8 Best Balance Bikes 2015

WeeBikeShop proudly presents two brands that populate the top of every mom's wishlist: SCOOT by Ridgeback and the TooToo by Yedoo. Buy them securely and from an industry leader at WeeBikeShop- America's Favorite Balance Bike Destination Since 2007!

Everything You Need To Know About Balance Bike Steering Limiters

Once upon a time, there was an inventor who decided that children would learn how to balance on two wheels more successfully if bikes were smaller, lighter and less complicated. The LikeaBike was born in the 1990's in a woodworking shop somewhere in Germany. It was small, light weight and had no cranks, pedals or chain. Foot to floor propulsion and foot to floor braking was thusly born, and literally millions of children age 2-5 have benefitted from this original idea, all over the world, relegating training wheels to the same junk pile as rotary phones, dot matrix printers and 8-track tapes. What has any of this to do with steering limiters on balance bikes? Well, as they say if you cannot explain it very simply, then you do not completely understand it.

LikeaBike is an award-winning balance bike that has been imitated in one way or another by every brand which followed it. 

Look at this picture of a wooden LikeaBike balance bike. This original design has not changed in 20 years. As we can see, the integration of frame and fork is such that limitation of steering is not a choice, it is physically necessary. Some Many would contend that this is a deficiency of the bike, but thank goodness for clever [emotional] marketing. By presenting the horrible image of your child [potentially] turning the handlebars 90 degrees at high speed and flipping through the air (this never happens), LikeaBike's weakness was changed into a strength. The supposed "safety feature" called a steering limiter was then designed into many of the newer balance bike brands which now populate the market, because it sells.

We recommend that parents avoid getting too excited about whether a balance bike has a steering limiter or not. It is a design flaw that has been masquerading as a safety feature for the past 25 years, and if the adult bike that you rode every day had a steering limiter, you would fall down. A lot.

Where to buy LikeaBike Balance Bikes: WeeBikeShop: Balance Bike Professionals since 2007

My name is KUNDO

KUNDO is a new all-aluminum balance bike that weighs only 7.1 pounds. Tires are rubber and inflated. Wheel bearings are sealed industrial type. Saddle is the most ergonomic and comfortable we have ever seen. This one is a show-stopper and handles like a dream. Assembly takes only a few moments but the fun never ends. Available in a beautiful red and a vibrant blue for only $109.95 (that's $40 off MSRP!)
Where to buy: WeeBikeShop 

SCOOT by Ridgeback Launching Two New Colors and MORE

The Scoot balance bike by Ridgeback has exploded in popularity since it's launch in September, and it's little wonder. At just a smidgen over 11 pounds, with it's slick aluminum frame, it's 200 lb weight limit, and best in class seat range of 13-20", it leaves opponents looking pretty weak. Also, SCOOT is not a toy! It's a real bike built by a leading UK bike manufacturer that has been producing bikes for UK and Europe for 30 years! Another thing that Ridgeback is not: a one-trick pony! If you have time to peruse their immense selection of family, commuter, mountain, and leisure bicycles, it's plain to see that they have been in the business of bike building for a very long time. Other brands? Who knows? Many claim to have invented the balance bike but all they are doing is masquerading their band-wagoning as inventiveness. Not cool. Ridgeback makes no such claims, and instead they simply offer what we like to call "The Rock Star of Balance Bikes".
So long story short, the WeeBikeShop company has been appointed as exclusive US distributor for Ridgeback cycling products and they are about to launch two amazing new colors for the SCOOT balance bike: Gloss turquoise and Gloss yellow. Additionally, the new SCOOT XL is due for US launch in spring 2014. It has the 14" wheels and the extended seat height range to make balance bike experience possible for kids up to age 8. WeeBikeShop has also launched a Scoot PREMIUM customization program where parents and children can easily upgrade the Scoot with a selection of multi-color handlebars, hand grips, aluminum seat posts, and superior Schwalbe tires which reduce the Scoot's weight to about 9.5 pounds!

Scoot PREMIUM shown with upgraded alloy cockpit, Schwalbe Black Jack tires, and  ODI BMX grips.

Family time in the park with Ridgeback

Here's a wonderful set of images you will enjoy viewing. Below is one sample.

Ridgeback SCOOT UK Balance Bike Makes a Splash in the US

In stock in the US in 8 vibrant colors, and shipping NOW!

Ridgeback SCOOT Balance Bike is designed to meet the challenging demands of kids age 3-6.

Perfectly proportioned to provide the best fit for comfort and control.

Balance is quickly learned without the distraction of pedaling!

The transition between walking, freewheeling and steering is simple. The SCOOT's rear brake establishes early understanding of how to slow down. Once balance is mastered, it's then just a small step to move on to a bike with pedals, but without the need for stabilizers (training wheels). Supplied with two seatposts for widest sizing range, SCOOT has a very high quality specification level including a lightweight aluminum alloy frame, aluminum wheels and inflated rubber tires. The saddle incorporates a handy carrying handle for parents, and with full bearings throughout, domed wheel nuts as well as an alloy V-brake, the SCOOT is for the kid who has everything.

Specifications & Safety Features

• 6061 Aluminum Alloy Frame
• Inflated rubber tires
• Aluminum wheels and hubs
• Rounded dome nuts on wheels
• Aluminum V-brake
• Adjustable reach brake lever
• Internally routed brake cable
• Finely upholstered saddle with carrying handle
• Quick release seatpost clamp
• Two seatposts included! one short one long
• Available in 8 vibrant colors!
• Long wheelbase for stability & comfort.
• Weight: 11 pounds
• Lowest seat height: 12"
• Built like a real bicycle, not a toy!
• MSRP: $174.95
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• Where to buy: 
• www.weebikeshop.com
• www.balancebikeoutlet.com

The Essential Buyer's Guide for Balance Bikes

What is considered an advantage by some may be considered a deficiency by others. When it comes to balance bikes, there is no "perfect bike" that sweeps all parents off their feet and triggers a no-brainer buying decision. Here's an exploration of some of the "features" which can easily be debated to be quite the opposite, depending upon personal preference of discriminating parents.

1. Foot rests. The brands that have them say they are necessary. The brands that do not, say they are not. This is entirely a matter of personal preference, and functionally, both types of bike will teach the exact same fundamentals of balance, cornering and steering. However, a bike with foot rests is going to encourage "lazy" riding, or put another way, a lot less kicking and a lot more downhill cruising. The bike without foot rests is likely to give your child a better workout, use up more of their energy, maybe resulting in a bigger appetite and improved circulation, and deeper sleep. For what it's worth, don't let the foot rest be a deal breaker one way or the other. If they are there, fine- as long as they don't cause bruising of the inner ankles from striking them. If the bike doesn't have them, that's fine too. There will be a lot more kicking and a lot less slacking. At the end of the day, no child is going to complain as long as they get to zip around on two wheels.

2. Weight. It's an important part of the buying decision. Think about it: a typical two year old weighs about 30 pounds. The muscles are not developed enough to handle a bike that weighs as much as they do (such as the department store junk bikes that many parents so fondly purchase for that hit of instant gratification). Could you imagine riding a bicycle that weighed as much as you? No. That would be a motorcycle, and when a motorcycle tips over a strong adult can barely get it vertical again. Bottom line- a balance bike must be light! Ideally, under 10 pounds. But is it really a deal breaker if the bike weighs 11 or 12 pounds? It's all relative. If your child is 3 years old, they can easily manage a 12 pound balance bike. If they are only 2, then pick a bike that's in the 7-9 pound range. As with the price of bikes, when it comes to weight, you get what you pay for. Be wary of balance bikes weighing under 7 pounds because chances are, it uses cheap EVA foam tires that are one electron away from being NERF football material. They are slick, they have poor road grip, and they wear very quickly. Don't get too hung up on weight for 3 year olds, be more cautious for 2 year olds, but buy a bike with natural rubber tires that are inflated. The air in the tires cushions the ride and protects your child's soft bones and spinal tissue from trauma and potential injury.

3. Brakes. Again, brands that use them like to brag, brands that do not like to avoid the subject. Here's the thing about brakes.. If your child should ever decide to ride their balance bike bare-foot, or with flip-flops (it will happen) they will inevitably discover at some point that rubbing the soles of their feet  on pavement in order to slow down, is painful. More importantly though- brakes are an integral part of bicycling. If we are trying to teach kids "the whole package" we need to give them "all the tools". When they learn to read, do we teach them only 20 letters of the alphabet? Of course not. If the brake is short money to add to a bike (assuming it is available separately, usually it is not) just get it and be done with it. Don't worry if you think they aren't going to use the brake for the first year. (That's only your low opinion of your child anyway- stop thinking like that!) Surprisingly, the brake is a tremendously fun part of the learning process. The ability to easily stop gives a feeling of control, and control breeds confidence, and confidence breeds success. No brakes on the balance bike your heart is set upon? No worries, go ahead and buy it, but plan to teach those last 6 letters of the cycling alphabet later on (and never let them ride without shoes!)

4. Steering limiter. It's a gimmicky way to attract helicopter moms [and dads]. The steering limiter prevents the handlebars from turning farther than 20-30 degrees, thereby preventing the dreaded "jack-knife-flip-over-the-handlebars" accident. It's an emotional decision for a parent, because that image of falling and flipping is too much to bear, as if kids don't ever fall down when a limiter is present. (they do) Bottom line, if the bike has a steering limiter, great. If it doesn't, also great. Kids do not have enough reach in their arms to turn the handlebars more than 25 degrees anyway, and proper cornering only requires 5 degrees of turning (plus a big shift in body weight). This feature is over-blown. Don't make a big deal out of it.

5. Frame materials. Now there are four: aluminum, steel, wood and composite. Any of these will do the job just fine, but some have advantages. Wood is a beautiful, renewable, sustainable natural product and has lots of merits, a smaller carbon footprint and minimal impact to the environment. Toxic paints containing heavy metals are not used with wooden bikes, usually it's a non-toxic water based sealer that is used. But where the wood bikes fail is ironically, outdoors. On a long enough time-line, the wood will deform, warp, check, split, crack, splinter and delaminate. If you fail to take good care of it, this will happen relatively quickly. If you leave it outside over-night, the morning dew settling on the bike will potentially ruin it. Steel bikes are a fine choice is you think the bike will need to take some abuse. They tend to cost the least and so it's not such a big deal when you notice some paint chips after the first week of riding. Steel frames are very stiff, the same as their more expensive (and lighter) aluminum equivalents. There will be minimal flex and minimal shock dampening qualities in a steel or aluminum framed balance bike. That's why the inflated tires are so important. You can control the tire pressure so that trauma is not transmitted to your child's soft skeletal and spinal tissue. (2 to 2.5 Bars is recommended- higher pressure defeats this purpose) The stiffness of such a bike means that the front and rear wheels are always perfectly aligned, which is why some parents prefer them over the spongy and flexible feel of a composite balance bike (usually an injection molded, re-inforced nylon material, similar to a lot of other products such as trash bins, milk crates and McDonalds trays). There are only a few such bikes on the market, and they claim to be the answer for protecting spinal and skeletal health from road shock, but this is also over-blown, kind of like the steering limiter. A composite bike is fine for 2-3 year olds weighing under 40 pounds, but 4-5 year olds weighing over 40 pounds can be observed twisting the bike laterally (due to the frame's flexibility) Some parents would rather have a stiffly aligned bike than one that flexes, so make it your personal buying decision when you consider the pros and cons.

6. Seat. The seat of a balance bike should be ergonomic, meaning that it should have the shape of an adult bicycle seat. It is ideal if it's a little bit smaller than an adult bike seat, but this is not a major concern. We have observed some bikes with swoop shaped seats and others that are more like a horse saddle than a bike seat (usually it's the wooden bikes). One thing we prefer to see is a seat with a smooth surface- one that lets the child adjust their position fore/aft on the fly. As professional bike racers will tell you, the bike shorts need to slide easily on the saddle, so that the shorts do not slide against the skin and cause chafing/irritation to the sensitive skin down there. Kids are stabilized on their bikes with their hands and arms, there is no need to cradle their butts with a sticky saddle material, which effectively locks them on there and makes it impossible to bail when control of the bike is lost. There's a lot to consider here, so pay attention. Look at your child's crotch when they are standing in front of you, now look at the seat on the balance bike you are considering. The seat's width should be compatible with the space down there. If it's too wide it's going to bruise the inner thigh right below the crotch. Use common sense.

For now this is certainly enough information to help you to correctly make that $100-200 buying decision. Decide which "features" are most important to you and narrow down your list using a process of elimination. This will make your buying experience a lot less overwhelming with the huge number of balance bike choices now available, and remember: none of them are perfect.

For an enhanced buying experience with an industry leading company specializing in balance bikes, visit this secure website and browse the premium selection of balance bikes, helmets and accessories: https://WeeBikeShop.com