Choosing First Bike for Toddler

The time has come to experience something I've been looking forward to for the past couple years, watching our son enjoy a bike! Our little man is about to turn 2 years old and we'd like to buy him a bike for his birthday- well, his sweet grandparents have actually offered to buy it and want us to pick it out. That brings my husband and I once again to the internet to read reviews, research, compare, analyze and finally choose the best thing for the money we're willing to spend.

As we've begun searching we've encountered a new phenomena in kiddie bikes. We at first were trying to decide between a traditional tricycle and a plastic big wheel type ride. What we found though was quite a surprise. There is a new concept out there for little kid bikes called BALANCE BIKES or RUNNING BIKES or PRE BIKES for toddlers and young children. This new concept is awesome. Rather than pedal, pedal, pedal....it's more like run and cruise, run and cruise, run and cruise or walk and cruise for the youngest. These bikes claim to teach balance and coordination skills to these little guys and gals. From the utube videos and reviews from Amazon I see that many people agree and absolutely love these new bikes.

As we have searched we found that there are basically three things we really want out of a new bike. First, it has to be safe & made of quality materials. We see that the balance bikes don't have the high center of gravity that the tricycles have. We also like the idea of our son's feet being the tool he uses to go and to stop the bike. We think it will give him the sense of balance that he could never get from what we started with when we were little. Next, the bike needs to be adjustable so that he can grow with it. We want it to maneuver well and for him to fit nicely on it so he will enjoy it. Finally, the bike needs to fit in our projected budget. Some of the Balance Bikes we saw were up in the $300 range and we won't be going there.

We have decided on at least four to think about, research more and sleep on before making a final decision. The first one is made by Prince Lionheart. It is wooden and although I love the retro look it received a few reviews mentioning the wood had cracked and that worries us a bit. Another one we looked at is made by Strider. This one has great little foot rests embedded onto the frame. They seem to be out of the way for easy running but in a good spot when ready to put the feet up. It also is lightweight. The only problem with this one is the question of quality that we need to research a bit more. My husband liked the Mini Glider. It has foot rests and a hand brake. The foot rests are nice but some of the feedback from those with this bike say that they create bruises and awkwardness when trying to maneuver the bike. The final one we are now considering is the KaZam. This one looks more like a hybrid between a scooter and a big boy bike. It looks fun but it may be a little too big for our toddler at this point. So as we think more on this subject I'd love to know if anyone out there can comment on any of these four balance bikes and a comparison of the four. I'd love to hear from you. I will update as to which bike we finally choose and whether or not we come upon any others that are worth considering. Which would you choose?

We finally made our choice....the Strider. It arrived in time for our son's second birthday. He immediately got on it and went nowhere. That's okay though, it will take some time and practice. We are glad we chose the Strider because it has the foot rests towards the back wheels near his heels. This puts them out of the way but useful if needed. We've enjoyed pushing him as he rests his feet on the foot rests on nearby trails.We hope that soon we'll enjoy watching him coast himself using those foot rests. We love how light it is. It enables us to take a long walk with the dog, the stroller, the bike and the boy....all without too much extra effort. The bike and wheels seem of a very high quality and it's nice to know the wheels are solid so we do not have to worry about them going flat. Although I think we'll still look for a second hand traditional big wheel or trike "just for the fun of it" at a garage sale, we are glad our son has the opportunity to learn to balance on this bike rather than needing training wheels on a two wheeled bike.