A balance bike (or run bike) is a bicycle without pedals that learners propel by pushing their feet against the ground. [1] By allowing children to focus on developing their sense of balance and coordination before introducing pedalling, balance bikes enable independent riding more quickly than training wheels. [2] [3]
Balance bikes descend from the earliest two-wheeled bicycle, a Laufmaschine or dandy horse, invented by Karl Drais in 1817. [4] These early balance bikes consisted of a simple wooden frame with two wheels and no pedals, and were designed for adult use. [5] [6]
During the twentieth century, children typically learned to ride a bicycle with lateral training wheels. In 1997, German designer Rolf Mertens introduced the first commercially produced Laufrad (running bike) under the brand KOKUA Bikes. [7] Children's balance bikes quickly gained popularity in Europe in the 2000s and spread elsewhere in the world by the early 2010s. [8] Balance bikes are now a common tool used to teach young children how to ride a bike.
Balance bikes are aimed at children between the ages of two and five, though children sometimes begin as young as eighteen months. [9] The rider first walks the bicycle while standing over the saddle, then while sitting in the saddle. Eventually, the rider feels comfortable enough to run or scoot while riding the bicycle, then to lift both feet off the ground, pushing and gliding while balancing on two wheels. Increased speed results in reduced foot contact with the ground and children are able to glide for longer distances. [10]
Children learn to ride independently more quickly with a balance bike because they learn to balance and countersteer first, and to pedal later. [11] Balance bikes require greater postural control and therefore enable earlier mastery of a pedal bike. [2]
By contrast, training wheels slow learning because children become too dependent on them, acquiring bad habits. Since training wheels prevent the bike from leaning, they prevent countersteering, so that, as with a tricycle, children learn to turn the handlebars the wrong way, which must be unlearned later. [7]
Balance bikes can also benefit riders with disabilities or reduced mobility. Experience on a balance bike allows children with cerebral palsy greater independence. [12] They are also an accessible means of riding for children with autism. [13]
While balance bikes are most commonly used with children, they have also been recommended as learning aids for adults. [14]
A balance bike is designed to be lightweight and easy for young children to manoeuvre. It must be small enough for the rider to be able to walk the bicycle while sitting comfortably in the saddle, putting both feet flat on the ground. This design helps children develop balance and coordination skills by allowing them to focus on steering and balancing without the added complexity of pedalling. [15]
Balance bikes are typically available with wheels 12 inches (300 mm) in diameter for riders of about two to five years; or 14 inches (360 mm) for riders three years and older. [7]
Balance bikes can be made out of aluminium, steel, plastic, or wood. Researchers have found that a lightweight frame is key to an effective and practical design. [16] Both children and parents need to be able to safely carry the bicycle. To reduce weight, balance bikes are most commonly purpose-built, but it is also possible to teach a child to balance on a small gearless bicycle with the pedals removed. [17]
As young riders gain confidence and speed, the ability to stop effectively becomes crucial. The first balance bikes did not include brakes. [18] Designers had assumed that very young children would not understand how to use brakes, but later found that smaller brake levers allow them to stop successfully. [19] Accidents occurring when riders rely solely on their feet to stop the bike are one of the most common causes of injury when using a balance bike. [9]
Manufacturers initially introduced a micro-reach brake lever designed for small hands as an optional extra. They have been increasingly included as a standard feature on most balance bikes since the early 2010s, especially following the work of British designer and competitive cyclist Isla Rowntree. [20] [21]
An ideal balance bike saddle is designed with a scooped shape to ensure that children remain secure while gliding and scooting, both backwards and forwards. Whereas traditional bicycles use pedalling to propels the rider forward, a balance bike relies on the pushing motion of the rider's feet. A scooped saddle prevents the child from sliding off the front of the bike. [9]
Balance bikes typically have adjustable seat heights, allowing the bike to grow with the child.
Since children swing their legs back and forth while riding, designers of balance bikes remove all protrusions and ensure a sleek profile to minimize the risk of accidental contact between the rider's legs and the bike's components, reducing the risk of injury. [9] This is achieved through a simplified frame, narrow hubs, rounded wheel nuts, and brakes placed in line with the frame. Some balance bikes include a footrest, but omitting this reduces the risk of children sustaining bruises.
To ensure a proper grip for young riders, the handlebars and grips of balance bikes are designed with a small diameter. This feature allows children to wrap their whole hand around the grips, promoting a secure and comfortable hold. [5]
Many balance bikes are equipped with a steering limiter to maintain proper handlebar alignment. This safety mechanism restricts the handlebars from twisting excessively and ensures that the brake cable remains intact. [7]
A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A bicycle rider is called a cyclist, or bicyclist.
Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other type of cycle. It encompasses the use of human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world for purposes including transport, recreation, exercise, and competitive sport.
A unicycle is a vehicle that touches the ground with only one wheel. The most common variation has a frame with a saddle, and has a pedal-driven direct-drive. A two speed hub is commercially available for faster unicycling. Unicycling is practiced professionally in circuses, by street performers, in festivals, and as a hobby. Unicycles have also been used to create new sports such as unicycle hockey. In recent years, unicycles have also been used in mountain unicycling, an activity similar to mountain biking or trials.
A tandem bicycle or twin is a bicycle designed to be ridden by more than one person. The term tandem refers to the seating arrangement, not the number of riders. Patents related to tandem bicycles date from the mid 1880s. Tandems can reach higher speeds than the same riders on single bicycles, and tandem bicycle racing exists. As with bicycles for single riders, there are many variations that have been developed over the years.
A tricycle, sometimes abbreviated to trike, is a human-powered three-wheeled vehicle.
The penny-farthing, also known as a high wheel, high wheeler or ordinary, is an early type of bicycle. It was popular in the 1870s and 1880s, with its large front wheel providing high speeds, owing to it travelling a large distance for every rotation of the wheel. These bicycles had solid rubber tires and as a consequence the only shock absorption was in the saddle.
Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain, such as air or coil-sprung shocks used as suspension, larger and wider wheels and tires, stronger frame materials, and mechanically or hydraulically actuated disc brakes. Mountain biking can generally be broken down into distinct categories: cross country, trail, all mountain, enduro, downhill and freeride.
A touring bicycle is a bicycle designed or modified to handle bicycle touring. To make the bikes sufficiently robust, comfortable and capable of carrying heavy loads, special features may include a long wheelbase, frame materials that favor flexibility over rigidity, heavy duty wheels, and multiple mounting points.
Indoor cycling, often called spinning, is a form of exercise with classes focusing on endurance, strength, intervals, high intensity and recovery, and involves using a special stationary exercise bicycle with a weighted flywheel in a classroom setting. When people took cycling indoors in the late 19th century, whether for reasons of weather or convenience, technology created faster, more compact and efficient machines over time. The first iterations of the stationary bike ranged from the vertical Gymnasticon to regular bicycles on rollers.
A utility bicycle, city bicycle, urban bicycle, European city bike (ECB), Dutch bike, classic bike or simply city-bike is a bicycle designed for frequent very short, relatively slow rides through very flat urban areas. It is a form of utility bicycle commonly seen around the world, built to facilitate everyday short-distance riding in normal clothes in cold-to-mild weather conditions. It is therefore a bicycle designed for very short-range practical transportation, as opposed to those primarily for recreation and competition, such as touring bicycles, road bicycles, and mountain bicycles. Utility bicycles are the most common form globally, and comprise the vast majority found in the developing world. City bikes may be individually owned or operated as part of a public bike sharing scheme.
A racing bicycle, also known as a road bike is a bicycle designed for competitive road cycling, a sport governed by and according to the rules of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).
A stationary bicycle is a device used as exercise equipment for indoor cycling. It includes a saddle, pedals, and some form of handlebars arranged as on a (stationary) bicycle.
A fixed-gear bicycle is a bicycle that has a drivetrain with no freewheel mechanism such that the pedals always will spin together with the rear wheel. The freewheel was developed early in the history of bicycle design but the fixed-gear bicycle remained the standard track racing design. More recently the "fixie" has become a popular alternative among mainly urban cyclists, offering the advantage of simplicity compared with the standard multi-geared bicycle.
Flatland is a freestyle BMX riding style performed on smooth flat surfaces that do not include any ramps, jumps, or grindrails. It is sometimes described as a form of artistic cycling with a blend of breakdancing.
Training wheels, known as stabilizers outside North America, are a set of additional wheels attached to the rear wheel of a bicycle, effectively turning it into a tricycle as beginners learn to ride independently. Since the late 1990s, balance bikes have gradually replaced training wheels as a more effective tool for developing a sense of balance.
A roadster bicycle is a type of utility bicycle once common worldwide, and still common in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and some parts of Europe. During the past few decades, traditionally styled roadster bicycles have regained popularity in the Western world, particularly as a lifestyle or fashion statement in an urban environment.
Bicycle and motorcycle dynamics is the science of the motion of bicycles and motorcycles and their components, due to the forces acting on them. Dynamics falls under a branch of physics known as classical mechanics. Bike motions of interest include balancing, steering, braking, accelerating, suspension activation, and vibration. The study of these motions began in the late 19th century and continues today.
Bicycle suspension is the system, or systems, used to suspend the rider and bicycle in order to insulate them from the roughness of the terrain. Bicycle suspension is used primarily on mountain bikes, but is also common on hybrid bicycles.
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