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Original poster

My DC can't ride bikes

92 replies

Waitingfortheothershoe · 23/05/2020 20:03

My eldest struggles with balance and is not at all motivated. I wish I had tried more when he was younger but it might have been to tricky for him anyway. But also didn't put the time in and embarrassment is a big factor now.

My 6 year old I think would love it once he got the hang of it but I can't persuade him to try. He has a lovely bike but if I take it out with us he just flat out refuses. I even tried bribing him with sweets.

Anyone else have this problem? I feel very guilty whenever I see little kids riding around on their bikes loving it.

OP posts:

missingmum · 23/05/2020 22:34

There's hope op! My dd almost 8 has finally learnt, awful balance, coordination and a lack of self confidence made it very difficult to me to teach her, she went off this afternoon with dad and they were out for almost 2 hours.

By comparison my younger dd had a balance bike at 2 and was riding without stabilisers just before her 4th birthday, really does depend on the child.

Original poster

Waitingfortheothershoe · 23/05/2020 22:39

Brilliant missing mum!

OP posts:

ScrumptiousBears · 23/05/2020 22:40

I with you. My 6 year old just isn't getting it and has lost confidence. It doesn't help that my 4 year old got on her bike (without stabilisers) and just rode off down the drive.

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bookmum08 · 23/05/2020 22:40

My 12 years old can't. The main reasons are that we wouldn't have anywhere to keep a bike if she had one and no where to ride it as it's all hills and busy roads where we are.
Does it matter?

LanaDelBoy · 23/05/2020 22:41

I was going to start this exact thread! My eldest is 5 and is resistant to learning. He's going at his own pace but if I say or do the slightest thing wrong he feels like it's too much pressure and gets in a strop/ "can't do it". We tried balance bike but it was heavy and he can't 'get' the pedals. We're now on stabilisers and at least has figured out pedals a bit, but won't go fast enough to get going properly. Worrying that putting him back on balance bike won't work.

Youngest, toddler, is fine on his little trike! Literally every other family in my town seems to cycle around all the time with their little kids. I do feel bad. Eldest has always been uninterested in things requiring a lot of physical coordination though, and we need to specifically make an effort to take him and the bike somewhere smooth to practice, away from main road.

amusedbush · 23/05/2020 22:45

I think I was about 8 when I learned without stabilisers (my dad took me to the playground of my first primary school to learn, and we moved away when I was 9 so it must have been around then).

It took one evening as he pushed me to try over and over again until I did it. I remember being scared but he held the seat until I was comfortable.

Oxfordnono12 · 23/05/2020 22:50

4 boys here and the 3rd one (he' almost 6) out right refuses also. I have tried to encourage him. I've got him just to push a few times, then finally got him on it (I pushed it). He now has decided he doesn't want to go on it. So, I'm back to the start. I'm just letting him decide what he wants. If he doesn't want to ride it, then that's ok.

I think they'll decide themselves. Dont blame yourself! I'm sure you've encouraged him ALOT. Just let him go with it..

Oblomov20 · 23/05/2020 22:50

I hired a cycling teacher for 2 sessions, for Ds2. Was money well spent.

Nicketynac · 23/05/2020 22:51

There is an organisation near me that teaches kids how to ride bikes for free. They start with balance bikes then very quickly try them with pedals. They sort of walk behind them and when they wobble they poke them on the side and the child self- corrects. Sounds strange but was very effective. We found it hard to replicate at home so we had to take DS back a few times until he had really got the hang of it.
Until then we had been doing the backbreaking method of running behind him holding onto the bike.
Not sure if they were a charity but def had public funding, assume there are businesses which do the same thing.

Longdistance · 23/05/2020 23:07

My dd1 is going to be 11 soon. She just learnt to ride on her own during lockdown. Can’t get her off the thing once we’re out. She loves it now. A complete 360 that’s shocked us. She was adamant she wasn’t getting on a bike again. It’s been one of our best moments of lockdown.

YgritteSnow · 23/05/2020 23:23

My eldest can but didn't learn till he was 12 - autism and hyper mobility. My youngest still can't and she's a teenager. She's never shown the slightest bit of interest and is resistant if anything. I'm sure she will get the hang of it eventually.

BogRollBOGOF · 23/05/2020 23:29

I was 19 when I finally got the hang of it.
Still can't do hand signals!

DS1 has dyspraxia and autism. He did actually learn at 6 on the same day as his 4yo DB. We gave it a good go as he was due to do his Beaver cycling badge. DS2's stabilisers fell off and wouldn't stay on so he had to get on with it.

He forgets he can do it though. He has to relearn each year and increasingly battles about it. He hasn't been on it since camp when he flatly refused to get on and laughed with vindication as DS2 carrered off the track into a bush. A lot of "I told you so" was uttered

A two wheeled scooter is good for balance; DS1 favours his although he can only do it one-sided. The balance bike was good too. Avoid stabilisers. Short grass is fine. Long grass is hard. Find a flat park so there is plenty of space to wobble around easily.

Singinginshower · 23/05/2020 23:37

OverZoomed
And then wait for older brother to prove he can do what the younger one can...Sibling rivalry is powerful stuff

Yes sibling rivalry is powerful. It's also a bit shit at times when you can't do what other people can.

sunnyblossom1 · 23/05/2020 23:41

Same as pp. we took the pedals off and turned normal bike into a balance bike. First dc learnt at aged 9, second dc at age 9 and third dc totally got the balance bike and learned to ride aged 3. Kids are all different but if they learn the balance part of it without using pedals then the pedalling is the easiest bit.

inwood · 24/05/2020 00:07

Op I have 9 yo twins, they have just learnt in the last week to ride. A number of reasons - it was too bloody complicated to teach them both at the same time, we didn't have balance bikes, they weren't strong enough, then they got THE FEAR when they were older.

We took the pedals and stabilisers off and took them out 1:1 for a few weeks just going round the local Park and then out the pedals on and they suddenly got it within a couple of days of each other.

I really thought we would never get there. Three days in and one of them made 7 miles.

In hindsight balance bikes are the way forward.

HerRoyalNotness · 24/05/2020 00:20

Both my boys were 8 before they could ride without trainer wheels. Looks like their little sibling is going the same way. Some kids just aren’t into it.

Aveisenim · 24/05/2020 00:21

I my 30s and can't ride a bike because of balance issues despite my best efforts as a kid, I wouldn't worry about it too much. My 11-year-old has absolutely no interest in learning as yet, though he does have one. It's not the be all and end all.

alexdgr8 · 24/05/2020 01:32

i think stabilisers are a mistake, this from my own experience and recent observations.
the rider needs to get the feel of the bicycle. better to go along like a hobby horse, without pedals at first.
go on grass. and when starting using pedals, a common mistake is having the foot too high; suggest one foot on ground, and the other just above the lowest point.
another thing i see often, re helmets. they need to be firmly attached and correctly positioned. if this is not insisted upon by the parent the rider will get into unsafe habits. the helmet needs to be forward on the head, otherwise the rider will not be protected from very painful and possible scarring injury if falling on the face.
do not attempt learning anywhere near a road, nor a steep incline.
once they start to ride properly, ensure that the brakes are used to control, and that they are adjusted to be easily reached and applied.

alexdgr8 · 24/05/2020 01:40

another thought, though this may seem controversial. if possible, and generally speaking, men often seem to be better instructors.
i am not going to argue about it, or speculate why, but this is just my observation. except if the man has not the patience to persevere and gently encourage without becoming exasperated. but that could apply to either sex, although men's voices tend to sound more aggressive when angry. which is totally counter-productive, of course.

inwood · 24/05/2020 01:52

@alexdgr8 bollocks! Dh is a MAMIL, it was me who got my kids riding eventually. What's your sample based on 😂

x2boys · 24/05/2020 06:05

Yeah my son was about 9 or 10 he just couldn't get his balance,dh bought him a too small second hand bike in the end which gave him more confidence and once he could ride that he was away on. his big bike .

OverZoomed · 24/05/2020 07:01

Yes sibling rivalry is powerful. It's also a bit shit at times when you can't do what other people can.

I’m sorry, this was in retrospect an insensitive thing to say to you, or OP. I had assumed she thought her ds1 could do it and just wanted to work out how to get him there, but I now see I read it wrongly and she’s actually not sure if he can.

Original poster

Waitingfortheothershoe · 24/05/2020 07:14

Thanks OverZoomed. No worries, I knew it was well intended.

OP posts:

FixItUpChappie · 24/05/2020 07:22

My 7yr old just got his training wheels off this week. He has been very resistant and uninterested. We took him to a gentle slope/hill and practiced there before moving to cement. He is so stubborn - there were some tears and he threw his bike once or twice but was finally convinced by a 4 yr old wizzing by on two wheels. He is SO proud of himself now, I'm glad we persevered.

newtb · 24/05/2020 07:24

DD had a bike with stabilisers and couldn't manage without. The thing that really helped was getting a scooter - it helped her to balance.

Then we got new neighbours and their little boy was whizzing about on his bike. Within a week, she was too.

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