My son and his cousin love their Strider Bikes. And my dad is teaching them to race.
Strider Bikes
The Strider Bike is an awesome product. It’s the only toddler running bike that I’ve seen that is adjustable for 1 year olds and 3 year olds. I wrote a review of Strider’s pedal-less kick bikes for toddlers last year. The boys continue to love their bikes and gain new skills every week. Their latest trick is using the Strider Bike Brake. The brake is a nice little add on for when the kid has mastered the run and coast on the kick bike. The brake mounts to the bottom of the seat tube and is just a lever that brings a piece of metal in contact with the rear wheel activated by the feet.
The brake is pretty easy and intuitive for a kid to use once they realize that they have to be moving. The boy’s first try was to put their feet on the brake while standing still. They crashed. Now they can use it with confidence enough to coast down the driveway without fear of going out of control.
Strider Bike Brake Usage
One problem my son has with the brake is that he’s either on it or off it. So when we went out the other day to do his first trail ride on it on a short section of trail near our home, he could stop it, but wasn’t using it to just go slowly. He could have coasted for a while if he’d just fest his heels on the chain stays and activate the brake with his toes. So I showed him the trick and he got it. Until one point when he had his feet too far back on the chain stays and couldn’t reach the brake lever. He kept going faster and faster out of control. Fortunately, he was able to keep it on the trail and ended up crashing in the dirt. He wasn’t happy, but he wasn’t hurt.
Also, I was on my bike when this happened and couldn’t run and catch him, so I’d recommend you hike with them if you take to the trail so you can run after them if things get sketchy.
Got any videos of your kids on Strider Bikes?
-Mike
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