Indecision re kids bikes

[Justasecondnow]

Have I been swayed by the marketing or do Isla bikes match the hype? (Also looking at hoy bonaly). But mostly won over by the Isla cnoc range for a 4y/o and a 5 y/o. Am prepared to wait for them to come back into stock.

It seems weight and being designed with kids in mind could/should make for a easier bike learning experience? Kids are fantastic but not physically confident - hoping a good light bike and success on that might improve confidence.

Any thoughts welcome, sorry for retread off same old question.

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We've got 3 sizes of Isla bike (rothan, 14 and 16) all bought 2nd hand and all great. Our 4yr old has just progressed to the 16inch and our 3yr old is just moving up to the 14inch. We're hanging on to the rothan for DS3 and o expect we'll be able to sell it on after that because it looks barely used (despite it being ridden for hours every week).

It's not just the weight that's good with the Isla bikes but the geometry is designed for kids rather than just being a shrunken adult bike. And they're really well made. Having seen how poorly some of my friends DC's bikes have lasted I'd definitely recommend islabikes.

Preloved Islabikes

We had/have to Islabike Benin? 20s.. a small and a large (only have younger DDs now). Was very happy with them. Sold on for decent price (£200).

Have a look at Squish too. I'm so impressed with ours, we had a Frog too which I liked, but Squish is my favourite

Following with interest

Definitely worth it. My eldest was five by the time we got him off stabilisers on a cheaper Halfords bike. My daughter got on a Isla bike and was off age 2.5. she was cycling over 10 miles happily before she was 4. Both have had second hand Isla's since them which we sell on without much value loss when they grow out of them and will regularly cycle long distance.

It’s worth knowing who Isla is. She’s Isla Rowntree, Uk women’s record holder in a number of cycling disciplines in different age groups over many years, Her dad was an industrial designer. She started Islabikes in the mid 2000s as she was so disappointed in the quality of kids bikes available. The concept of quality engineered , premium kids bikes has been copied since, but think about it - wouldn’t you rather have something uprise designed by an expert in the field, with a passion for what they do?

@BikeRunSki I do agree, and did want Islabikes for my kids, but they have been very difficult to get hold of the last year, and the cost is unaffordable for some. Islabikes are great, but it is important that people buy their kids good quality lightweight bikes of ANY independent brand that they can afford rather than wait months of cycle time until Isla bikes come into stock or they can afford them. So it is certainly worth looking at the other very good not mass produced brands that are in stock or more affordable. I assume Isla wanted bikes better designed for children and not JUST to make the biggest profit she possibly can, the brand already has the best reputation that won't go away. I waited months for Isla bikes to come back into stock on the Bike Club and searched regularly for second hand sales and then went with different brands instead that are just as good.

The most important thing is to avoid a Halfords or Argos type steel frames bike.

Woom bikes are also great - lighter than an Isla bike, very high quality, nice ergonomics.

DS has the balance bike, a couple of his nursery friends have the 14” and 16” bikes. They are great.

I'm a kids' cycling coach and I'm about to commit what many would consider sacrilege and say that actually I think Islabikes are a little bit over rated.
They're good bikes for sure and yes, they were groundbreaking when they were first produced, but a lot of other companies are producing decent children's bikes now and there isn't such a gulf between Islabikes and the rest.
As a general rule I would always advocate buying the best bike you can afford. Cheap, heavy bikes are almost always a mistake and I can definitely see the difference between how the children I teach learn if they have cheap bikes compared to higher quality brands. But I'd say the difference between Islabikes and other good brands like Frog is pretty much indignificant. My own son raced on Felt bikes til he was big enough for adult bikes and they were a fraction lighter and better specc'd than the equivalent Islabikes at the time, for a similar amount of money. You won't go wrong with an Islabike but don't feel that you have to have one. There are other good bikes on the market, and at a time when supply is much reduced it might be better to look at a variety of brands,
This article may help:
www.cyclesprog.co.uk/bikes/best-kids-bikes/
Incidentally, Isla Rowntree has stepped down as MD so it will be interesting to see what direction the company takea now.

@user64332, I do agree. I’d forgotten the issues of bike availability this year. I

@MrsAvocet, I totally agree with you too. I have also spent hours and hours assisting “Go Ride”, and indeed the gulf between Islabikes and Halfords has been filled in by various others. I’m also interested to see how Islabikes evolves as a business without IR in charge.

ronically, it was a series of heavy, cheap, broken bikes as a child that encouraged me to save up and get myself a decent bike as a teenager.... and beyond. Don’t know why I didn’t just give up!

We signed up to The Bike Club and chose a 14 inch bike called Cubley Forme. My daughter loves it, lovely and light. About £240 new I think. Although agree with others that Isla/Frog brand name means they really hold their value.

We got second hand Isla bikes on eBay and they were brilliant, moved up to a Islabike Beinn when he was 8 and then moved him to a normal bike at 9. The only downside to the islabikes is when they need a bigger framed bike they aren't used to the weight and it can be tricky. We've now got a lighter framed bike from Halfords with gears and suspension and that's been great.

Snap Twerking. We got a Cubley Forme bike through the Bike Club too. DS loves it.

Worth it, get second hand. We preferred Frog over Isla as comes with mud guards etc so more practical (but makes slightly heavier)

My ds9 is on a cannondale Cujo 24 and it’s amazing, it’s a mini fat bike (huge tyres). There are a few others like this- Trek Roscoe is similar.

Very light for what it is, and really high quality frame, they are a high end manufacturer. The large tyres really inspire confidence, and I’ve been getting him down some really quite tricky trails (I’m v keen mountain biker).

I think these days with the way stock levels are, it’s good to look at quite a few options rather than get hung up on one specific brand.

@BikeRunSki I think the difference is that in the past all kids bikes were pretty rubbish so kids were less likely to get put off by having a heavy, inefficient bike as so did everyone else. And if course most adult bikes were steel and relatively heavy too so there wasn't that appreciation of how different things could be!
I don't want to sound anti Islabikes. I think they are very good compared to the absolute crap that is often sold for children. But I think they've kind of become the Clarks shoes of the youth cycling world and I've had to reassure plenty of parents that not buying an Islabike doesn't make them neglectful! I think there are lots of bikes in the same ball park now but without quite the same kudos and I'd always encourage parents to shop around.

Hello, as I found all your comments so helpful thought I’d come and update. We ended up with an islabike cnoc 16 each for my just 4 and almost 6 year old. I suspect the older one won’t be on it too long, but she is really benefitting from learning on a small, light easily manageable bike.

We are doing the pedals off method - so they are both using as balance bikes, once we’ve done that for a bit we will put one pedal back on and so on.

If you do that method you really do need to be conservative in the size you get so they can operate it as a balance bike with both feet flat on floor so they feel secure (I may or may not have my eldest’s next bike ready to go for the next stage after going a bit big with my first attempt).

Anyway they love them, from wanting very heavy stabiliser style bikes, they are now very keen on these ones, and will probably be on with pedals soon, although who knows how that bit will go! Had some compliments from family members who agree they look great.

user64332 thank you for providing your list of bikes. I did consider them - like Isla bikes a lot were sold out. I went with 2nd hand Isla bikes in the end as they seem to have a more guaranteed re-sale value. But definitely some great bikes.

BikeRunSki thanks for posting that link! Got one from fb group and one from eBay and it was stressful, they really go quick!

So yeah my takeaway is Isla bikes seem to be a great option, esp if you want to avoid the stabiliser stage, with a light well- designed bike with good re-sale value. And eBay and fb selling sites are your friend for getting one. But as has been mentioned I’m sure there are other great options out there too. Cheers.

We managed to save a few pennies by skipping a bike size. I felt it was a huge gamble at the time as unless you know someone with one you can’t test it out. Anyway it’s worked perfectly, so thought this might be a good place to share.

DS went from his balance bike to the Woom 2 (14” wheel) age 3 and 3 months. He’s now age 4 and 3 months and grown out the 14” wheel.

We live somewhere super hilly to a point it’s impossible to avoid them. He rides everywhere and for leisure. I end up having to push him up the hills whilst he peddles which is utterly exhausting!!

As he’s pretty much outgrown the 14” wheels, I concluded he needed gears. However a kids 16” wheel bike with gears doesn’t exist. The smallest geared bike is a 20” wheel.

It seemed pointless to buy (even a secondhand, highly resell-able branded one) a 16” wheel bike as he’ll outgrow it within a year. Like I said. He needed gears.

Lots of research later and the Isla Beinn 20” small came out as the most suitable for his size (he’s mr average height). However their website states age 5 and above. The measurements they provide are only helpful up to a point... as it’s hard to tell if a much smaller, lighter child would cope with the heavier frame, longer frame etc.

Anyway! I took a gamble. Ordered the Isla Beinn 20 small and mr average height DS (age 4 and 3 months) was away! No issues! It took him a day or so to get his head round the ‘feel’ and different handling. He can manage most of the hills here now, occasionally i have to push a bit, but it’s much easier as he can contribute more. He’s also got his head around using the gears correctly remarkably quickly. So I’m very glad we skipped the 16” wheel.

Also worth noting. I was very keen to buy secondhand. Annoyingly they don’t sell for that much less secondhand.. which is fine if the brake pads, tyres, rims, chain, cassette and cables are recently serviced or in good condition. But I couldn’t really tell from eBay/Facebook. I concluded I could easily spend what I’d saved on servicing the bike and replacing the parts that had worn. Hence buying it new. At least I know I’ll get most of my money back selling it on though... and of course I skipped a bike!! I’m not saying there’s anything wrong buying secondhand - there really isn’t, but just be careful to check it over properly first or it could prove costly. Less of an issue on a bike without gears as that’s three less things to maintain (cable, chain and cassette).