Features
Scoot first pedal later
By
Sally Dillon : 01-Jan-2009
The bikes European parents have for decades been using to get their kids cycling are finally becoming available in Australia. Sally Dillon explains the logic of putting new cyclists and the oldest bike design together.
My girlfriend was evangelical about the purchase, and all I could do was nod. I'd been trying to convince her for more than a year to buy her daughter a balance bike after seeing how much my son loved his.
"Why doesn't everyone own one of these?" my girlfriend raved. "They're perfect if you live in the city. My daughter can stop easily at busy roads. She can steer it easily on a crowded footpath. And they're so light: I can carry it and the pram with the baby up the stairs at the train station."
The only thing my friend forgot to mention was the ‘Wow' factor so crucial to groovy inner city living: balance bikes have it in spades. Everywhere we go people admire both the bike and the skill of the rider: it's a fabulous ego boost for a small child and a great advertisement for cycling.
What exactly am I talking about? A balance bike is a pedal-less child's bike, a modern version of the 19th century draisienne, or hobby horse. Instead of having to master pedalling the child simply scoots their feet along the ground to get up speed, then coasts along with feet raised.
They're not only for city living, but a way for children everywhere to learn to ride in a fun and intensely rewarding way.
The idea is that the child learns to balance, steer and stop before they tackle the more complicated mechanics of pedalling.
The concept works. Within weeks of my almost-three-year-old son mounting his balance bike he was freewheeling down our pedestrian mall and doing slalom-like manoeuvres that attracted plenty of ego-building comments. At four he is into riding down stairs, doing tricks and flying down steep hills. Passers-by who are used to seeing children wobbling on regular bikes freeze in horror, worried they are going to get bowled over. They don't realise his steering skills are well developed and that all he has to do to stop is drag his feet on the ground.
Some balance bikes come with a rear hand brake, allowing children to develop this skill while on a safe and familiar machine: if they can't use the brake they can still drag their feet to stop.
Balance bikes have a low centre of gravity and are light - it makes them easy for a child to get moving, easy to steer and children can easily lug them up and down stairs. It's even possible for mum or dad to juggle a bike, a pram and two kids on longer flights of stairs (and I should know).
When my son is tired, I just stick the bike on the back of the pram and push him home.
The absence of an oily chain and sharp cogs makes carrying the bike much more feasible and decreases wear and tear on the kids. Though consider putting your child in shoes that can be resoled: our son has worn through two pairs of shoes ‘braking'.
Quite young children can ride balance bikes - I've seen an 18-month old whizzing along on her big sister's bike - and older children graduate easily to a pedal bike without the need for training wheels. Some brands come in larger sizes for taller children, but a child up to the age of about five will probably be happy on a balance bike, especially in situations when the adult with them can't run or ride along beside them (because they're pushing a pram, for example). In Europe they're ubiquitous: a German mum told me most children there learn to ride on a balance bike and usually graduate to regular bikes (without training wheels) by the time they're three, definitely by four. We've tested the theory: my son's fourth birthday present was a 16-inch "pedal bike" and within two weekends of test rides he was cycling up to 6km on his own, "without daddy holding on".
For our family balance bikes mean freedom. While I walk around doing errands my son is having a ball, riding his beloved bike. I don't have to coax or drag him around the shops: he scoots around.
Plus, when we're in a hurry we just turn it into a race: "My bike can go like a rocket mum!"
We ride to preschool and to play-dates and my son is fit: at three he was riding 6km return trips without a complaint. Our balance bike has instilled a love of riding in our son and has boosted his self-esteem.
So why couldn't I convince my girlfriend to buy a balance bike a year ago? Well, she'd been burnt by her daughter's experience with her first pedal bike. It was the usual thing people buy their kids: it was heavy, it was badly proportioned, it had training wheels that caught in cracks in the footpath and brakes that were hard to use.
Bike rides were exercises in mutual frustration and fear: mum had to push a bike with one hand and a pram with the other; the outing was punctuated with angry squeals whenever her daughter got stuck and mum was terrified her daughter wasn't going to stop at a busy road.
Luckily the bike was cheap, so they have no qualms about putting it out for hard rubbish collection. If you see it, don't be tempted to pick it up. Go out and invest in a balance bike instead.
I want, I want, I want...
Balance bikes are finally getting a foothold in the Australian market and although we've only reviewed two, a web search will turn up almost a dozen other brands, including Netti MyBike, Avanti Lil' Ripper, Skuut, Tike, Wooden Walking Bike, Kiddimoto, Little Blue Fish, BokBike and First Bike. Before riding a balance bike your child needs to be able to walk and be tall enough to straddle the bike: different brands will have different standover heights.
LikeABike
The crème de la crème of balance bikes. Made of beech plywood to an elegantly simple design, this German creation is the original balance bike, and has been designed from the ground up to be safe, sustainable and fun.
It looks gorgeous and its crowd-stopping qualities are great for a child's self-esteem. However, it's more than just eye candy: this bike has been very well thought out, from the felt-lined headset to prevent finger jams and jack-knifing to the washable padded seat. Despite being made of wood the LikeABike is fairly light at 3.5kg and is a robust design: our son's Mountain model still looks great and rides perfectly after 18 months of daily riding. It is well balanced and, with a seat height adjustable from 33 to 42cm off the ground, it can grow with your child. Adjusting the height takes about five minutes and can be done in only four increments, but you only do this once every few months and seat height isn't as critical on a balance bike as it is on a pedal bike.
Cartridge bearings make for zero maintenance and the disk wheels mean there are no spokes to get tangled in. It comes with lightweight alloy rims and the pneumatic tyres are non-marking. A wooden rear mudguard protects against splashes when riding through puddles and optional extras such as a nifty cloth saddlebag (to store a hat and snack or small toy) complete the package. Consider the optional wooden bike stand - kids love to use it and it prevents your bike from being dropped. The Mountain model comes with red or blue trim. LikeABike is available in several different models, including ones for very small or very tall children, an ‘offroad' version and even one for envious grown-ups!
A few good bike shops and toy shops stock LikeABikes and they're available direct from the importer, www.likeabikeaus.com (03 9870 4445).
RRP: $369
JD Bug Trainer
The JD Bug Trainer looks much more like a conventional bicycle than the LikeABike and is a great choice if you're looking for a cheaper option. Made of lightweight aluminium, this sturdy little machine shows what you can do if you put some thought into engineering a child's first bike.
Everything on it has been scaled down for children, and the weight has been kept down to a very manageable 3.2kg thanks to plastic wheels and lightweight accessories. It steers well and is very zippy. It comes with an effective rear hub brake with a lever proportioned for little hands, although children are unlikely to have the motor skills to use the brake properly until they're aged at least three.
The JD Bug has a higher minimum standover height than the LikeABike, but the seat is easily and infinitely adjustable between 37.5cm to 42.5cm off the ground. It has a stated carrying capacity of 30kg, which means it will hold even the heftiest five-year-old.
Its 12-inch moulded wheels are very strong and simple and come with pneumatic tyres. The JD Bug has foam handlebar grips, a padded vinyl seat and lightweight plastic mudguards and is available in blue or fuchsia. Our only gripe is that the 2008 model appears to come with an annoying faux motorbike fuel tank. Why does a bicycle have to look like a motorbike to make it appealing? Still, the tank is easily removable and some kids will love it.
They're available via eBay, online bike stores or at good bike shops.
RRP: $85-$119