a bike. HOWEVER... it has to have pedals - otherwise he dont consider it a bike, and he is tiny (size of a 1 year old). I have a 12" bike, and he can just reach the pedals, down to about half way. thought I'd just ask - does anyone know of a small, real (not balance) bike I can get him? ps - pleas no comments of the poor state of maintenance on the bike - it was a freebie!
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Post by Radchenister on Apr 2, 2015 18:29:15 GMT
I paid far too much for a Scott mini league racer for no.1 son before he was old enough to ride it properly (whilst still working for big companies in my past life) - at the time I had dosh to burn but not enough time to research solutions, as I was always rushing about ... in hindsight, it was the seed for my return back to cycling and including the lad on that journey but it wasn't a smart move really, yes it looked cool and served well but there's far better VFM, light, functional, robust options available in the market now. Deca must have something suitable? If not then why push the peddle thing, he can have that bike and a balance bike, doubt kids are that focused to care as much as you do ?
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Post by Radchenister on Apr 2, 2015 19:55:41 GMT
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