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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to consider buying this bike for ds (5)?

198 replies

mikado1 · 15/04/2017 17:25

His favourite apparently but his dad thinks it's 'girlish'-only because the halford's man said it's a girl's bike, I believe. And yet I see all the reviews talk about buying it for a girl :/ I feel we should go with whAt he wants, I've always told him that boys and girls can play with/wear/do what they choose and aren't limited to 'boys'/girls'' things. Think dh worried he will be snagged and not want to ride it. I think it's terrible to have to think like that.

OP posts:
melissasummerfield · 15/04/2017 22:15

I dont understand the comments 'his mates will rip it out of him' etc... he is 5! Presuming the OP doesnt let him go riding around the streets like a teenager?! I really dont think 5 year olds pay the slightest bit of attention to this kind of thing, they are far to young. Let him have what he wants!

Enidblyton1 · 15/04/2017 22:19

Another vote here for Frog bikes (or Isla, but they are even more expensive). If you're lucky you could pick up a second hand Frog for £100-£150, or if you can stretch to buying new it will have a good resale value. We went from a Halfords bike (aged 4) to a Frog (aged 6) and the difference was HUGE. Renting sounds like a good option too if you don't want to spend £250 on a bike.
I justified the cost to myself because our Frog will be used by 3 siblings.

MapMyMum · 15/04/2017 22:21

Get him whatever he wants

Out2pasture · 15/04/2017 22:26

It looks really childish. By next year it will be inappropriate.
Find a solid colour item.

JDelanysCleanHorse · 15/04/2017 22:27

I like the bike OP and would buy it if my dc wanted it but after a closer look on the website you've put up it does list it as a girls bike in the specifics.

Also check the reviews. My ds(11) had his new bike from toysrus-do you have one local to you OP?

FirstSeemItThenBeIt · 15/04/2017 22:28

My daughter has that bike Smile

My son has some Star Wars looking thing.

FirstSeemItThenBeIt · 15/04/2017 22:34

Oh, and it's not too heavy or a piece of steel crap either Hmm

Bit baffled by all the bike snobbery on this thread; they hardly need it for their triathlon training, just to belt up and down to the park on.

lakeswimmer · 15/04/2017 22:36

Another vote here for Isla bike or Frog. We've had both for our kids and the quality is much better than the standard Halfords bike. They're much more expensive but you can pass them on or sell when you've finished with it. The re-sale value of Isla bikes is very high because people know they're good.

Natsku · 15/04/2017 22:41

If he likes it then go for it. He's likely to have outgrown it and need a bigger bike by the time his friends might start to tease him about it. DD has a boy's bike because that was the only bike the right size for her in the second hand shop at the time - she's 6 and quite happily explains to her friends that 'its a boy's bike but I don't mind'

3boys3dogshelp · 15/04/2017 22:45

YABU for buying a really heavy bike, whatever the colour. if he rides his bike every day I would recommend a Frog too. we have 3dc and have had 5 frog bikes now. They are expensive but they are fab, really light and my kids love riding them.

3boys3dogshelp · 15/04/2017 22:45

Also plenty of bright gender neutral colours.

BubblegumFactory · 15/04/2017 22:59

Another vote for a better bike - we have always bought Isla bikes, expensive but makes riding a bike I pleasure. Heavy steel bikes from Halfords are not a great option for anyone, let alone little kids. Resale value for Isla bikes is high, unlike Halfords bikes, so despite higher initial outlay, overall 'cost' to you would be similar.

Aeroflotgirl · 15/04/2017 23:20

There are other better bikes than Isla, that are cheaper, Specialized hot rock, Trek, Giant, Ridgeback, Dawes. They are some recommended by my friend who has 30 years bike experience.

Aeroflotgirl · 15/04/2017 23:20

Meant better bikes, besides Isla

LadyLoveYourWhat · 15/04/2017 23:30

"Also plenty of bright gender neutral colours" - pastels are gender neutral too, because (all together now) there's no such thing as boys' or girls' colours.

Natsku, another strategy "No, it's not a boys' bike because it's mine and I'm a girl"

3boys3dogshelp · 16/04/2017 00:27

I take your point Lady. However the OP stated that her son liked bright colours earlier in the thread hence 'nice bright colours' and most of the thread has been discussing her son not getting bullied for having a girl's bike so I pointed out they are aimed at either boys or girls - not styled like most of the Halfords ones.
A bike is a big expense and not something that the OP is likely to want to replace before her son has outgrown it because kids at school upset him and tell him it's a girl's bike or too babyish. However lovely a school you send your kids to and however happy ds is with his bike there will be a kid a few years older who points out that his little sister has the same one. It seems like easy bullying to avoid to me.

PRBunny · 16/04/2017 01:02

I bought my four year old son a Ridgeback MX16 in silver for Christmas. The same bike comes in pillar box red and bright blue.

We had looked at bikes in both Halfords and Toys R Us. In the end we weren't keen and went to a local independent bike shop. My son chose the silver bike himself and hid it round a corner in the shop as he was adamant Santa was going to collect it on his sleigh.

The one we bought was box fresh and assembled for us by the bike shop. We're very pleased with the Ridgeback and my son is over the moon. Santa is the best, apparently.

My six year old niece has the Halfords Woodland bike.

sparkysdream · 16/04/2017 01:15

No issue with it being girly, but as others have said suspect it will be very heavy, and the brakes difficult for small hands. Halfords have Wiggins bikes that are light and often mentioned as an alternative to Frog or Isla. They're also a bit cheaper. I thought my daughter would discount them for being too boyish, but she isn't bothered.

Shenanagins · 16/04/2017 01:48

I personally wouldn't get it as it looks too babyish and I've begun to see my 5yo really take notice of things like that. We got a wiggins bike this time and so far so good as had a terrible time with the brakes on a frog bike.

Idratherbeaunicorn · 16/04/2017 05:20

I think it is neautral. It looks a bit like a BMX so a boy could definitely use it and it look like a 'boys bike'
IMO it shouldn't matter even if it is a 'girls bike'

AnnieAnoniMouse · 16/04/2017 05:54

The guy in Halfords quietly told us to go to the bike shop in x village if we wanted a decent bike. He said the ones Halfords sell are far from the best.

We bought it 2 years ago and hadn't heard of Frog bikes, we had to buy one that day so didn't have a lot of time to research. She still likes it & it's fine, but I'd have bought the lighter Frog one if I'd known about them as she's a slip of a thing & the bike is quite heavy. Even if she didn't apppreciate the difference in weight, I would, putting it in the car!

I don't thinks there's much/any difference in the shape theses days though.

Canyousewcushions · 16/04/2017 06:16

Also worth looking at Wiggins bikes (Halfords) and Hoy bikes (Evans) there are more really good kids bikes out there now than a few yeas ago- tho as they are still new there may not be many second hand ones yet. Light and just as kid friendly as frog and isla for a similar price to frog. We got a wiggins one in the post xmas sales for £175 so for us it was much cheaper than the competition!

MrEBear · 16/04/2017 06:22

I think it's looks cute and girlie. I think your son is likely to outgrow the design long before he out grows the actual bike. I would look for a solid colour bike elsewhere.

Somebody asked earlier about the dropped top tube on a girls / ladies bike. The strongest frame is a straight top tube that you would find on a mans bike. However that involves swinging your leg over it, not very lady like and would get in the way of your skirt. Hence ladies and girls bikes have a step through frame or a dropped top tube.

That said at competition level all competitors tend to have the same straight top tube, ladies don't compete in skirts. A ladies bike has a shorter reach (distance from saddle to handle bars) and a wider saddle. If you have a man and woman who are both the same height the man will tend to have the shorter legs and longer back, hence shorter reach on ladies bike. Ladies also have a wider pelvis hence wider saddle.

Andbabymakesthree · 16/04/2017 06:32

Whispers Frog,Isla or Ridgeback even second hand especially if handing down!

rebus1 · 16/04/2017 06:47

We have a frog bike which made all the difference to my older DS when we got it age 7, he could ride much further and faster as soon as he got it. It is also still in really good condition after 2 years. This Wiggins one from Halfords is as light as the frog and Isla bikes but cheaper (£166):

www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/kids-bikes/wiggins-macon-kids-bike-16

We are probably going to get it for my nearly 5 year old DD, at the moment her hand me down bike is the heaviest one in the family! I think the quality is good, my DS got a wiggins road bike this year and it's great, this one has lots of good reviews.