It's like riding a bike

Cycling is an art of balance. A sense of balance is given to us all by nature itself, it remains only to extend it beyond the body, to the bicycle. And you need to do this carefully - the first experience is the most important. This undoubtedly pleasant and useful skill is easiest to acquire in childhood. It’s literally easier for a child (it’s not easy to maintain an adult in unstable balance while riding a bicycle), and it’s easier to teach. Less risk of falling injuries.

It would seem that wisdom is not great ...


In view of the upcoming holidays, I suggest taking the time to train your child.

You will need:

1. Child. Own or any child who trusts and trusts you enough. Not all children are the same. Somehow, one boy from the start began to pedal intensively, while randomly turning the wheel and deflecting his center of gravity. But. Almost all children can be taught to stay on their saddles. The main thing is to try to drop them as little as possible; trust is a fragile thing. Keep an eye out when your child is losing interest or becoming afraid. Take a break. Be interested in the opinion of the child. Do not be distructed. The main thing here is he.

2. The bike. It's harder here - not everyone will do. Which do you think is best?




The advantages of running over a "children's bike" during training:

1. Minimalism - weight, height, design - nothing distracts from the learning process.
2. The child feels much more confident without losing contact with the ground. You can always lean on one or two legs, stop quickly, due to light weight and inertia. And most importantly - does not lose the feeling of balance, which greatly simplifies the learning process.

In fact, a child who has just learned to run can ride a runbike.

When riding a bicycle, the legs do not reach the ground and the balance has to be kept consciously due to the inclination of the center of gravity and the rotation of the steering wheel.

Runbike, by the way, can be made from a bicycle. It is enough to remove the excess - pedals / connecting rods / axle / chain (at the same time you will learn a lot about the design of the "children's bicycle"). The difficulty is rather psychological - “how to break a working bike?” If everything goes according to plan, soon you will need to collect everything back - the child will be ready to switch from a runbike to a bicycle.

There is a nuance - with the saddle as low as possible, the child should get his feet to the floor well, otherwise alteration does not make sense.

Despite the fact that the runbike can greatly simplify the training of riding a bicycle, reduce the time needed and reduce your efforts, you can learn to ride a bicycle right away.

Bike

Remove these terrible extra wheels. With them, the bike turns into a stool. Learning to ride with them is the worst thing you can think of. This is how to learn to fly, being attached to a kite: formally - you fly, but you do not control the process and do not learn. The wheels slow down the movement, but do not give a feeling of complete stability - there is still a couple of centimeters of play, the bicycle is swinging and the child, falling from side to side, constantly feels discomfort, and is waiting for a fall.

Design ... All these little things were invented by adult uncles and aunts. A heavy frame welded from water pipes and painted with cute pink paint. The layout of the bike. Sometimes with the layout of the front and rear brakes and even with the layout of the gear selector. All this does not work, and it cannot, because attachments below the lower class are usually installed on children's bicycles, and only the price of a bicycle is similar to the real one. Bearings? No, not heard.
High-quality children's bicycles are few and expensive. For example, the company Specialized produces light, high-quality children's bicycles, but their price may surprise you unpleasantly. In addition, the child quickly grows out of the bicycle, and buying a “company” every year or two is unprofitable. On the other hand, almost everything that is sold under the guise of children's bicycles is only externally at best.

What you can want:

1. Light frame (Specialized). A light bike is needed if the child is able to carry / bring the bike (1st floor or private house). Usually, parents carry bicycles, which dramatically reduces the number of trips a child has.
2. The brakes. It is desirable that the front brake works well - it is more effective than the rear brake, and due to the small weight, low landing and low speed, the child has few chances to roll over the steering wheel. The rear brake is optional. The brake in the hub (reverse pedal) is harmful - it distracts from maintaining balance and acts slower than the front, because the pedals must be in a certain position so that the brake can be used. But usually he is.
3. Quality tires are not needed / expensive The child does not blow the rubber - not the run, and, most likely, will not drive through dirt / thorns / glasses. The main thing is not to lower it too quickly, otherwise parents will have to pump up before each use. And yes, do not be too lazy to check / pump up - the more tires are inflated (especially the rear), the easier and more fun it is to drive (but without fanaticism).
4. Helmet. I think it’s redundant, except that you will teach the child immediately
   
   
   downhill

   
5. Wings / running board / flashlight / reflectors / trunk / bag - optional. You will most likely not ride either at night or in the rain. The lighter is large, the less weight to bring in / take out for a walk.

Alternatively, pay attention to used offers. The same Specialized from Europe costs an order of magnitude cheaper than the new one, but second-hand, but bought earlier with a new one in our stores they sell the cheapest by only 50%.

During one child’s use, the bike’s life does not suffer. Maximum - scratches. Do not be afraid to scratch the bike and do not need to scold the child for this - just beat off his desire to touch the bike.

It is impossible to bend / break the frame of a children's bicycle - due to its miniature proportions and low load, it has an enormous margin of safety. Here I mean Bicycles; their layouts on a scale of 1: 1, let them continue to stand beautifully on the shelves of supermarkets. If you are not lucky, and relatives gave the child such a model for his birthday, do not be discouraged. You can also ride it, though it's not so easy and fast. But then in a year or two you will know exactly what to look for.

You can also rent a bike, but keep in mind that the lesson is unlikely to last more than half an hour, so it’s best to borrow from friends / neighbors first. When training on a runbike, several classes for two days will be enough for the child so that you can no longer keep up with him. Then it will take a couple more days on a bicycle to fully get used to self-driving. If you will learn right away on the bike, get ready to support the child for a week, until he no longer fears falling.

(Not) Falling, by the way, also needs to be taught. Choose a suitable place, away from borders, better on the ground. It is advisable that the frame of the bike be underestimated - this is easier both physiologically and psychologically. Make sure to hold the child along with the bicycle when tilting / falling - you will probably need to hold the saddle with one hand at the same time, with the other at the wheel, leaning slightly towards the bicycle and resting your feet. Accelerate, ask the child to slow down by braking, put his left foot, help tilt the bike to the left and stop completely. Repeat right. Show that you can stop by leaning your foot on the curb to maintain a vertical position; without getting down from the bike to relax and continue driving.

Make sure that the bike / runbike is working properly: try to load the frame, you can kneel on the saddle or even sit down a little - if the bike does not break under you, it means that the child will be mastered for sure. Check that the wheels spin easily and freely, the tires are inflated. otherwise it will be much harder and less interesting to ride. Check that the brake is working. The stroke of the brake handle should be small (under a small children's handle), braking should gradually increase as you press the handle and almost block the wheel at the end of pressing. You can start!

Your task is to help the child maintain balance, while keeping the child as low and symmetrical as possible, ideally - by the center of gravity of the child-bike system, this is somewhere in the lower back. Definitely not behind the wheel! Too high and asymmetrical, your influence on the center of gravity is too great. You can hold the bottom of the seat, but then you have to bend over, and this is inconvenient (especially to run bent over). As an option - “parental handle”, fixed to the seatpost. Another option is to hold the child by the clothes at the back - if only he would not slip out, or not fasten the dad’s belt fasten the child’s armpits and support the belt.

It is necessary to support, i.e. insure against falling, but giving the child enough freedom to manipulate his center of gravity - so he learns to keep balance faster.
The higher the speed and the sharper the turn, the stronger the slope towards the turn.

First, we push the bicycle slightly to move forward, later, after mastering the balance, the child must pedal himself.

The next step is finding the right track. A horizontal section of flat asphalt, at least 3 meters wide and 6 meters long. It is advisable without high borders and other obstacles. Preferably, without pedestrians. Of course, not on the roadway. Park / playground in the yard / wide sidewalk ... A wide area is needed for training turns - so the child will learn to maintain balance much faster than being towed in a straight line. It is convenient to install a disposable cup with a pebble at the beginning and end of the site (for weighting, so as not to blow off the wind). Glasses will show the child (and passers-by) the flight plan.

Tell your child that you are planning a smooth left turn in a wide arc. Tilt the bicycle slightly to the left, while turning the handlebar slightly to the left and make a 180-degree turn around the intended point (cup) with a smooth exit to the straight line. Then the same to the right. Let the child adjust the center of gravity and turn the steering wheel a little, show that balance maintenance depends on these two factors (and also on speed, but now it doesn’t matter). Keep it as low as possible, trying not to interfere with the child’s attempts to control the bike, reducing only sharp jerks of the handlebars and tilting, but be constantly prepared to support the weight of the child and the bicycle, and prevent the child from falling.

If there are passers-by on the sidewalk - choose moments for movement while the sidewalk is free, when busy - you can relax and explain to the child the plan for the next stage. After the beginning of the stage, the less distracting factors - the more effective the training. And verbal skirmishes with pedestrians who believe that the sidewalk is made for them (and they are right!) Can ruin your mood, and most importantly - the child. Therefore, be polite on the chosen sidewalk.

Runway program

1. The saddle is lowered to a minimum. We go on foot, without sitting down, we drive a little to the right / left.
2. The saddle is higher. Sit down, go, drive, accelerate, brake (brake or feet)
3. With support, we try to steer more actively, make wide smooth circles to the right / left.
4. We learn to accelerate greatly, to ride by inertia and slow down.
5. We learn to make turns to the right / left 180/360 degrees only by inertia, without touching the ground with your feet

The program for the bike

If the child already has experience of driving a runbike, he will only have to transfer the existing experience of maintaining balance and add the ability to maintain speed by pedaling

0. The child drives a bicycle on his own, holding the steering wheel with both hands, the child is on the left. We are trying to slow down. Show your child that a vertically oriented bike is easier to drive than a tilted bike.

1. Sit down, sit, getting used to the saddle. We are driving slowly.

2. We touch. We steer. We turn the pedals. We are going a little faster

3. We are trying to slow down. We're going to pause, repeat several times, gradually increasing acceleration. For starters, there is only one brake - in order not to overload the child with information, preferably the front one, as the most effective.

3. With support, we try to steer more actively, make wide smooth circles to the right / left.

4. We learn how to accelerate greatly, ride by inertia and slow down.

5. We learn to make turns to the right / left by 180/360 degrees only by inertia.

6. Gradually reduce the stiffness of the hold, giving the child more freedom.

7. We master independent landing and getting off the bicycle. Depends on the frame of the bike.
If it is high - holding the steering wheel with both hands, put the left foot on the pedal, slightly push off with the right and throw it through the frame. The child needs to maintain balance at the same time and quickly begin to pedal, so as not to stop and not fall. This is the most traumatic moment at this stage. Supporting the child, repeat as many times as needed to make him comfortable sitting / getting up on his own.

8. Raise the saddle so that the child’s legs are almost straightened, passing the lowest point when pedaling. At this point, the child should be able to confidently sit / get off the bike and not be afraid to fall.

9. We teach the child to use the speed switch, independently selecting the speed depending on the descent / rise / wind in such a way as to maintain a constant comfortable cadence (cadence). This will allow the child to move fast enough and far, without exerting excessive effort and not getting tired.

10. On the move we get up, moving by inertia. We repeat, trying to pedal while standing

11. Carefully try to overcome the pits and small curbs, getting up and using bent legs to soften the bumps. Somewhere here you can add a helmet to the gear.

12. We complicate the route, overcoming several small obstacles at once. This will require a stock of inertia, because it’s difficult to bounce and pedal at the same time, and a shortage / excess of inertia is fraught with a fall.

The next step is skating together. The child will quickly enough learn how to ride faster than you go, and some of you will have to constantly wait or catch up, or win circles, if the track is convenient enough for this. Better to ride bikes together. You are behind to see the child, but he must know exactly where to stop (intersections and other obstacles). Need a long sidewalk / bike path a couple of kilometers long. In the second case, tell the child that he should move in the right lane and stick to it yourself. Do not make left turns without making sure that it is safe. If you need to stop, be sure not to block the path. There are enough barriers there - pedestrian ranks, mummies with prams for two or three, a handful of students from countries with left-hand traffic, renting bicycles,

At this stage, the child will need yes, a ringing bell, and you - a lot of patience. Do not be nervous - you are walking and relaxing ... Grab a bike lock and a thermos with your favorite drink / cookies - and you can increase the duration of your walks.


Thanks to those who read. It's time to go for a drive!

The list of children's bike manufacturers that deserve attention from the point of view of the authors of the comments (we replenish it, submitted as in the original, without verification and adjustment):
Vitus, KuBikes, Woom, Lisaped, Frog, Shulz, Kubi, Stern ...

Links: Run on a wikipedia .