"I have always been a big believer in the fact that stabilisers aren't a good thing for kids because they don't learn how to balance, they learn how to lean to one side,"
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Stuff
"stabilisers aren't a good thing for kids"
(10 posts)-
Posted 10 years ago #
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Well the explanation is simple - you need to learn 3 things to ride a bike
How to control the bike with brakes & steering
How to balance (after you have learned about brakes and steering (and
fallinggetting off/on))How to pedal whilst already instinctively doing the first two tasks.
By far the most important skill to master (which can be by-passed if a child is put on a bike with stabilisers) is the ability to stop the bike and preferably in a controlled way.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Not sure about the list/order.
Most balance bikes don't have brakes.
Learning to balance is the important thing.
Stopping is (to be going on with) what feet are for.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Preference, perhaps. Plenty slopes round here. A brake was a 'must' on our balance bikes. Certainly got used all the time.
I observed balance first occur at speeds where stopping with feet alone would not have been easy.
Cycling is a lot like skiing. In both cases, people learn a lot better if they are taught from the very start how to stop safely and easily. Much less falling over.
Posted 10 years ago # -
With stabilisers, there is no way for the child to know how fast they can go round a corner until such time that they go so fast that they wipe out.
Toppling over/crashing while going fast round a corner is good way to put a young kid off.
Posted 10 years ago # -
My son learned with stabilizers. He had a few crashes when he toppled over on a sharp turn. He wasn't really proficient until he was 7.
My daughter learned with a balance bike (with brakes). I waited until she could balance from speed to a stop with her feet in the air, coasting slowly along and keeping upright even when creeping along. Probably a year's worth of riding when she was 4. It took her less than an hour to learn to ride a pedal bike and she hasn't stopped since. She's still a more confident rider than her big brother.
Posted 10 years ago # -
I can't think of any positive things to say about stabilisers except perhaps when teaching anyone with motor skill/balance issues.
As for the order, I'd generaly agree with chdot however if you are teaching older kids 8ish+ or adults, I'd go with Tulyar. I just wish when teaching adults that I'd remember that I should go with Tulyar's order.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Ours had just turned four when they got pedal bikes, though it was height rather than age that was the limiting factor. One of them got on and cycled off, that was it, done. The other took a wee while longer, maybe an hour or two on the bike before he was totally confident.
They had balance bikes for a couple of years before that and by the end were totally (over-)confident on them - all the bike skills except pedalling were there. We had chosen balance bikes with brakes and I think that turned out to be a big deal - I told them they wouldn't get a pedal bike until they'd shown they could use brakes, they wanted pedals so they made the effort and learned to use brakes. Being able stop safely made the transition a lot easier.
Mileage with balance bikes does seem to vary, it worked for us but we have friends with kids who simply don't like them - just you luck.
Posted 10 years ago # -
I went with stabilisers for my daughter's first bike (a rather solidly-made pink Raleigh 'Trixy') but, in hindsight, I wonder if it was the best route. Maybe, maybe not.
Happily my daughter very recently nailed it and we're fine tuning on a new (to us) bike. Confidence is now high, despite one mishap caused by over-enthusiastic use of brakes. We've already had one ride to school last week and more are planned for this last week at school.
I'm hopeful for a summer of bike riding...
Posted 10 years ago # -
"I just wish when teaching adults that I'd remember that I should go with Tulyar's order."
Bikeability Edinburgh: I've sent you a PM.
Posted 10 years ago #
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