To be shocked at this?

[upsideup]

DS1 has two friends round for dinner tonight, ones 8 and ones 9 and they have gone outside to play with bikes/scooters etc and both of his friends dont own a bike and have never been taught to ride one before and its not just them they all mentioned several other friends who cant as well.
I thought riding a bike was a still a pretty normal skill that all children had learnt to do by now.

AIBU to be shocked at this? Do most 8/9 year olds not know how to ride a bike?

I can't use a chainsaw. FML.

Wow that's so sad, we lived on our bikes growing up and It a gives you taste of freedom and independence as well as great exercise. Shame they've done away with play streets. It's a great skill to have and fun!

When I was little all the kids on the street were playing out on bikes, but there was a lot less traffic then. Also, no Xboxes etc to keep us indoors.

Bikes are only expensive if you buy them new 🙄
I got all the kids first bikes on eBay or charity shops because I knew they would put grow them quickly- never paid more than £20 for one.

It’s not really an essential life skill though is it?

I’m early thirties and I’m crap at riding bikes because I’ve not really gone out of my way to do it. I’m getting through life ok though...

DD5 can’t ride a bike. She can roller skate though which I find much more impressive

I'm so surprised by this thread! DS1 finally got the hang of riding a bike when he as 6 and he was definitely one of the player ones round here. DS2 was around 5 which seemed about the norm.

They're both out all the time with their friends although they do alternate between walking, scooting and cycling. We live on a bus route so not the ideal quiet leafy roads for cycling but that doesn't stop anyone!

In fact owning a bike has got to be one of the cheapest ways of entertain kids these days.
My eldest could ride a bike without stabilisers before she was 3(she had a balance bike prior to that). Youngest took longer as she is a more cautious child.
I do Scouts and in the past 18 years have only come across 1 child of scout age (10-14) who couldn’t ride a bike and they were a Tamil family recently arrived.We did bike ability badge with them all.
Scooters have become more popular with younger kids as they are easier to use but nothing give teenagers freedom like a bike.
I think it’s a basic life skill and find it sad when kids can’t ride. Saying that my SIL can’t and she’s in the late 50’s

OP can I ask a question about the social background of the two boys who couldn't ride a bike?............................do both parents work full time?

OP can I ask a question about the social background of the two boys who couldn't ride a bike?

ODFOD

I can't believe some of the OTT and histrionic reactions on here. I can only think you hit a raw nerve with some posters as they feel guilty or bad that their kids cannot ride a bike. Maybe they didn't have time to teach them, or the kids simply couldn't do it, or they just couldn't be bothered/didn't have the patience.

Both my 2 can ride a bike. I just cannot understand why some people are "shocked" when some kids can't. That's histrionics to me.

We've been trying to encourage DS to ride a bike since he was 2. We started off with a 2nd hand balance bike but he hated it so we got a 2nd hand bike with stabilisers, but still no interest! He's now 6 and every now and then he'll get on his bike for about 2 minutes and straight off again. He's really not fussed about scooters either!

Scooters are definitely taking over bikes.
They're more stable, easier to grasp and give a better balance.
My DD5 can't ride a bike, we tried so many times wasted so much money on balance bikes, bikes with stabilisers and in the end it took her 2 days to figure out a micro scooter.

Not very convenient to ride a bike around here and my son, now 10, is definitely not the outdoorsy type.

I taught him to ride a bike last summer whilst we were on holiday. Since then he has ridden a bike once and struggled to go up hills. This summer I am also planning on taking him somewhere where he can regain and enhance his riding skills.

Swims really well though.

@Feelings

Definitely disagree with scooters being better than bikes. They are bloody dangerous IMO. I have lost count of the amount of kids weaving in and out of pedestrians on the pavements, and also toppling onto the road, when cars are driving past. They are a pissing menace in my little market town, and have cause a few accidents with how reckless they are.

No way are scooters better than bikes. If they are 'overtaking' bikes in the popularity stakes, it's only because the kids are unable or unwilling to learn to ride a bike. As I said, no way is a scooter better than a bike as a form of transport. And there is certainly no skill in using one.

Kursk you know including a chainsaw in your list undermines the rest of what you are saying? You must know that whatever circumstances make chainsaws everyday basics in your life do not apply to most people in western Europe, let alone the UK. We are very rural (I'm sitting in my front garden as I have the day off, have been here since my middle kid left on his bike for school and youngest walked to the bus) I've seen about 15 school kids heading to the bus on foot, the bus itself and one car, and an older teen with a backpack on a bike, sitting here for 45 minutes Nearest shop 4 miles, nearest supermarket 7 miles) and don't own a chainsaw. Trees do come down on roads occasionally, but although I drive through forest to work at 5am and often only see deer (who are determined to kill themselves and me by leaping in front of my car) I've never been first to arrive at a full sized tree down on the road. The volunteer firebrigade sort them here. It's not a solo operation because of making the road safe while you deal with the tree. You need someone to stop potential traffic apart from anything.

Where do you live? It's obviously not just rural if you really need a chainsaw in your boot.

I agree scooter are not "better" than bikes. Scooters are toys. They're no use for journeys of over a mile, and even adults would need to be on the pavement on a scooter. You can't scoot 7 miles to the shop and another 7 back, but a 10 year old on a reasonable bike with 7 gears can do that in 30 minutes including the time in the shop.

I taught both of mine when they were 5 how to ride, the thing is i get it why some kids aren't learning - congestion is terrible in many towns and some roads are so dangerous i wouldn't dream of letting my kids ride on them. We are lucky to live in a relatively small and quiet town surrounded by countryside so the kids do get to cycle - DS has cycled to school 1.5 miles alone since he was 9 i still worry but he is competent and passed cycling proficiency a long time ago

My son can’t ride a bike. He has, among other things, Dyspraxia and hypermobility. Not only does he have poor coordination, poor motor skills, it’s also painful for him (just like writing, running, etc). He is desperate to ride a bike like his best friend, but is struggling even with stabilisers.
People are so judgey- we’ve had people say ‘that child should be off stabilisers by now’. Er, no he shouldn’t. It’s none of your bloody business what other people do unless they’re committing a criminal offence.

I am a adult who does not drive. That still shocks plenty people.

I learned how to ride a bike by borrowing bikes from kids on the estate when I lived.

We couldn't afford bikes and had no where to keep them anyway. It was in the pre - Ebay/Facebook/Freecycle days so I suppose my parents didn't have ready access to second hand.

Some of my siblings didn't learn to cycle and still don't know how as adults. It doesn't seem to have a detrimental effect on their lives.

Cycling is useful in so many scenarios;

1. Cycling a short distance to work. Eg a 4 mile journey, free ten mins by bike, 1 hour long walk, £5 bus fare.
2. Pootling around eg Amsterdam/anywhere else on holiday. It might not be your idea of fun, but your child might like it.
3. Competing at cycling/triathlons.
4. Exercise.

Learning as a child is the easiest time for most people to learn as they generally have less fear/less humiliation. If you can't afford it, you can't afford it; but if you can, it's a useful skill to have in the bank. Just because they can't use it now (traffic or whatever) doesn't mean they won't in the future.

Why do people say "I don't drive" to mean "I can't drive" but not "I don't swim" to mean "I can't swim" or "I don't ride a bike" to mean "I can't ride a bike"? [total tangent, sorry]

Why do people say "I don't drive" to mean "I can't drive" but not "I don't swim" to mean "I can't swim" or "I don't ride a bike" to mean "I can't ride a bike"? [total tangent, sorry]

Good point. I should have said I can't drive

I suppose I'm weird because I suspect that if I ever learn I still won't drive though.

Had a car sitting outside house for two years. Got it specially to learn. My husband is a great teacher and patient. I just can't be bothered. So hard to summon up the interest. Got bored after a couple of weeks.

Did the same thing 10 years ago too. I really must do it, just to get that box ticked, though I can't see that I will ever drive if I can help it.

The weird thing is, I was doing okay if I said so myself. Drove a long way, went round roundabouts etc. Husband said he felt quite safe with me driving. No jerking the car about etc. I just can't seem to sustain interest long enough to take it any further.