Styleforum › Forums › Lifestyle › Social Life, Food & Drink, Travel › Best method for transitioning from training wheels to the big time?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Best method for transitioning from training wheels to the big time? - Page 2

post #16 of 29
8/24/08 at 1:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lawyerdad View Post
Bad idea. Carrying both your cranky kid and a bike up a hill is a pain in the ass.
The only one who should be doing the carrying is the kid.
Reply
Reply
post #17 of 29
8/24/08 at 6:31am
bumps n bruises are the only way...
Reply
Reply
post #18 of 29
8/24/08 at 6:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lawyerdad View Post
I'm about to do this too.

A friend who lived in Germany for years swears by these things they use there -- called "LikeaBike" or something that they start on before they start riding. Basically bike without pedals and a low seat or no seat that young kids push along with their feet on either side. (Hopefully you get the idea -- I'm not describing it well.) It gets them used to maintaining their balance and using the handlebars before they have to worry about keeping the bike upright. According to him, everyone there starts on those instead of training wheels. Our bike shop here suggested a similar approach -- keeping the seat low so their feet can reach the ground on either side until they get used to being upright no the bike.

A lot of people on the bikeforums recommend this for adults as well. Take pedals off bike, make sure they can touch the floor. Slight hill so the bike moves - they can either balance or put their feet down if they don't feel safe.
Reply
Reply
post #19 of 29
8/24/08 at 4:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by robin View Post
Find a hill. Place the kid on the bike. Push the bike with the kid on it down the hill. Repeat as needed.
This is exactly what I did. I found a park with a long grassy incline. After coasting down few times she tried pedaling. In about an hour she was riding all over the park on her own. She pushed her own bike up the hill as needed.
Reply
Reply
post #20 of 29
8/24/08 at 4:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by m@T View Post
bumps n bruises are the only way...

I quickly transitioned from training to regular wheels but my father, bless his uncaring heart, forgot to tell me how to stop so for the first week or so I'd sorta throw myself away from the bicycle, often to hilarious results.
Reply
Reply
post #21 of 29
8/25/08 at 10:58am
I remember my dad would run with me holding the seat and sooner or later I just "got it"
Reply
Reply
post #22 of 29
8/25/08 at 11:09am
First off, throw away the "training" wheels. They're useless, as they make a bicycle a multi-track vehicle that needs to be steered instead of countersteered. It's like giving someone a backhoe to learn to drive a car.

To teach them to ride, pop off the cranks and bottom bracket and lower the seat sufficiently that they can touch the ground with their feet. Have them hobbyhorse around for a few weeks like that. Basically just tell them to run and glide. They will figure it out very quickly. Once they can glide for 10 meters or so, tell them you have a set of secret pedals that will allow them to glide indefinitely. Mount pedals. Keep seat low. We're not after pedaling efficiency yet. Have them hobbyhorse and put their feet on the pedals.

Once they're consistently pedaling, buy them some Rapha jerseys and adjust the seat height to PBH-10cm.
Reply
Reply
post #23 of 29
8/25/08 at 11:19am
My grandfather taught me how to ride a bike by sticking a PVC pipe in the back of the bike and holing onto it as I rode away. Sure, the first time he let go I ended up in the ditch but it eventually worked.
Reply
Reply
post #24 of 29
8/25/08 at 11:42am
Mine spent one summer with training wheels and then I basically spent around one hour pulling him around while telling him to pedal.



After that I launched him down a slight incline on the grass a few times. Within an hour he was riding on his own.

Reply
Reply
post #25 of 29
8/25/08 at 1:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by romafan View Post
Our sons are ready to make the leap to 2 wheels. I'm wrapping a towel/shirt around their waist and running along behind them ('puff, puff') - any other recommended methods for achieving this milestone?

Just take your kid to a place with even grass (back yard, park, front yard, etc.) and let him bike. He'll get it sooner or later. If he falls and wants to cry thats no big deal too, kids should go through that.
Reply
Reply
post #26 of 29
8/25/08 at 9:12pm
I learned to ride a bike without ever using training wheels -- in my basement with a bike that was too big for me (birthday gift in November in Montreal). I do not recommend it.
Reply
Reply
post #27 of 29
8/25/08 at 9:49pm
As a parent of two teenaged boys, I can tell you from experience that the transition from four wheels to two wheels is a piece of cake compared to when they transition back to four wheels again.



Also, the advice given in this thread is useless when they start driving. Let them fall indeed. Can you say "insurance claim?"
Reply
Reply
post #28 of 29
8/25/08 at 11:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by romafan View Post
Our sons are ready to make the leap to 2 wheels. I'm wrapping a towel/shirt around their waist and running along behind them ('puff, puff') - any other recommended methods for achieving this milestone?

Raise the training wheels. Keeping them on gives some psychological support and helps if they tip WAAY over but it forces them to balance somewhat. Also make sure the kid is well ready and very confident riding with training wheels on. Be prepared for your kid to eat shit a few times.
Reply
Reply
post #29 of 29
8/26/08 at 2:03pm
Wow, just went through the whole exercise this past weekend. Took about 1 hour in all.
I took off the training wheels and held on to my son's handle bar and shoulders lightly. I let him rode as quickly as he can. Once he built up his confidence, I just held onto his seat. Tried that a few times with a little push and let go without him knowing it. He was ecstatic when he did it on his own. I think the most important steps are the crank position and the initial few strides to pick up the speed. The next step is to teach him to slow down not using his feet.... but the coaster brake. Good luck.
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
Styleforum › Forums › Lifestyle › Social Life, Food & Drink, Travel › Best method for transitioning from training wheels to the big time?