Bicycle Basics
Teaching Your Child to Ride a Bike
Gear
Start with a helmet, gloves to protect hands and perhaps even skater's knee and elbow pads for the first rides. Adjust the bicycle for your child and be sure they can reach the pedals, bars and brakes comfortably.
Brakes first!
Show you child how to stop the bike. Hold him or her up and gently move forward as they use the brakes to stop until you are sure he or she knows how.
Balance
Run alongside the bike, holding it up by the seat with one hand on the handlebars to show how you turn to keep the bike straight.
Riding
Nobody learns without practice. Riding with your child is probably the best way to practice the rules. Go over the rules, then ride, stopping occasionally to review what they have just done and praise their good performance. Note that if they are behind you a rule about not following automatically will be severely challenged, even if you ride through a red light or directly into a path of a car. Remember to be a good role model.
Maintain a Safe Bike: The Quick Check
- First, pick your bike up a few inches and drop it. Hear any rattles or odd noises? Check them out. You never know what could have worked loose since the last time you went for a ride. Look for any loose nuts, bolts and screws and tighten them up. Many adjustments and repairs should be done by a bicycle mechanic.
- Push the tires against a curb. If you can flatten them, you need more air. Inflate to the pressure shown on the tire's sidewall.
- Got coaster brakes? If so, make sure there's not too much slack in the chain. But make sure it's not too tight. Also, check that the clamp on the right side of the wheel is attached.
- Got hand brakes? Squeeze them. The levers should work smoothly and not hit the handlebars; the brake pads should hit the rims squarely.
- Make sure that the tire valve stems point straight to the hubs to avoid rim cuts. Such cuts can't be patched.
- Rock the wheels from side to side. If they move, the hub bearings are loose and need to be tightened. Next, spin the wheels. They should roll smoothly. If they don't, the hub bearings are too tight.
- Look closely at the chain. It shouldn't be either caked with grease and dirt or dry and rusty. Next have a friend hold the bike up by the saddle, so you can turn the pedals and watch the chain. Does it skip anywhere? If so, it's probably got a tight link.
- Rock the pedals front to back. They shouldn't move and should spin freely. If they're loose or tight, that means adjusting the bearings.
- Rock the crank arms (connecting the pedals to the frame) from side to side. There should be NO play at all. If there is, that means the bearings inside the bottom bracket shell are loose and should be tightened.
- Also keep each wheel's axle nut or quick release lever tight so that the wheel won't come off as you ride.
- Rock the fork and handlebars forward and back and turn from side to side to check for loose or tight headset (the bearings where the handlebars and fork enter the frame). They shouldn't rock or bind.
- Twist and rock the handlebars. They shouldn't be loose. If the stem is loose in the frame, tighten the binder bolt at the top. If the handlebars are loose in the stem, tighten the bolt in front.
- Twist and rock the saddle. It shouldn't move in any direction. Tighten it at the binder bolt and at the saddle clamp.
Tips for Safe Bike-Riding
- The law requires that each bike have a white front reflector, a red rear reflector, two-side-wheel reflectors and a headlight visible for 500 feet. Keep reflectors clean and replace any that are broken.
- Each bike should have a bell or a horn to alert pedestrians and other riders.
- Teach your child to use hand signals for turning right and left, and stopping.
- Bright colored (white, florescent) clothing make bicycle riders more visible in daylight. Children should also wear retro-reflective clothing or material especially on their ankles, wrists, back and helmet.
- It is recommended that young children not be allowed to ride their bikes at night. If your child is out after dark, remind him or her to phone home for a ride or walk his or her bike home, on the sidewalk or away from the street.
- Make sure your bicycle is the proper type and size and properly maintained. Check to see that your bicycle is adjusted properly to fit you and that all parts are secure and looking well.
- Make sure that books, clothes, and other items are securely attached to a rack on the bicycle or carried in a backpack. Do not loop bags over the handlebars or try to carry things in one hand while riding.
- Never wear headphones; they hinder your ability to hear traffic.
Fitting the Bike to the Child
Buying a two-wheeler for your child.
Do not push your child ride a two-wheeled bike until he or she is ready, at about age five or six. Take into consideration your child's coordination and desire to learn to ride. Stick with coaster brakes until your child is older, more experienced, and has developed a greater strength in the hands and wrists. Hand brakes, and multi-speed bikes add unnecessary challenges to children just learning to ride. Most young children's hands have not grown large enough or strong enough to adequately apply hand brakes until they are 8 or 9 years old. The child must be able to comfortably grasp hand brakes and apply sufficient pressure to stop the bike.
Buy a bike that fits.
A bike purchased for a child to "grow into" is potentially dangerous. A child cannot be expected to control an oversized bike. Regulations of the CPSC require that a bike must be the correct size for the child for whom it is bought. Take your child with you when you shop so that he or she can try out the bike. The value of a proper fit far outweighs the value of being surprised.
Help your child develop confidence and balance.
The objective for children just beginning to ride is to make them feel more comfortable as they develop their confidence and balancing skills. A child should be able to sit on the seat and touch both feet to the ground. As the child develops more confidence, the seat can be raised so that he or she can just touch the tips of both feet or one foot to the ground.
With this confidence, the next objective is to help a bicyclist most effectively use the power of their pedaling. Ultimately, a bicyclist should have a slight bend to his or her leg while sitting on the seat with the ball of his or her foot on the pedal in its lowest position.
FAQ's About Children & Bicycles
Many experts do not recommend that parents carry babies or toddlers on their bicycles, due to an increased risk of injury to the child. A child passenger increases braking time, and makes the bicycle top-heavy, harder to maneuver, and more unstable. The child is very vulnerable to injury if the bicycle falls.
If an adult decides to carry a child on his or her bicycle, the child must be restrained in a seat attached to the rear wheel of the bicycle. He or she should never be carried on the bicyclist's back or check on a bicycle, because the child could be crushed by the bicyclist's body in a crash.
An adult with a child passenger should ride with maximum caution and reduced speed; restrict riding to parks, bike paths, or quiet roads and streets; avoid busy thoroughfares; and refrain from riding in inclement weather.
At what age can a child start riding as a passenger?
A child should not be placed in a bicycle seat until one year of age, when he or she is capable of sitting upright unsupported, with neck muscles strong enough to hold a toddler-sized helmet comfortably for an extended period of time.
How should a child bike passenger be protected?
The child must be carried in a seat securely attached over the rear wheel of the bicycle. It must have spoke guards to protect feet and hands from being caught in the wheel spokes. It should have a high back, a sturdy shoulder harness, and a lap belt that will support a sleeping child's head and back, and prevent the child from falling or climbing out. Children in bike carriers must wear toddler-sized helmets that meet either the ANSI, Snell, or ASTM standard.
What about bicycle trailers?
Bicycle trailers are low and stable, and are built to remain upright if the bicycle falls. They should be well-marked with reflectors and flags. Any child riding in a trailer also needs a helmet and should be securely strapped in.