How old should you be before getting a bicycle?

[misskitty100]

DS will be 4 in a few months and I am wondering if we should get him a bicycle or wait awhile? Unfortunately we have a steep driveway and do NOT live on a cul-de-sac so there is no way he could ever ride it around our house except for the back patio or with us walking down the sidewalk next to him. Once he has a bicycle we will need to drive him someplace for him to ride it:( .

[cookinator]

Of course! Does he have a tricycle? My kids started on a 3 wheeled tricycle, and moved up to a 2 wheeler with training wheels. A very big day is when the training wheels come off!
The sweetest sight in my neighborhood is watching a 6ft daddy gently let go of the little boy/girl for the very 1st time on a small bike with no training wheels! Kind of reminds me of the little baby birds leaving the nest in my backyard.
Lots of parents ride along their kids, kids on the sidewalk, parent in the street of our block. Do you have a bike?;)

[Terri_A]

DD...not quite 5 yet....got her first bike last summer. We don't have sidewalks and live near a major road, so riding just right in front of our hous eis out of the question. She rides it a bit in the driveway from time to time, but mainly we throw it in the car and go to the park to ride. I will say that she was soooo excited to get a bike, but now that she has it, she doesn't really like to ride it much.

[avariell]

one of my strongest memories as a child was my dad teaching me to ride my bike... which involved me crying hysterically, saying i didn't want to learn and him saying i would be the laughing stock of my peers if i didn't learn (ok ok so i know i just made my dad sound horrible but he really is the best!)
anyhoo... i was in the 5th grade when this happened... so maybe 10-11 years old?? i HIGHLY recommend teaching a kid to ride a bike much younger so they hopefully won't have established a fear of it yet :D ;)
P.S. I can ride a bike now and i constantly tease my dad about his teaching "method" :p

[Gumbeaux]

I would get the bicycle.


Some kids at this age are getting motorcycles for Christmas. :rolleyes:

[MaryMac]

Both of our kids were around four when they got off of the tricycle and onto training wheels. We did borrow a neighbors old bike that was really low and started from there. If you can't do it at your house, then it does make a good park outing.

[TKay]

Oh, I'd say get it. We're a bike family (dh races them). So both of our boys were on bikes early. They could both ride two-wheelers (sans training wheels) before they were five. I'd say get it and just let him practice on the patio or sidewalk for a while. He'll love it. And the park is a great way for all of you to get out.
Btw, I still take the kids around our neighborhood with me walking or jogging and them riding. They learn to stop at the corners. Also, ds's are now 5 and almost 7 and they both ride at the bmx track. It can happen young.

ETA: Do what YOU'RE comfortable with. I just realized I made myself sound like I was pushing you into a two-wheeler. He'll learn when you are both ready. Have fun!

[misskitty100]

I will say that she was soooo excited to get a bike, but now that she has it, she doesn't really like to ride it much.

This is what I am afraid will happen and we don't have year round nice weather like you!



Some kids at this age are getting motorcycles for Christmas. :rolleyes:

Exactly!! Yikes!

Oh, I'd say get it. We're a bike family (dh races them). So both of our boys were on bikes early. They could both ride two-wheelers (sans training wheels) before they were five. I'd say get it and just let him practice on the patio or sidewalk for a while. He'll love it. And the park is a great way for all of you to get out.
Btw, I still take the kids around our neighborhood with me walking or jogging and them riding. They learn to stop at the corners. Also, ds's are now 5 and almost 7 and they both ride at the bmx track. It can happen young.

ETA: Do what YOU'RE comfortable with. I just realized I made myself sound like I was pushing you into a two-wheeler. He'll learn when you are both ready. Have fun!

Good points!



DS currently had a pedal John Deere tractor, a tricycle (which he does love riding) and a battery operated John Deer vehicle too.

[Canice]

I never had a tricycle or training wheels - went straight to a two-wheeler when I was around six. We also lived up a steep driveway, and on a very curvy two-lane street with no sidewalks. I remember riding my bike to school as early as the second grade, and almost can't believe I was never hit by a car! :eek:

[misskitty100]

I never had a tricycle or training wheels - went straight to a two-wheeler when I was around six. We also lived up a steep driveway, and on a very curvy two-lane street with no sidewalks. I remember riding my bike to school as early as the second grade, and almost can't believe I was never hit by a car! :eek:

And you probably didn't have a helmet either....;)


BTW, I see parents around our neighborhood pulling their kids in wagons and they have helmets on their kids:rolleyes:

[clairea]

Both of my kids got 2-wheelers with training wheels as 4th birthday presents (they had a tricycle before this). At the time, we lived on a busy street and had a very steep driveway, so I always had put the bikes in the car and take the kids somewhere for them to ride, but I think it was well worth it for them to learn. To me it is like a lot of other skills -- not necessarily essential, but something you want to expose them to in case they want to pursue it later on. It is a lot easier to learn to ride a bike at 4 or 5 than at 15 or at 30!

Now that we live in a quiet, enclosed neighborhood in a smaller town, my kids love to go out and ride their bikes, and I love that they are getting exercise without even thinking about it!

[misskitty100]

One more question....can you get a decent bike anywhere? I know Target sells them as does Fred Meyer/Kroger - are those bikes fine?

[wallycat]

I was 29 :eek: :o :o

[cookinator]

can you get a decent bike anywhere?

I like buying at a bike shop. Support for the 'little guy' and I like the good advice they dispense.

[leightx]

My kids got bikes when they were 3.5 and 4.5 (the same Christmas). DS rode his little 12" bike with training wheels until he turned 6 (and got a 2 wheeler), and DD just got a new bike (21") for Christmas this year. When they were on training wheels, I could keep up with them walking (quickly). Once they learned how to ride 2 wheelers, I had to get my own bike!

We do live in suburbia with sidewalks and no hills. But even though the kids could have conceivably ridden without me right walking (or biking) right beside them, they aren't mature enough to do that (IMO) even now, at 6 and 7.

We do have at least 3 miles of hike and bike trails (basically wide paved sidewalks) all around our town, and those hook up to the sidewalks in our neighborhood. The trails go to the schools, through several parks, and along our creek. Biking is our favorite family activity!

We've bought bikes from Target, Academy (local sporting good store) and Toys R Us. The kids' bikes at the bike stores around us are at least twice the price, and since the kids grow out of their bikes so quickly it just wasn't worth it to pay that much. The $50 bikes are just fine for the 2-3 years they'll use them.

[TKay]

The helmets! Yes, I forgot about the helmets. Dh absolutely refuses to let the kids get on a vehicle of any kind without a helmet. (His training is in pediatric ICU. That combined with the bike thing, well, you can imagine.)
Anyway, I was going to suggest the big bike comes with a helmet and you make him wear it every time--even on the patio. My kids are so used to it, they don't even consider getting on their bikes without helmets. Just something to consider.