Cruising on their new Toot Scoots
Everyone has heard the expression “it’s like riding a bike.” It sounds easy enough but think back to your childhood; do you actually remember learning how to ride a bike? Maybe you fell down, cried and promised you would never ride again. Maybe you were one of the lucky few who learned the first day. Regardless of this, learning to ride a bicycle without training wheels is a frightening thought.
Think of what went through your mind as a child first riding a bicycle. If you were like me, you were petrified at the thought of crashing your bike into a tree, a curb, a stop sign, a hole, anything and then potentially doing a front flip over your tire and breaking every bone in your body. What about getting your shoe laces caught in a pedal? On top of those terrifying moments, it didn’t help to hear your parents in the background calling out to you what they thought were words of encouragement “Keep pedaling! Steer! Pedal faster! Balance! Don’t look down… KEEP PEDALING!!” All I wanted to do was impress my parents and make them proud, but of course the second I began thinking about pedaling I crashed right into a curb.
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The Toot Scoot is a balance bike designed to get children going as soon as they can walk says Buck Hale, inventor and avid BMX biker. Their motto is “if you can walk you can ride.” By taking away the pedals and training wheels, they are helping to eliminate the anxiety and fear children experience when attempting to ride a bike after relying on training wheels. They say just cut the training wheels all together! It takes children much longer to learn the essential two wheel balance when they are focusing on balancing, steering, pedaling and braking. With the Toot Scoot, children can focus solely on balancing. By having the bike set low to the ground, it is simple for a child to set their feet down and push off the ground to help regain their balance if they begin to tip to one side or the other.
The Toot Scoot is a training bike as well as a fun toy. Children learn to balance by sitting on the bike and pushing forward with their feet. Eventually they will be able to coast and lift their feet off the ground and still remain balanced on the seat. This will allow children to transition easily to a bike without training wheels because they’ve already mastered the difficult art of balancing.
Don’t let your child suffer the embarrassment of being the eight year old that still can’t ride a bike. Start them as soon as they can walk with a Toot Scoot. The Toot Scoot is designed for children as young as two. The Toot Scoot is available online at www.tootscoot.com as well as from select retailers.
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
