Moving Your Child Off Training Wheels: The Avid4 Adventure Progression

One of the earliest memories your son or daughter may have when looking back on his or her childhood is learning how to ride a 2-wheeler. Will you be remembered as the parent that wouldn’t let go? Or perhaps you’ll be of the hockey goalie mentality… pad your child up and let ‘em rip? My own parents’ legacy is that of the first bike lesson leading to the first emergency room visit (although, luckily being the 3rd son, my oldest brother was the victim). Regardless of the method chosen… no worries! We all heal from our childhood scars eventually (although my brother’s chin may claim differently) and likely develop a positive relationship with bicycles at some point during our lifetime.

Certainly I’m biased, but the Avid 4 Adventure method for teaching children how to ride bikes is certainly the best around. I have taught kids to ride in under ten minutes if the boy or girl is ready. However, before getting your kid’s helmet strapped on and his or her bike off the hook in the garage, make sure your child has a desire to learn. If she or he is still not ready, your choices are either to 1. wait or 2. take him or her to the park and subtly point out all of the other kids his or her age that have removed their training wheels. Before you know it, (s)he will be off and riding the trails in Boulder with the Avid 4 Mountain Bike Intensive.

The Progression:

1. Find a bike that seems to be too small for your child. Set the seat so that your son or daughter can easily touch his or her feet to the ground. If you have the proper tool (not essential) remove the pedals from the bicycle.
2. Have your child simply walk the bike back and forth in a straight line, and then in circles once he or she masters the previous skill.
3. Ideally, find a grassy slope with a slight decline. However, I have had lots of success on pavement or sidewalk, but make sure there is a slight decline to the learning area.
4. With your child on the seat, have them walk their feet and gently feel the motion of the wheels as they descend the hill. To keep their spirits up, assist them by bringing the bike back up the hill for them.
5. Next, your child is ready to see how long he or she can keep their feet up in the air and balance the bike as it descends the hill.
6. This time, before he or she descends, have your child give 3 push-offs with their feet before they lift their feet in the air to practice their balance and initiating momentum.
7. At this point, pedals become important, but only one at a time. See if your child can lift their feet to their pedals as they are cruising down the decline. Some kids are better off trying first one foot, and then the other.
8. By now, your child is ready to actually pedal. Encourage him or her to push off once, twice, three times (starting speed is critical to success!), lift their feet to the pedals, and then pedal forward. Oh yeah, make sure they have a firm understanding of what the term “forward” feels like on a bike.

You’ll be amazed on how quickly this process can be, or perhaps how not ready some kids are. Regardless, it’s important to remember that you should not move on to the next step until the previous one is mastered. Also, this method is 100% hands-off so that children develop a firm grasp on their own balance, as opposed to balance resulting from your hand on the back of the seat. In addition, a 15-minute lesson on Step #1 is a very successful primer for future success before jumping on a tag-a-long for a cruise down the Creek Path. Slow, incremental steps will lead to much greater success than a bad fall which inevitably leads to weeks of resistance.
And remember, when all else falls, call on us at Avid 4 (info@avid4.com) to do the dirty work for you. As I learned when teaching an X-girlfriend to ski, sometimes it’s not what you are saying, but instead who is saying it. Keep on pedaling!

Kyle Littman is an Avid 4 Adventure Camp Director and happily resides in Boulder. He has been car-free for nearly a decade and still claims that his #1 thing to do with kids is teach them how to ride a bike. If you have any questions, email Kyle at kyle@avid4.com.