Balance bike or training wheels

[lisalulu]

DS1 (4yo) had a playdate last week with a friend at the playground. His friend brought his bike and DS1 brought his scooter. DS1 couldn't keep up and is now interested in a bike. But he's never been good at pedaling and never really took to his trike. So should I get a balance bike or a bike with training wheels? And if anyone has any experience with balance bikes, which one do you like?

[Mere]

What we did that has worked out really well is to get a too-small bike for ds1's first bike. We took off the training wheels and the pedals, so it was, in essence, a balance bike because w/the seat all the way down, ds could touch the ground with both feet. He biked around on that for a few weeks, and when we could see that he had it down, we put the pedals on and he took off right away.

Before the 'balance bike' he was all about his big wheel, which he loved and could go very fast on. I think if it hadn't been for the big wheel though, we could've had him on that too-small bike much earlier.

[jennydecki]

We don't have a bike with training wheels, but my 4yo LOVES her balance bike. It's not good for the driveway (standard suburban, not cool and long) but when I take her out front she scoots and glides her way to the end of the block an can even turn around in a driveway by herself.

[Leersia]

I've never tried a balance bike, but I can tell you that training wheels are a PIA. It is easy for the child to get high-centered and stuck, and the don't really help much with the balance needed to ride without them. My kids learned to ride 2-wheelers at age 4 - I realize that not every kid is ready at this age, but. . . we took the TW off their bikes and let them coast down a gentle grassy slope to practice balance, and then they would start pedaling at the bottom. They learned to ride in one afternoon that way, and they are twins with very different level of coordination. So, what I'm saying is, if you go the TW route, I would try to get them off the bike ASAP if the child is at all interested in trying two wheels.

[robugmum]

My 4 year old dd has both and she much prefers her balance bike. She has a Skuut bike.

[lisalulu]

Originally Posted by robugmum

She has a Skuut bike.

Is that one of the wood ones? Is it finished well? I'm in Seattle so I'm wondering how the wood will hold up in the damp weather...

[LuckyMommaToo]

I'd check out the Kettler Sprint Bike:
http://www.amazon.com/KETTLER-Sprint...7759184&sr=8-2

-e

p.s. I'm another huge fan of balance bikes. DS went from balance bike straight to a two-wheeler, and now DD (who just turned 3) has learned to lift both feet up and glide on the balance bike.

[SandraS]

We love our training wheel bikes here. My four year old is extremely proficient on it, she can almost keep up with her big brother! We've had very easy transitions to a "regular" bike, no problems at all.

[robugmum]

We live in Vancouver BC, almost the same climate as Seattle. The skuut has been great. We don't leave our bikes outside though.

[TiredX2]

I think balance bike vs bike w/training wheels is a personal choice, but I just wanted to address the OP's concern about past peddling difficulties.

DS got a two wheeler w/training wheels when he was 20 months old. He couldn't really ride a trike well but a bike was MUCH easier. I think that is because having your legs below you and moving is much more natural for humans (since we walk upright) then sitting and trying to move your legs. I would check out some stores and have DS try some and go with what he likes. If he is generally coordinated/well balanced (is his scooter two wheels--- if he's doing that well, he probably already has a good idea of how to balance) you might want to just try a small bike with no training wheels. You could always look on craigslist or freecycle for a 12" model to just try out. We've already passed on DS' or I would give you it.

[robugmum]

I agree. Tricycles seem to be tougher. None of my three kids ever really got the hang of pedaling a trike until they were already riding a 2 wheeler.

[lisalulu]

Originally Posted by TiredX2

I think that is because having your legs below you and moving is much more natural for humans (since we walk upright) then sitting and trying to move your legs. I would check out some stores and have DS try some and go with what he likes.

Good point! It looks like REI sells the Kettler along with regular bikes with training wheels so maybe we'll take a trip down there and check them out!

[hottmama]

Both my kids had training wheels first and learned to ride without them at 4 and 2.5 respectively. The trick is to have a bike that fits them-- they need to be able to put their feet flat on the ground. My son that didn't learn until 4 was on a 16" bike, and learned as soon as his feet could touch, and my little one had a 12" bike and the same thing happened, just earlier of course.

[klt]

The other thing to consider is him wanting to ride bikes with another friend, so would a balance bike allow him to do that and keep up. I like the idea of the above poster who suggests a training wheel bike and then turning it into a balance bike when he is ready for the 2 wheel experience. My son started a training wheel bike at 3 and was really keen on keeping up with the neighbors. It is great exercise. I wonder how long you stay on a balance bike and keep interested, or is it just a 1-2 month thing until you get "used to" riding a bike.?.

Anyway, seems like a better investment to have a training wheel bike that then turns into his 2 wheeler. Have fun!

[4evermom]

ITA with TiredX2 that a bike is much easier to peddle that a trike. My ds hardly used his trike. I picked up a used bike with training wheels and he really preferred that. Training wheels vs balance bike is really a personal preference. I don't think my ds would have liked a balance bike. He enjoyed the mechanics of the bike (chain, gears, etc).

One of his favorite things to do was to prop up the training wheels so the back wheel was off the ground. Then he'd peddle like mad going no where on his "exercise" bike. It's very exciting to do that with the back wheel in a puddle. Ds can make a huge fountain that is higher than his head by peddling.

What happened was over time the training wheels bent up. I bent them back on his request the first time or two. After that, he just started balancing. It was a completely painless way to learn.

If your ds wants to keep up with friends, that might be difficult on a balance bike.

[sleet76]

My son on his balance bike (Strider) can easily keep up with my daughter on her two wheeler, in our cul-de-sac. It is much faster than using training wheels, and can go over bumps and irregular terrain unlike a bike with training wheels.

My daughter had training wheels and rode that way for a year without learning to ride without them. She decided to try DS's Strider balance bike, and was riding her two-wheeler without training wheels is about two weeks.

DS is getting ready to outgrow his Strider, and I'm looking forward to passing it down to my youngest DS, who is two. I got DS1 a Trek 16" bike that has pedals that are easily removable (it's made to be a balance bike and two-wheeler). We've been taking them off and on for a few weeks now, but he SO loves his Strider that he's not wanting to change over to the bigger bike.

[mightymoo]

Originally Posted by LuckyMommaToo

I'd check out the Kettler Sprint Bike:
http://www.amazon.com/KETTLER-Sprint...7759184&sr=8-2

-e

p.s. I'm another huge fan of balance bikes. DS went from balance bike straight to a two-wheeler, and now DD (who just turned 3) has learned to lift both feet up and glide on the balance bike.

We have hte Kettler Sprint Bike, its very well built, I personally like that its metal, built like a regular bike - I'm not a huge fan of the wooden ones, since the goal is to ride a bike and bikes aren't made of wood.

Anyway, DD had this for about a year and got really good at it, zooming down the hill in our driveway, etc. This year for her birthday she wanted a real bike, so we got her one, no training wheels. She was riding great within two days, the only thing that got in her way was starting, mostly because I bought her a bike with a big frame, since I wanted her to be able to ride it a long time and she couldn't touch the ground as well (it was actually perfectly sized, but for learning it was tough), so starting was tricky, but once she was going she did great since she already knew how to balance.

I wouldn't do it any other way!

[chaoticzenmom]

I have to vote for the balance bike too. My son can go as fast as the bike riders on that thing. His feet barely touch the ground except to kick off.

[simplehome]

Originally Posted by lisalulu

Is that one of the wood ones? Is it finished well? I'm in Seattle so I'm wondering how the wood will hold up in the damp weather...

We have had the wooden balance bike from One Step Ahead for about 1.5 years (got it in March, so still wet for a few months, then a whole winter). The finish on the wood is holding up just fine so far, although I suspect that it will barely make it through my second child. There are some other things on it that aren't taking abuse well. If I had it to do over again, I would modify a 12" bike into a balance bike.

As for the concept of balance bike, though, we LOVE it! DS has training wheels on a 12" bike and a balance bike, and he prefers the balance bike because he can go SOooooooo much faster!

[Conifer]

JMO - If your child is having trouble pedaling, I would get a bike with training wheels. Balance bikes are to help with the balance issue of riding a bike. The idea behind them is that you work on the idea of balance and pedaling as 2 separate things. If your child already rides on a 2 wheel scooter, he can probably balance pretty well already. In fact, as soon as he was comfortable with the pedaling, you might be able to take off the training wheels all together. The whole point is to eventually have a kid on a "real bike"...right? LOL

Also, if he wants a bike because he "can't keep up", I don't think the balance bike will help with that. Have him try a few at the store and see what he wants?