Crawford53

So the short of it is that my girlfriend doesn't know how to ride a bike. She's 28. She never learned while her father was around, and her mother didn't have time to teach her/money to buy her a bike growing up. I'm restoring an older english 3-speed for her, seeing that the internally geared hub, back-pedal brakes, wider tires and relaxed geometry would be easier to learn and maintain. I'm not sure how to go about teaching her to actually ride though, because it's just natural to me. So far I've gotten her on a bike, then "scooting" down our street to get a feel for riding. No pedals yet, just foot power because she is struggling with the balance aspect.

Any ideas on how to teach her?

delcrossv

Keep it up with the "scooting" and let her get the balance thing first- for this she should be able to be flat footed on the ground while seated. When she gets her balance, then put on the pedals, raise the seat etc.

Adult or kid, the process is the same- balance first, pedal later.

cplager

I think you've got the right idea.


Has worked well for my friends.

prathmann

Agreed. I've found big, deserted parking lots to work well for getting beginners learning to balance regardless of age. These usually have a very slight slope for drainage that's enough to be able to coast for quite a long distance without picking up speed and provide lots of room so the learner can steer in various directions to maintain balance without worrying about hitting anything. Corporate lots on weekends, church lots during the week, shopping centers in the early morning are all good candidate locations.

Initially just focus on trying to stay upright longer and longer between touching the ground. Then try maintaining a reasonably straight path at the same time, and finally practice making planned turns. After that it's usually a quick step to putting pedals back on (still with a low seat) and being able to ride around the lot at will. Finally start raising the seat by increments to a more appropriate height as the learner gains confidence.