What Age did Bike Training Wheel Come off?

[StephMK]

My kids are really late and didn't take theirs off til last fall - DS-7 & DD-9. They really had no interest in learning until DD's friend kept asking her to go on bike rides.

Personally, I would not send DS on a big troop bike ride, even now. He's much better but hasn't practiced much since the snow started shortly after. He's not experienced riding with a crowd so I wouldn't put him in that situation. There are many kids his age that go on really long rides around here but DS is not one of them. DS wiped out on his scooter last fall really bad so I don't want to scare him off another wheeled toy.

The bike ride may be the thing to motivate your son to practice more if he does go.

 

[JamesMom]

OP, here Wow! Thanks for all the responses. Just to let y'all know, my son just turned 7 in January. I don't think we will attend the bike rally since my son is currently the only one in the family with a bike and its really not in the budget to buy more bikes. Spent our scout money on camping equipment in the fall (next trip is in May) I guess it is time to take the wheels off though. Hopefully train him in time for spring rides around the park. Guess I'll have to tell hubby he was right... lol.

 

[lathamary]

Who cares what people think? Childhood is a journey; not a race.

Kids are ready for things at different ages. Just because your child learned to ride without training wheels at age 5 doesn't mean every child is ready at age 5.

I hate it when people say a child should or shouldn't do things at a certain age. Man, that really gets my goat As a trained foster parent, I know that it's normal, and good, for children do things at very different ages. You have to meet them where they're at.

Anyway... my son was 6 1/2 when he wanted to try without training wheels, and he learned in a day. That was him, your child might not be ready yet, and that's perfectly fine. I wouldn't have cared if he was 10 and still riding with training wheels. Everyone's different. The age you learned to ride without training wheels does not reflect at all on the kind of person you are.

 

[lathamary]

I have found that kids this age (girls and boys) pick on each other a lot about being a "baby."

They pick on each other because it's permitted. I couldn't believe how mean the kids were to each other when my son started kindergarten in a public school. Kids were calling each other stupid and babies and all sorts of other hurtful things.

He now goes to a small private school where the word "stupid" isn't even allowed. They're taught to respect and be kind to each other. Picking on and fighting play is not permitted, and I think that's fantastic.

It's not "kids being kids". It's brats being brats because their parents and teachers are letting them be brats. If you expect them to be kind and respectful, they will.

It's not ok to use words that hurt.

 

[WantToGoNow]

Both of my kids started riding without the training wheels at age 5 - ds8 the day before his 5th birthday and dd6 last summer so at 5-1/2. And in our neighborhood where there are tons of kids, your dh is right - a 7 y/o boy would probably be made fun of. It's not unusual to see kids around here as young as 3-4 riding those little tiny 12" bikes without training wheels right down the middle of the street (we don't have sidewalks).

 

[Astro Orbiter]

What does your son think? Does he want them off?

My DD got hers off at 6.75 years. As much as people like to brag, loads of kids enter kindergarten - and even first grade - with training wheels. And, as evidenced by the screaming across the street a few weeks ago, forcing a child to give up the training wheels before they're ready just makes everyone uncomfortable.

What I saw was that her as a rider on training wheels was much more tentative and slow than her on a bike without training wheels. Bikes with training wheels are also more prone to tipping.

I'm going against the flow with how to teach your son to ride. We have a gentle hill in our neighborhood. DD put on old tennis shoes, long pants, knee pads, elbow pads, and her helmet. I took off the training wheels and put the seat all the way down...like she could drag her feet on the ground. And that's what she did. Without touching the pedals, she coasted down the hill, putting her feet down (aka braking with the tennies) when she felt off balance and to stop at the bottom. She did this for about half an hour or so. Then I nudged her to pick her feet higher off the ground, and she went with her feet flying out to the side. Then I nudged her to start coasting, then to start pedaling. Then we worked on how to start. For about a week I had to stand behind her and balance the bike, but then she figured it out on her own. We spent an hour each day on a weekend and she was off and ready. Starting herself took a bit more time. She fell off her bike once, and ditched the pads after about an hour (they were her choice to begin with). As she became more confident I raised the seat back up.

Good luck!

Deb

 

[deerhart]

My oldest didn't lose his training wheels until age 8, he's almost 10 and still has difficulty with speed and hills (but way better). My youngest got a 20 in bike for his 7th birthday (in October). We just had him out 2 weeks ago to try to ride it as the weather has gotten nice. Took him 30 minutes to get the hang of it and off he's gone.

Mind you we live in a river valley so the area is really hilly and not conducive to being friendly to learning to ride a bike. What I would do is
1) make sure the size bike he has is right for him
2) take the wheels off for some practice and see how he does
3) practice practice practice

if he can't ride yet without the training wheels on, its no real big deal. He just may not have the core strength to support his balance and the troop shouldn't be allowed to make fun of him because of that. Sometimes all they need is confidence (like my oldest and less fear of falling).

Neither of my boys got made fun off by the other kids in the neighborhood because they still had training wheels. In fact, one of the boys 2 years older then my oldest was the one who finally convinced and taught him how to ride his bike!

 

[mjkacmom]

They pick on each other because it's permitted. I couldn't believe how mean the kids were to each other when my son started kindergarten in a public school. Kids were calling each other stupid and babies and all sorts of other hurtful things.

He now goes to a small private school where the word "stupid" isn't even allowed. They're taught to respect and be kind to each other. Picking on and fighting play is not permitted, and I think that's fantastic.

It's not "kids being kids". It's brats being brats because their parents and teachers are letting them be brats. If you expect them to be kind and respectful, they will.

It's not ok to use words that hurt.

I think there are kids out there who tease other kids, who come from good families with good parents. Children have to be taught not to tease, over and over and over again. Two of my kids can be mean (one just to family members) - we are teaching ds7 not to yell at his team mates if they make mistakes (and he's getting much better ). Two of my dd's rarely say anything mean to kids, maybe sometimes a dig at a sibling if they're mad. Ds11 is somewhere in the middle.

I expect my children to be kind and respectful, but sometimes they forget, and are corrected. I have never met a perfect kid yet!

 

[Jareds_mommy]

My son, 7, is in cub scouts (Tiger) and they are planning a pack meeting with a bike ride later this month. My husband expressed a concern and is tempted to not have our son participate. The reason? He is still riding with training wheels. Hubby thinks he will be embarrased by still needing them. I don't think it is a big deal, but then again, I didn't get my first bike until age 10 sans training wheels. My son's best friend who is 6 in Kindergarten doesn't even have a bike yet.
Will my son be the odd ball with training wheels at this event? Tigers are the youngest scouts on up to fourth graders will be at the event.
What's your take? Will he be embarraseed? Is my hubby paranoid? Am I delusional? LOL.
TIA

Ds was 5 and DD was 4 when they came off

 

[Jareds_mommy]

Who cares what people think? Childhood is a journey; not a race.

what a great quote

 

[bellebud]

while I agree w/ the ones who say it doesn't matter if he has training wheels, this will be a group ride, and the boys will probably get into that 'pack mentality' frame of mind, and if one kid makes fun, it could get ugly. If it were just a playdate w/ a friend, then yes, who cares if he has training wheels.

I wouldn't have him go. There's always next time.

 

[EnchantedPrincess]

My dd is 6 1/2 and she still ride her bike with training wheels. Our goal is to get her to ride it without training wheels this summer. We tried last summer, but she just wasn't ready.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

DS was 7. DD was 3.

 

[badblackpug]

I think there are kids out there who tease other kids, who come from good families with good parents. Children have to be taught not to tease, over and over and over again. Two of my kids can be mean (one just to family members) - we are teaching ds7 not to yell at his team mates if they make mistakes (and he's getting much better ). Two of my dd's rarely say anything mean to kids, maybe sometimes a dig at a sibling if they're mad. Ds11 is somewhere in the middle.

I expect my children to be kind and respectful, but sometimes they forget, and are corrected. I have never met a perfect kid yet!

Thank you! Kids are kids. They tease one another, sometimes even when they are taught not to. No one suggested that the OP's son be forced to ride without training wheels or learn to ride without them if he wasn't ready. Most posters basically told her that he is using the wheels later than most and that he may be embarrassed and may be opening himself up to teasing.

 

[hmacmahony]

I am also guessing he is your oldest? I think that also makes a difference. My oldest was almost 7, my youngest had just turned 3 when she rode without training wheels. (and actually rode without training wheels before my oldest, who started within days of the younger one, she couldn't have her baby sister riding a two wheeler and her not!!)

Here is my best advice though, its how we taught all our kids
TAKE OFF THE TRAINING WHEELS....AND THE PEDALS!!

sounds insane, but they push the bike with their legs, and glide, and it teaches the balance they need to ride a two wheeler, and once they have that down, pop on those pedals and off they go immediatly.
They actually have bikes made with no pedals made just for that purpose. It really makes a difference, we tell everyone we know to do this, and everyone we know who has done this had kids learn to ride two wheelers within days of trying this.

 

[reneebaker]

Our son is 6 1/2 I took the training wheels off of his bike this weekend. He hated it! He was convinced he was going to fall. I left for 10 minutes to go get some drinks and by the time I got back he had taken his daddy's wrench and put the training wheels back on =( Needless to say I was overruled this weekend. Hopefully I will when soon. I think the no pedal idea is a great idea!

 

[jessica52877]

My son's came off when he was 4 1/2. No issues. He was a bike rider though and so are the kids in the neighborhood. His two best friends (that are boys) had them off at 3! I was pretty amused to be honest! By 5 they were doing crazy tricks! I gradually just kept bending (or pulling up) the wheels so they were eventually so far of the ground he wasn't using them anyways. We could have probably taken them off a bit sooner but I was a worry wart!

 

[Kies99]

We don't get out much to ride our bikes, but my oldest was 6 when the wheels came off. She was able to ride without them within about 15 minutes or so. She was doing very well within a couple hours.

Our youngest is 6 and we plan this spring doing the same with her.

 

[Sgt Mickey]

I would talk to your son. One of my twins had his training wheels off before the other one and no one made fun of him :shrug BUT I guess all kids are diffrent so he will know his friends better. BUT I wouldn't hold him back from going just because he has training wheels. I don't think he will be the only one :shrug He may want to practice without them before he goes or even after going.

 

[Deesknee]

DD 6 1/2 still has training wheels. Every time we mention they are coming off, she gets scared & doesn't want to ride. We ARE taking them off this weekend, weather permitting.

I laughed a little when I saw the reply by holden.... we also had our son ride the baseball diamond at the local field. He did fine, then went back about 4 years late, was riding the diamond, tire hit the plate, yeah, concussion. He's fine. All the times worrying about taking the tw off, never fell, then showing off 4 years later, yeah, that's when they need training wheels!