STRIDER 12 Sport Balance Bike Review

_{Sample received for consideration}

I don’t remember when it happened, but at some point during my childhood I learned how to ride a bike. Every parent imagines that moment when their own child learns how to ride, without those training wheels, and it’s pretty much a rite of passage to becoming a big-kid.

Our oldest still doesn’t know how to ride a bike without those training wheels.  When she was around 3 or 4 years old, my parents got her a princess bike with training wheels and she LOVED it.  But she’s now 5 and those pesky training wheels are still there! To be fair to her, it hasn’t been a big item on our to-do list so we really haven’t practiced – at all.

It’s back on our to-do list, and now that our little one is 19 months, and we decided to start her “training” with a different kind of bike.  Lots of our family and friends had great success with balance bikes so we decided to give it a shot – for both of the girls!

The STRIDER 12 Sport has a no-pedal design which builds confidence and eliminates fear by allowing kids to have their feet on the ground and progress at their own pace. It’s an interesting spin on teaching kids how to ride a bike since it teaches young children balance on two wheels right from the start, avoiding developmental delays typical with tricycles and training-wheel bikes.

The girls were excited to test it out, first up was my 5 year old (and yes, Caroline is wearing a dress – this girl has some fashion sense at all times).  She was mostly riding back and forth on the sidewalk until little sister ran after her for her try.

For Natalie, we placed the seat ALL the way down (the seat has a super easy level to go up and down – switches in a matter of seconds) but she’s still a little short to try this out and touch the ground while straddling — i’m thinking a few more months and she’ll have a try herself.  She was having a blast with her sister, though.  I also love how light the bike is so that big sis could help move it around easily.

 

The 12 Sport model offers lots of special features:  custom grips, padded saddle, handlebar pad, and quick release clamps (no-tool adjustment). It also comes with a second padded saddle and extra-long seat post to fit a taller, 3-5 year old child. The Strider 12 Sport comes in green, red, blue, black, yellow, orange and pink.

The Strider 12 Sport retails for $119 on retail stores nationwide, or online at retailers like Amazon and Toys R Us.