balance bike for a 4 year old?

[SoTiredoftheWheelsontheBus]

Hi, ds is 4.5 and we're thinking of getting him a balance bike - he loves playing outside with friends, and had a small starter bike (from Mothercare) which he never really got the hang of peddling. I've heard great things about balance bikes, but all the ones I've seen are only for ages 2-4, and I don't want to pay a lot of money for something that he'll grow out of extremely quickly. He's not especially tall (just over 1 m) - does anyone have any recommendations over balance bikes for slightly older children?

You could get him a normal bike the right size for him and take the pedals off. Then when he is confident at scooting along and picking his feet up for a few metres you can put the pedals back on.

I'm keen to see what people suggest as I am trying to find a balance bike for my DS who is 2.5 but small for his age. I'm on a budget which isn't helping. My nephew got one last year which was apparently very highly rated, but family are not so keen.

Balance bike is definitely the way to go for teaching children to ride.

My nephews could both cycle independently without stabilisers before they were 4. My DS1 struggled to ride for years (he does have some co-ordination difficulties) with a "normal" bike with stabilisers. In the end he did a week's course (one hour for 5 days) with his OT, when he was 8. They just took the pedals off his bike for the first 3 days and once he'd mastered balancing, put them back on. In the end it really did only take 5 hours for him to learn, so buying a balance bike specifically for an older child might mean it doesn't actually get much use. Also, putting the pedals back on, rather than having to switch bikes IYSWIM might make the transitions easier.

I thought DS1 would never learn, now we cycle the 2 miles to his swimming lessons every week

Sorry, that's not very clear, nephews used balance bikes from the start, we tried the stabilisers route with DS1.

I think you might find a balance bike a little small.

I'd second the idea of getting a normal bike and taking the pedals off for a while.

Balance bikes are fantastic and if I had my way, I would ban stabilisers ...they're such hard work!

My dd got a balance bike for Christmas when she was 2 and a half. She was only diddy but she could just about reach the ground. She was whizzing around on it within minutes!

She got her first big girls bike last Christmas at age 3 and a half, but couldn't touch the floor on it till March. On her first outing out, she was riding it like a pro within 10 minutes!

balance bikes are fab, we had a wooden one for ds3, got it when he was 18ths-2yrs and he was riding without stabilisers on a12inch bike at 3yrs.

for ds4 we got a metal one (lightweight) with a brake from amazon, it was about £50 and is great, tho at the moment he prefers his micro scooter. the seat height is adjustable etc on the one we have and he is a tall 3yr old and its fine for him :)

isla bikes (expensive) but they do a balance bike with pedals that can be added once they need them and it will last longer and has good re-sale value :)

Annie we got a scoot balance bike for our tiny dd for her second birthday. Its taken her a while to get the hang of it but now at 3.5 she's a master and we are going to get her a proper bike for Xmas.

Stabilisers actively hinder learning apparently. I'm amazed at the number of friends i have who stick with them given how impressive it is watching a kid on a balance bike. Dd is far fromsporty or particularly coordinated, so if she can do it almost any child can:)

Both my dd's bikes have been islabikes - I'd highly recommend!

I believe the re-sale is supposed to be excellent ...I'll let you know if I ever get my arse in gear and round to selling dd's balance bike!

We bought son a balance bike for his 2nd birthday, didn't start using it till he was nearer 3 though & then no stopping him. His first go on his 4th birthday of a pedal bike & he could ride, no stabilisers. Ours is by firstBIKE and is fantastic (not cheap) but great quality & brilliant safety features. This combined with using some pedal cars/tractors etc & they'll be away for before you know it!

We bought one for our girl at age 4 and she took straight off on it and amazed us. She is now 6 and still uses it, but could do with a bigger one. Its one of the wooden types and isnt any good if you leave it outside. She is of a small build though.

I went to a christmas show the other day and saw some great balance bikes, you can see them here Team Magnus

The Bulldog Bat balance bike in MaryGreen's link - thanks! - looks good for older children. I've also missed the boat with standard balance bikes for DD - she's now nearly 5 and about 110cm - so am after the same thing as the OP.

I really recommend the cruiser balance bike from Tesco here

It is only £39 so much less than other balance bikes which is especially relevant if you are not going to need it for too long.

We bought it (in blue) for DD1 when she was 3.5yo and she rode it several times a week until this summer when, at the age of 4.8yo we bought her a normal bike. The cruiser balance bike is great - she started off using the toes of her shoes to stop but quickly got the hang of the (back) brake. She would happily still use it - she is 110cm tall - but doesn't need to as she took to her 'real' bike straight away.

We got it on the Thursday, rode home from the park (having been dropped off there in the car) that day, up and down the pavement on the Friday and Saturday and she rode the 4 miles to town along the cycle track with DP on the Sunday! No stabilisers ever!

DD2 is now waiting to be big enough for the balance bike - even after LOTS of use the Tesco one is still in great condition. She is 3 next week and 95cm and still finds her scooter easier. We will probably move her onto the balance bike in the summer - and then she'll be ready for a 'real' bike next year.