Baby Bikes

Another vote for balance bikes - my youngest started on his third birthday and for his fourth birthday got a "proper bike", no stabilisers and was whizzing off in under an hour.

balance bikes as soon as they are tall enough, my youngest cycled at about the same 3y 5m as jonb, my eldest, now 6 took until he was 4ish, as he had to figure out pedals too. My eldest has now joined lea valley youth though, so it hasn't put him off. Islabikes are fabulous, not the cheapest, but short reach brakes and no suspension makes a more fun ride.

Balance bikes win hands-down! Stabilisers are a no-no, they teach kids to ride wrongly, then when you take them off they have to relearn how to balance properly.

My daughter had her Rothan at 3 and once she was big enough to inherit her brother's bigger bike she was riding unaided in no time. We visited Islabikes for a Cnoc for our 5 year old, we hadn't thought of buying a balance bike. But she took a shine to the Rothan, so we came away with two! She adored it and was sad to see it go. Those two bikes have been worth every penny as they are brilliantly designed and have brought so much pleasure.

At two some kids aren't ready for a balance bike but every child is different. Let them come to it in their own time and you'll be fine.

Love the video clip.

Balance bikes are great and a Puky Woosh from an early age and you can't go wrong!

Just search for Puky Woosh on ebay .... enough plugs now!

Our 21-month-old tries to climb on any bike he sees (mine, my 6yo's, the balance bikes in the bike shop etc.).

He was too small for the balance bikes in the shop, so he'll still be too small for the Islabikes Rothan that we have (but is loaned to a friend atm) until his little legs grow a bit.

In the meantime, that Puky Woosh looks good - might see if we can get hold of one

My nephew was using his wooden push along bike from really young, it's great as he learnt balance, steering and coordination from it, meaning his transition to a pedal bike is pretty easy.

We tried stabilisers on a pedal bike and he fell off because he didn't understand why the bike wasn't leaning over.

One note of caution: Those wooden bikes have no brakes! Couple that to him being a complete nutter for speed = Danger

Both our started on balance bike at about 20 months. Oldest started on pedals at 3 years 5 months

Straight on, no messing... here's a near real time video of his first ride

Youngest has actually it all up quicker than he did - must be having a big brother to follow!

In terms of how early you can start, the critical thing with balance bikes (and little pedal bikes too) is the standover height. We went with Islabikes (recommended, but definitely at the pricey end) as they had the lowest standover at the time, but others are similar now I think. So measure up and see if you can get standover heights of anything you're looking at.

Converted 2 small bikes to balance bikes by stripping off transmission, and girls were scooting at 2 yrs old. At just over 4 were in scratch 'bike race' at CTC York Show.

Puky is a great manufacturer. They do balance bikes too but the Woosh is super. Expensive at £60 rrp though!

My two were both riding bikes by 3 and a half. I think balance bikes are the way to go. My boy only ever had a balance bike then went straight onto pedal bike with no stabilisers and road (sic) off into the distance! (Hoping he comes back soon).

A push along is perfect at 1 just to get some balance and coordination. Puky Woosh .... much better than the usual tractors.

Have a look at ebay ... search for item no: 280898692627