General Cycling Discussion - Walking bike for kids - does anybody have experience with them?

Hello there! I was looking into one of these wooden walking bikes for my 2 1/2 year old son since they are all the rage over in Europe right now (I saw lots of them vacationing there last month and the kids seem to love them) and I found one that looks very nice. It says on the website that they are for 2-5 year olds and I was wondering if anybody here has any experience with those bikes in particular or in general. Are they suitable for my 2 1/2 year old?

Since I am a fanatic mountain biker, I would like to give my son a headstart :)

The website is www.kiwibike.com

Thanks for any tips!

I don't have any experience with them as such.

My recommendation for teaching kids to ride a bike uses that concept. Find a bike that lets you lower the seat until they can put both feet on the ground. Then sit them on it, walk away and just watch. It generally takes them about 30 minutes to teach themselves to balance and ride.

No experience to report, just interested. I wonder if kids learn balancing earlier. My daughter is almost four and it has been only in the last few months that she has got the pedal motion on a trike, till then she was pushing with her feet (quiet fast I must say...) and is now ready to move to a bike.. with training wheels.

I wonder if these kiwibikes don't do a better training job. I agree with the info on the site, till three or three and a half, pedals are on the way, they just don't get the motion, but can push pretty hard on their feet!

I don't have any experience with them as such.

My recommendation for teaching kids to ride a bike uses that concept. Find a bike that lets you lower the seat until they can put both feet on the ground. Then sit them on it, walk away and just watch. It generally takes them about 30 minutes to teach themselves to balance and ride.

You got me by seconds. Just what I was thinking!
Did you experiment with a bike without pedals/cranks or just a regular bike, low enough so the kid could walk?

Sorry, no first-hand experience.

But I did visit the website, and think it's a cool idea. One word of warning...don't let your young one get it anywhere near a large hill since it has no brakes!

You got me by seconds. Just what I was thinking!
Did you experiment with a bike without pedals/cranks or just a regular bike, low enough so the kid could walk?

Actually, the first time that I did that was for my wife who was about 30 at the time but had never ridden a bike.

When my kids were little, I cut down the seat tube on some Murray bike so that I could get the seat lower for them. I left the pedals in place but, if I was doing it today, I think that I'd take the pedals off until the kid started pulling their feet up as they're coasting.

I've been investigating bikes to learn on for my twins, and I came across the FunOne bike (http://funonebikes.com/) which is designed for just this kind of learning. I'm thinking of getting two.

And so bicycling has finally come full circle. Pictures of earliest bikes. (http://members.aol.com/bicyclemus/bike_museum/PHbikbio.htm)

And so bicycling has finally come full circle. Pictures of earliest bikes. (http://members.aol.com/bicyclemus/bike_museum/PHbikbio.htm)

LOL, that's exactly what I thought also when I saw the wooden kiwi.

Don't you like also the little "dirt bike like fender" at the back, like if these little ones were going to fly through the rain. Nice design, though. Expensive too :(

Hi everybody,
Thank you for your input. I was actually lucky and ran into somebody having the same bike at the park yesterday. They loved it and I really liked what I saw. They are actually really small and therefore absolutely suitable for my son (he gave it a spin and didn't want to give it up anymore, quite some tears envolved ;-). I don't think that it is just an interim bike to learn and then go on to a bike with pedals - it is more an alternative to a trike for real young ones, with the advantage of teaching them how to balance.

I will definitely get one, and if anyone here is interested in my experiences, let me know, I'll be more than happy to post. This is a great forum, thanks again for your opinions!

I never had training wheels when i was young but i rember before i ever got a bike i had those scooters that where popular back in the late 80's early 90's i was bornin 81 and always remberd having scooter and rember when i got my first bike i just hoped on and went... mayeb thats the way to go and no not the stupid razor scooters those real ones with real wheels... man those where fun

Actually, the first time that I did that was for my wife who was about 30 at the time but had never ridden a bike.



I did the same to my Missus on an old bmx of mine, in a few hours she was cycling around like a loon.