Now that Drake is 3, I have been thinking about buying him his first bike. Between Mrs Cowgirl’s post about Lil CB’s balance bike, and my best friend who sold me on it when she bought one for her son, a balance bike has always been what I wanted to buy as Drake’s first bike. I think the bike is going to be Drake’s big gift from Santa, so I thought Santa should start doing some research in order to get the best deal when the time comes.
Wood vs Aluminum
I love the look of wooden bikes; there is just something sweet and nostalgic about them. I reasoned that all of Drake’s bikes when he got older would be aluminum, so why not be different while I could. Also I liked that some of them were eco-friendly and even donated trees for every bike they sold. Mr. Chocolate, however, could not get on board with the idea and wanted to go with a regular aluminum bike. He sold me when he said that scuff marks would probably show up more on the wood whereas the aluminum would probably look the same no matter what. I also later read some wooden bikes could warp or possibly splinter.
When I was on the idea of a wooden bike, I really liked this Kinderfeets one. I liked the addition of the footrest, which not all balance bikes have, as well as the fact that the paint is chalkboard, which is neat for kiddos to personalize their bikes. I also was very tempted by this Janod balance scooter because it looked so adorable, like a mini Vespa, but it was probably more for me than Drake.
Once I moved onto the idea of an aluminum bike, I really dove into the details. I never knew so much research could be done on a child’s bicycle and this site really is a wealth of information, though it can be overwhelming too. They have a great breakdown on helmets that I fully plan on reading later when I pick out a helmet.
I decided that these features were the most important to me:
Air tires vs foam tires – I prefer air tires over foam ones despite the fact that air tires can get flats, because they offer more cushioning, thus probably a smoother ride. Drake will probably only ride on flat surfaces (sidewalks and occasionally the road) so it might not be a big deal since I can’t see him trying to off road or anything, but I like the extra cushioning for his comfort nevertheless.
Hand brake vs No brake – When I first started researching, I was convinced I wanted a hand brake. I reasoned that when I was learning to ride my bike, the most important thing to me was the ability to stop. But I learned that most kids have a hard time using a hand brake. Sometimes they are too big for their smaller hands to push fully, and most times kids use their feet to stop as a natural reaction. It does require extra thinking to learn to use a hand brake. It made sense to me once I thought about it and even if I got a bike with a hand brake Drake might never use it, so I decided having one was not necessary.
Footrest vs No Footrest – While I read that most children don’t use footrests at all, I still think I prefer them. I have read that footrests can hinder children when they are learning as they can either get in the way or just trip kids up into thinking they have to place their feet there at all times but I still prefer one to not. I just think it would be more comfortable to have something to rest your feet on when you’re gliding around. So while not having a foot rest wouldn’t be a deal breaker for me, it would certainly push me toward a bike if I was choosing between one with and one without.
Longer warranty – The life of most balance bikes is only a few years before kids outgrow them and move on to pedal bikes, but since I have two children now, I do think I would want to pass on Drake’s bike to Juliet one day. The longer warranty would help me since they are three years apart and I can’t see trying Juliet on a bike til she is at least 2, if not older.
Weight – Most bikes weigh from around 7 lbs to under 10 lbs. While I am not overly concerned about this, I don’t want a 15lb bike either that might be too hard for Drake to manage on his own as well.
And cost wise I wanted to stay around $100 max.
I also learned that seat position is very important when finding the right bike for your kids. Most experts recommend that you buy a bike with a seat height at least an inch or an inch and a half less than your child’s inseam measurement.
So armed with mynew found knowledge and preferences, I whittled down the field to these contenders.
Burley MyKick // Kinderbike Lafraud // TykeBykes 16
Visually the Burley bike was my favorite. The drawback was at 16 inches, Drake was close to outgrowing this bike already with a 17 inch inseam. I was sad as the Burley has a new innovative tire that has the benefits of air but no risk of flats. Price-wise it was a little higher than I liked at $130, but I would have paid the difference I think had this been the bike.
The Kinderbike also looked pretty good but it’s been sold out on Amazon for a while. Since Santa is bringing this gift eventually, I don’t want to wait and not get a bike, so this one was out before it ever really was considered.
It came down to the TykesByke, which I think was the best choice. With a 16 inch minimum, Drake can grow and still use this bike for a while. While not as cute and trim as the Burley MyKicks, it still has a lot of charm to it with the two toned coloring. The 16 inch model weighs a little more than I would like (13 lbs), but since Drake can use it for longer that might not matter as much as he gets bigger too. It also comes in three colors. As an added bonus, the company is family owned and their two year warranty might last us til Juliet can give it a go. At around $110 it fits in the budget as well, and I heard at times there are sales putting it under $100 so I’ll probably be on the look out from now until Christmas time.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
So i have an absolutely ridiculous question on how a kid uses these bikes if there are no pedals…for some reason, I had in my mind that there were pedals.
What do they do, use their feet to pick up speed and then just stick their legs out to the side?
blogger / nectarine / 2600 posts
@looch: They pedal with their feet. Basically its to teach them how to stay upright and balanced on the bike and once they make enough momentum (or they or on say a hill that has momentum for them) they can lift up their feet to coast.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
@Mrs. Chocolate: ok, got it! I am looking forward to your post holiday review!!!!
blogger / nectarine / 2600 posts
@looch: Haha Though we are getting the bike for Christmas it might be a few months really til Drake gets out there on it since it’s cold these days and gets dark so quick plus snow and stuff. I could have waited till his birthday but then we would be into the summer and would have missed the time to try it in the lovely spring weather which is why I went for sooner than later with this gift. Mrs Cowboy has a post on bikes if you look that shows Little CB riding his if you want to see one in action already
pomegranate / 3595 posts
My LO is getting a balance bike as her present for her birthday next week! Since she is only. 2, we went with a strider because she is too little for many of the other brands. I hope both of our LOs like their bikes!
blogger / clementine / 998 posts
wow i didn’t know there were wooden bikes, so cute!
blogger / clementine / 998 posts
just saw this amazon lightning deal: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00264GIFY/ref=gb1h_tit_c-3_8022_e41d54cc?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_s=center-3&pf_rd_r=05KV11C8RDMPF259SRK7&pf_rd_i=384082011&pf_rd_p=1673798022
blogger / pomegranate / 3491 posts
Those wooden bikes are so so precious, but I am with Mr. chocolate – not so practical (but omg the pictures of Drake on it would be so so cute)
cherry / 175 posts
We went with the performance brand bike because the price was right and it’s low to the ground. We love the knobby tires too – makes it all-road
WT got his at 18 mos so we needed one with seat that went low. They really do work – he’s 3 now and has been riding his ‘pedal’ bike since summer!
Hmm – we got it on a black friday deal for $60 – but full price wasn’t over $100, I’m thinking it was $80 full price in 2011. I just looked at their site and they’ve remodeled it. (Used to be all white and come with stickers too). The price has gone up a bit – http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1139451_-1_400338__400338 – it’s a well made great bike though! WT has hidden it daily and roughly for 2 years and it’s ready for another two years with his sister!
pomegranate / 3383 posts
We bought our son a balance bike this past summer at 16 months. We visited a park in our city where kids learn to mountain bike in the summer and downhill ski in the winter. My husband saw young kids (3-5?) on Stryders and he was convinced we needed to buy one!
My son has always been apprehensive when it comes to gross motor activities but by the end of the summer he was able to walk his bike across our deck on his own! I’m looking forward to what he will be able to do next summer.
I can’t wait to see what you buy for Drake! The wooden ones are adorable!!!
blogger / pear / 1563 posts
Wow! I’m so not ready for bicycles or even tricycles! I can’t believe that it could be here before we know it! It’s good to get these reviews!
GOLD / squash / 13576 posts
We got our LO a strider for Xmas. He will be 18 months old.
admin / wonderful grape / 20724 posts
we have the same strider bike that mrs cowgirl does. it is really great for young and short kids because the seat can be adjusted very, very low. charlie loves it! much better than his scooter.
blogger / persimmon / 1220 posts
Cute!
pear / 1614 posts
We got DS a Specialized Hotwalk. It was slightly more expensive than the others but very sturdy and has a good resale value. We hope it lasts us through 2-3 kids so who knows about resale at that point
He is almost 2 and average height and just barely can walk on it now at the lowest level. He is not that thrilled about it currently, will play on it for a couple of minutes and then move on, although he does love it when he sits on it and we wheel him around. I think he’ll be more excited about it next spring/summer, when he fits it better and the weather is more consistently bike-appropriate. I can’t wait to see him cruising around on it!
grapefruit / 4049 posts
Based on a rec on the boards last year, we got our 4 year old a Strider and it was great! She started pedaling a 2-wheeler on her own at school within 6 months (and we didn’t practice a lot). Gonna buy her a big kid bike for Christmas this year and hand down the Strider to our 2 yo!
blogger / persimmon / 1398 posts
What a thorough review! My mini had absolutely no interest in the balance bike… I wonder if Pint-Size will?! Those are so cute!
grapefruit / 4923 posts
drake is going to be one happy little guy at christmas! sounds like you did a lot of research and found a great one!
hostess / wonderful persimmon / 25556 posts
I like the idea of these bikes a lot! We saw some kids on them at the city’s Christmas parade and my husband fell in love. I think our lo will be getting one when she turns 2.