My son will be two next week. We want to get him a bike/trike type thing and are considering a balance bike. For those who have bought or used these types of bikes, can you please share your experience? What brand did you get, how well did your child take to it, how tall/old were they, etc. My son is on the tall side (I wish I knew his exact height, but I do not right now!)Thinking about the strider prebike..... but also considering the weerider from WalMart as the cost is considerably cheaper and we're not sure if it will work out or not.
Thanks!
Honestly, I don't have any FIRST hand experience. I don't think they existed when mine were that little. But my SIL and her husband got one for their youngest when he was about 2. He is going on 4 this summer, and looks ready for a real bike with pedals. He is amazing on his balance bike. SO fast! His balance is perfect on it.
I highly recommend them from what I have seen with him.
My kids loved theirs and used them from 2-4 years then moved on to regular bikes. They still pull them out though! Don't be surprised when your toddler takes some time to start "riding". Mine started basically walking the bike at two (learning coordination), then started "running" and then finally pushing off and coasting. It is sometimes a slow process but they are great fun for kids I think.
We have the Strider and it is awesome! Decided to get the Strider over a cheaper model because our son was also pretty young when he started and the Strider had the lowest starting seat height. Our boy is 3 now, and loves his "motorcycle" :) He can coast several hundred yards on a gentle slope without touching down with his feet, and loves every minute of it. We anticipate that the switch to a pedal bike will be extremely easy! Highly recommend!
We made our own balance bike by removing the pedals on a little bike and adding a hand brake. Once she had it down pat we put the pedals back on the bike and tada! Two bikes in one!
We bought our ds one for his second bday. He loved it at first and then abandoned it. BUT our five y.o. Snatched it up, rode it relentlessly for two months and then got his balance so good tht he got out his bike with training wheels and started zooming around on it. Before he would not get on his normal bike. But now he has abandoned the Y Bike and LOVES his normal bike thanks to the Y Bike.
And, now the two yo has snatched it up at two and a half and loves it. We are so happy that we got it and that both boys have benefitted from it. It is a real confidence builder for them. And my two yo glides on it now while big bro rides on his bike on the driveway.
We bought the Y Bike and got it at Costco for thirty bucks...
I think the strider website has guides for how tall of a kid they can handle. And they sell seat and handle bar extensions to lengthen the riding time. We just got one for our 3 yr old daughter and is great for her balance and confidence. On her old bike with training wheels last summer, it was wobbly and she was worried about falling so very timid in her riding. With the strider she doesn't worry about falling since its her own legs that keep her from falling rather than us hovering over her. It does take a while to get the hang of but I think they're great.
ps
we got a unisex color so her 15 month old brother can hopefully ride it next summer=)
