Son with "Special Needs"... where on earth do I get training wheels for a 22" or 24" bicycle

[Hymum]

My DS is so desperate to ride his bike unfortunately a few things make it impossible for him to do so without the use of training wheels.

He has just outgrown his last bike and wants a new big boy one (he is 8).

We went to the shops after school today and he found a new bike which he absolutely loved, but I cannot find training wheels anywhere that go up to that size without shipping them from the States. All the oned in the UK seem to stop at a 20" wheel. The only other ones were "adult wheels" which were in excess of £70.

Any ideas please

Have you seen these?? I have one in my shop but would need to check if there is a size limit of bike that it works with.

www.bikecare.co.uk /adult_stabilisers.html
www.fatwheels.com/Home.jsp

As you say- to fit any wheel above a 20 is pricey. The fat wheels from USA look Fab, very solid and should take the hammering a lad of 8-10 can give a bike.
IMHO if he is going to need training wheels as a permanent fixture its worth spending the money to get good ones that let him enjoy riding his bike.
Were you shopping at a "proper" bike shop or a nationwide chain store? a "proper" bike shop MIGHT know a local frame builder/ fabricator who could make you something.

Try emailing around local independant bike shops. I found one local to me that only wanted £35 for them, in Berkshire.
Perosnally I'm tempted to invest int he fatwheels ones though, and most stabilisers don't look solid enough to support balance issues.

There is also THIS site, though they are pricey.

would he be better off with a trike?

Thanks for all the fantastic ideas and references. I happened to mention it to a guy at work and he kindly agreed to make a set to fit whichever bike DS chose.

So DS chose his bike and now has wheels to fit it. He is so proud of himslef for riding a "big boy" bike

I love the fact that he wants to be out on his bike.

Thanks again.

good news. I hope your lad enjoys his new big boy bike. Let us know how he gets on.

They do get very excited about moving up to a bigger bike don;t they.... my son tried his friends bike today and fell in love with teh kick stand! just coz his own bike doesn;t have one I think. Now he has added that to teh list of things his new "big boy" bike is going to have. Big wheels, brakes and pedals AND a kick stand...

Oh yes. DS wants a kick stand as soon as his "helper wheels" come of (if they ever do)...

We did see the Fat Wheels on the net, but he didn't want big wheels just "helper wheels". I think they are fab. Just a shame you have to get all these sort of things from the States.

It is amazing the change in him, just from a new bike. If I knew it would make this much difference I would have bought it ages ago.

I just hope that it isn't our latest short lived obsession... fingers crossed.