Lighten up my kid's bike
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Lighten up my kid's bike
One of the things I enjoy doing is ride leisurely with my daughter who's 6.5 yrs old. I bought her a Specialized Hotrock early this year and she really enjoyed riding it with the real gear and hand brakes and no "streamers". One of things I really would like to do with her is get her to ride a bit faster, which gets to think about how to make her bike a big lighter. The problem is that bike makers seemed to have collectively decided there is no need for a lighter weight bike for the 6-10 age group. I tried a few things myseff already, e.g. get rid of that kick-stand and derailleur guard, and they seem to help. Anyone has any other ideas to lighten this thing up?
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I solved it by getting a tandem... Your daughter will be too slow for you on any single bike. Take it from a guy with a grown up daughter.
Getting one of these may be good too
Getting one of these may be good too
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I'd imagine taller gearing and slicks would go a long way.
She's going to be slower than you on almost anything, though, if she's only 6 years old, so a tandem or one of those little tow hook deals might work better for you.
She's going to be slower than you on almost anything, though, if she's only 6 years old, so a tandem or one of those little tow hook deals might work better for you.
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Yeah, she is a lot slower than me but I really enjoy riding with her for about 10-15 miles on a weekend. She averages about 10 MPH, but again, it's not really about me, it's more about going out and enjoy the time spent with your kid.
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For God's sake, she's 6...
While the bike is relatively heavy compared to yours, and her body weight, the combination of her and bike is already a lot lighter than you plus your bike...
There is only so much power and stamina built into a six year old's body!!!
Cut her bike's weight in half, and she'll be good for 11-16 miles, then what? Have her bones hollowed out? Steroids maybe? You could get her one of those motor assists...
If it is about her, then find a way to slow down to her pace... Maybe go ride a fast ride before riding with her, then switch to a real heavy fully suspended mountain bike with radically knobbed tires and let her set the pace.
It is easier to slow you down than to speed up a 6 year old child to an adult pace.
While the bike is relatively heavy compared to yours, and her body weight, the combination of her and bike is already a lot lighter than you plus your bike...
There is only so much power and stamina built into a six year old's body!!!
Cut her bike's weight in half, and she'll be good for 11-16 miles, then what? Have her bones hollowed out? Steroids maybe? You could get her one of those motor assists...
If it is about her, then find a way to slow down to her pace... Maybe go ride a fast ride before riding with her, then switch to a real heavy fully suspended mountain bike with radically knobbed tires and let her set the pace.
It is easier to slow you down than to speed up a 6 year old child to an adult pace.
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#6
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For God's sake, she's 6...
While the bike is relatively heavy compared to yours, and her body weight, the combination of her and bike is already a lot lighter than you plus your bike...
There is only so much power and stamina built into a six year old's body!!!
Cut her bike's weight in half, and she'll be good for 11-16 miles, then what? Have her bones hollowed out? Steroids maybe? You could get her one of those motor assists...
If it is about her, then find a way to slow down to her pace... Maybe go ride a fast ride before riding with her, then switch to a real heavy fully suspended mountain bike with radically knobbed tires and let her set the pace.
It is easier to slow you down than to speed up a 6 year old child to an adult pace.
While the bike is relatively heavy compared to yours, and her body weight, the combination of her and bike is already a lot lighter than you plus your bike...
There is only so much power and stamina built into a six year old's body!!!
Cut her bike's weight in half, and she'll be good for 11-16 miles, then what? Have her bones hollowed out? Steroids maybe? You could get her one of those motor assists...
If it is about her, then find a way to slow down to her pace... Maybe go ride a fast ride before riding with her, then switch to a real heavy fully suspended mountain bike with radically knobbed tires and let her set the pace.
It is easier to slow you down than to speed up a 6 year old child to an adult pace.
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Kids bikes are gear more toward safety then extreme lite weight. Thats why kids bikes don't generally come with quick release skewers, how many 5 years olds will check their tension?
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I am thinking about getting her some lighter wheels with slicks, that should help.
Yeah, she is a lot slower than me but I really enjoy riding with her for about 10-15 miles on a weekend. She averages about 10 MPH, but again, it's not really about me, it's more about going out and enjoy the time spent with your kid.
Yeah, she is a lot slower than me but I really enjoy riding with her for about 10-15 miles on a weekend. She averages about 10 MPH, but again, it's not really about me, it's more about going out and enjoy the time spent with your kid.
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Geez...he didn't say "my little brat is too slow and she needs to go faster, what can I do to whip this slacker into shape?". From a guys perspective and the need to tweak and tinker I totally understand where he's coming from. Why not try and make her rig a little lighter and easier to operate? Sounds like fun...Awesome she can crank out 15 miles.
EDIT: Which one of these is does she have?
EDIT: Which one of these is does she have?
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Geez...he didn't say "my little brat is too slow and she needs to go faster, what can I do to whip this slacker into shape?". From a guys perspective and the need to tweak and tinker I totally understand where he's coming from. Why not try and make her rig a little lighter and easier to operate? Sounds like fun...Awesome she can crank out 15 miles.
However, looking at it pragmatically, I think we can see that a quality bike would likely cost the same whether it is adult sized or kid sized, and it would be pretty cost prohibitive to lighten a kids bike that will be outgrown in a year or two at most.
For example, a nice light 30cm wide bar is probably going to cost as much as a 40cm wide bar... a 40cm frame as much as a 58cm frame... and of course the Shimano 105 components the same whether on a kid's bike or an adult bike (although they could be moved up to the kid's next bike)...
And then, for a 6 year old, you still end up with a bike that weighs over half as much as the child riding it. The bang per buck just isn't there to lighten the bikes, even if enough parents wanted to buy their children $1,000 bikes to make the manufacturers want to build them.
I know the mentality of wanting things lighter... so, I would probably replace any parts on the bike that would lighten it... but I wouldn't expect it to really enhance the child's performance enough to notice it...
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#13
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Which one of these is does she have?
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What the heck difference would it make if it were lighter? Trust me, none whatsoever. For a child, durability has a lot more value than the myths adults can have in their heads.
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True... I should have expressed better that my message was partially in fun.
However, looking at it pragmatically, I think we can see that a quality bike would likely cost the same whether it is adult sized or kid sized, and it would be pretty cost prohibitive to lighten a kids bike that will be outgrown in a year or two at most.
For example, a nice light 30cm wide bar is probably going to cost as much as a 40cm wide bar... a 40cm frame as much as a 58cm frame... and of course the Shimano 105 components the same whether on a kid's bike or an adult bike (although they could be moved up to the kid's next bike)...
And then, for a 6 year old, you still end up with a bike that weighs over half as much as the child riding it. The bang per buck just isn't there to lighten the bikes, even if enough parents wanted to buy their children $1,000 bikes to make the manufacturers want to build them.
I know the mentality of wanting things lighter... so, I would probably replace any parts on the bike that would lighten it... but I wouldn't expect it to really enhance the child's performance enough to notice it...
However, looking at it pragmatically, I think we can see that a quality bike would likely cost the same whether it is adult sized or kid sized, and it would be pretty cost prohibitive to lighten a kids bike that will be outgrown in a year or two at most.
For example, a nice light 30cm wide bar is probably going to cost as much as a 40cm wide bar... a 40cm frame as much as a 58cm frame... and of course the Shimano 105 components the same whether on a kid's bike or an adult bike (although they could be moved up to the kid's next bike)...
And then, for a 6 year old, you still end up with a bike that weighs over half as much as the child riding it. The bang per buck just isn't there to lighten the bikes, even if enough parents wanted to buy their children $1,000 bikes to make the manufacturers want to build them.
I know the mentality of wanting things lighter... so, I would probably replace any parts on the bike that would lighten it... but I wouldn't expect it to really enhance the child's performance enough to notice it...
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Dude, you are missing my point. I am just asking why no one makes a light weight kid's bike? Not all kids' bike have to weight a ton and be capable of withstand bomb attacks.
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As for your question above, it's because nobody wants them. Nobody cares how fast their 6 year old rides. And nobody wants to pay any more than basic bike costs for a 6 year old's bike because - nobody cares how fast they ride and everyone knows it's going to be grown out of.
Just my opinion though - but I do warn you (based on my own experience) as soon as you attach some sort of performance criterion to your kids' activities, it changes them completely, and in ways you can't predict. Some love competition, some hate it. Some love it until they get to be 10 (or 15 or 20) and then burn out and don't transition to the lifelong enjoyment of the sport, which, in my opinion, is the only reason to get your kids involved in healthy activity.
Make it strictly fun recreation and the kids who love competition will go there. The kids who don't will poke along according to their own nature for the rest of their lives.
Who's talking about competition, you say? Like it or not, as soon as you attach any sort of performance criterion - no matter how subtle you think it is or how inoccuous - it's there. Attaching importance to gear quality with a 6 year old will communicate that loud and clear. After all, what's the purpose of a "better" bike? In spite of the fact that your daughter's proud to be riding a "real" bike (I don't doubt it at all), I would bet money that she'd be more turned on by the color of the bike than the weight.
Just mho, of course, but as the parent of a young adult and older teenager, I do have some experience and have made mistakes.
Just ride with her. Go slower than you think she can. Stop for ice cream or at the playground. ALWAYS, ALWAYS QUIT BEFORE SHE'S READY TO. The worst possible thing you can do is overdo it, even a little.
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One of the things I enjoy doing is ride leisurely with my daughter who's 6.5 yrs old. I bought her a Specialized Hotrock early this year and she really enjoyed riding it with the real gear and hand brakes and no "streamers". One of things I really would like to do with her is get her to ride a bit faster, which gets to think about how to make her bike a big lighter. The problem is that bike makers seemed to have collectively decided there is no need for a lighter weight bike for the 6-10 age group. I tried a few things myseff already, e.g. get rid of that kick-stand and derailleur guard, and they seem to help. Anyone has any other ideas to lighten this thing up?
#21
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By the way, your idea of replacing the tires is of course right on. It will make a difference in her comfort. I really doubt it will make a significant difference in her speed, unless you consider going from 10 to 10.5 or 11 meaningful.
As for your question above, it's because nobody wants them. Nobody cares how fast their 6 year old rides. And nobody wants to pay any more than basic bike costs for a 6 year old's bike because - nobody cares how fast they ride and everyone knows it's going to be grown out of.
Just my opinion though - but I do warn you (based on my own experience) as soon as you attach some sort of performance criterion to your kids' activities, it changes them completely, and in ways you can't predict. Some love competition, some hate it. Some love it until they get to be 10 (or 15 or 20) and then burn out and don't transition to the lifelong enjoyment of the sport, which, in my opinion, is the only reason to get your kids involved in healthy activity.
Make it strictly fun recreation and the kids who love competition will go there. The kids who don't will poke along according to their own nature for the rest of their lives.
Who's talking about competition, you say? Like it or not, as soon as you attach any sort of performance criterion - no matter how subtle you think it is or how inoccuous - it's there. Attaching importance to gear quality with a 6 year old will communicate that loud and clear. After all, what's the purpose of a "better" bike? In spite of the fact that your daughter's proud to be riding a "real" bike (I don't doubt it at all), I would bet money that she'd be more turned on by the color of the bike than the weight.
Just mho, of course, but as the parent of a young adult and older teenager, I do have some experience and have made mistakes.
Just ride with her. Go slower than you think she can. Stop for ice cream or at the playground. ALWAYS, ALWAYS QUIT BEFORE SHE'S READY TO. The worst possible thing you can do is overdo it, even a little.
As for your question above, it's because nobody wants them. Nobody cares how fast their 6 year old rides. And nobody wants to pay any more than basic bike costs for a 6 year old's bike because - nobody cares how fast they ride and everyone knows it's going to be grown out of.
Just my opinion though - but I do warn you (based on my own experience) as soon as you attach some sort of performance criterion to your kids' activities, it changes them completely, and in ways you can't predict. Some love competition, some hate it. Some love it until they get to be 10 (or 15 or 20) and then burn out and don't transition to the lifelong enjoyment of the sport, which, in my opinion, is the only reason to get your kids involved in healthy activity.
Make it strictly fun recreation and the kids who love competition will go there. The kids who don't will poke along according to their own nature for the rest of their lives.
Who's talking about competition, you say? Like it or not, as soon as you attach any sort of performance criterion - no matter how subtle you think it is or how inoccuous - it's there. Attaching importance to gear quality with a 6 year old will communicate that loud and clear. After all, what's the purpose of a "better" bike? In spite of the fact that your daughter's proud to be riding a "real" bike (I don't doubt it at all), I would bet money that she'd be more turned on by the color of the bike than the weight.
Just mho, of course, but as the parent of a young adult and older teenager, I do have some experience and have made mistakes.
Just ride with her. Go slower than you think she can. Stop for ice cream or at the playground. ALWAYS, ALWAYS QUIT BEFORE SHE'S READY TO. The worst possible thing you can do is overdo it, even a little.
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She needs to learn, and learn quick, that she has to:
A) Pedals hard.
B) HTFU
C) Maintain her line
If she fails to do the above, yell at her.
If she is too slow, glare back at her, then drop her.
A) Pedals hard.
B) HTFU
C) Maintain her line
If she fails to do the above, yell at her.
If she is too slow, glare back at her, then drop her.
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Well heres what you need to get to solve all your problems Anderson Custom or a FELT F24
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I really have my doubts as to whether a six year old's body is ready to be biking 10-15 miles. Her joints are still developing. Heard of Osgood-Schlatter disease? You can do real damage to a child's developing joints by pushing them to heightened levels of exercise.
I'm not saying that biking is bad for a child; it's one of those things a well balanced childhood should include in ample amounts. But 10-15 miles seems like a lot for a six year old to ride on her own bike.
Put her on a tandom or a trailer pedaler. Or go for your long ride first, and then swing by the house to pick her up for a couple miles.
I'm not saying that biking is bad for a child; it's one of those things a well balanced childhood should include in ample amounts. But 10-15 miles seems like a lot for a six year old to ride on her own bike.
Put her on a tandom or a trailer pedaler. Or go for your long ride first, and then swing by the house to pick her up for a couple miles.