Wheres Toto Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 This is kind of a spin off of the outside playing thread. None of my kids can ride a bike. Part of that is we live on a steep hill and don't have a paved driveway so we have to actually go somewhere else for them to try. Plus, ds has some coordination issues. I want to get them balance bikes since I think that is a better way to learn and, this way they can "ride" while I jog. I haven't been able to find a balance bike big enough for my kids. Most of them are for 2-5 year olds, up to 44" tall and 60 pounds. My younger kids both weigh 40-something pounds but they are both already taller than 44". Does anyone know of a place to buy a larger balance bike? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aggieamy Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 At that point I'd probably buy an appropriately sized regular bike and take off the pedals. Then when they can ride you can just put the pedals back on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth. Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 You can take the pedals off of their regular bikes. A neighbor did this for their DD and it seems to work fine. I'm not sure about the chain though. Maybe if you google it someone will show you how to do it. My kids have a Giant pre-bike - http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/bikes/model/pre.girls/8922/48686/#overview. It is solid and can handle my 45 pound 4 yo easily. I don't recommend this bike normally because it's so heavy. My 2 yo has given up on it. Plus, "it's broken" because it has no pedals. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 (edited) Glide bikes makes a model for bigger/older kids. It is about 120ish in price. DS's OT office had one for the older kids to learn on. It was very strong and lightweight. http://www.glidebikes.com Edited October 1, 2012 by itsheresomewhere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momof3littles Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 We love our balance bike, but we have a size appropriate for 2-5 yo or so. My DS1 rode it until 5, but could have moved to a pedal bike long before that. We had a 16 and he didn't fit on it until then, so we just waited since he wasn't complaining. DD switched to a pedal bike without training wheels right around her half birthday at 3.5. DS2 runs like crazy on his and can glide, steer, turn, etc. very well now at 2.5. Trek makes the Float, which is heavy, and the pedals are designed to be removable for "balance bike mode" and then put back on so it can work as a normal pedal bike. No personal experience with it, but it might be one to look at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bug's Mom Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Just take off the pedals, cranks & chain. We did this with an old bike. Dd had been riding it with training wheels, but it got too small. She moved up to an 18" with training wheels, and glided around on the smaller bike as well. She worked on her pedaling on the larger bike and her balance on the smaller. One day she was on a 20" bike (her dad holding on) and she told him to let go. That was 3.5 years ago. I think she's fallen 3 times. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitten18 Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 We took the pedals and chain off a 12" bike. My kids were definitely over 44" when they learned on that bike. You could get a cheap 16" bike and take the pedals off. You do want the balance bike to be small though. They need to be able to EASILY walk their feet on the ground so it can't be too big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 We also just took the pedals and such off of a regular bike. All my kids were tiny though (the oldest MIGHT be 44 inches NOW). My 4yo can glide around just fine on the bike without pedals. And he can pedal just fine on the other. For some odd reason, he lets go with his hands if he pedals on the regular bike though. But we just set him up. Another week or two and he should be fine. Just took his brother 2 weeks at 4. Only reason we tried to push it was that the little one picked up the gliding just fine and has been pedaling well for as long as we've known him. Anyway, 2 weeks and they'll be fine, I'd guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 This is kind of a spin off of the outside playing thread. None of my kids can ride a bike. Part of that is we live on a steep hill and don't have a paved driveway so we have to actually go somewhere else for them to try. Plus, ds has some coordination issues. I want to get them balance bikes since I think that is a better way to learn and, this way they can "ride" while I jog. I haven't been able to find a balance bike big enough for my kids. Most of them are for 2-5 year olds, up to 44" tall and 60 pounds. My younger kids both weigh 40-something pounds but they are both already taller than 44". Does anyone know of a place to buy a larger balance bike? Another option is to have them learn to ride a Razor scooter. This worked for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 At that point I'd probably buy an appropriately sized regular bike and take off the pedals. Then when they can ride you can just put the pedals back on. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad 4 Boys Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Another option is to have them learn to ride a Razor scooter. This worked for us. This has worked for us. Once they can balance on the scooter, they can transition to the bicycle quite easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Another option is to have them learn to ride a Razor scooter. This worked for us. :iagree: Was going to suggest the same thing. Lower to the ground and not as tippy as a balance bike. And they can actually get somewhere while they are learning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltop Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 At that point I'd probably buy an appropriately sized regular bike and take off the pedals. Then when they can ride you can just put the pedals back on. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 We have a razor scooter that was my oldest dd's but they haven't showed any interest in it at all. We did take the pedals off a bike but there was still a metal piece sticking out that got in the way. I never thought about taking off the chain, crank and everything. Thank you for the suggestions. :-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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