Riding a Bike W/out Training Wheels

I don't remember exactly how old our 12-year old was when he learned to ride without the training wheels...maybe 7 or 8ish? He was scared to death of the idea of no training wheels and stalled a couple years on getting rid of them. But finally he was ready to try...with a little trepidation.

I figured it was the right moment because he had been zipping...and I mean ZIPPING!...along on his bike for quite a while with the added security of the training wheels. We found an afternoon where my husband and I were both available for a few hours and we made a big production of it, video camera and all. It ended up only taking about one hour, if I remember correctly.

A dad at school had given us a suggestion which turned out to be brilliant. It was the final trick that did it!

Go to a football field. There's lots of room, plus, the grass is softer if there is a fall. We had our son stop and start on the 10-yard lines. My thought was...what's the hardest thing about biking...stopping and starting, right? So, if he could master that, then I figured we were golden.

I ran behind him, holding the bike up as he practiced the starts and stops. At a couple times, he got away from me, but froze and fell over as soon as he realized I wasn't there. So, when he would do that again, we would encourage him yelling, "peddle, peddle, peddle!" till he took off and succeeded.

It was so cool! We captured it on video and you should have seen his smile! My husband interviewed him like he was an athlete. "So, Mr. ___, how did it feel?" And our son responded matter-of-factly "Good, it felt good." We cracked up because he was so nonchalant after all of his fears. It was a day to remember!

And from that day forward, he could do it!

Actually, if I remember correctly, for the next few days, we went back to the football field again each day. I had him practice turning to the left, turning to the right, left, right, stop, start, etc. Each day, he gained a little more confidence. And after that, he had it mastered.

But the football field was the ticket...and the ten-yard-lines. Try it when you think she might truly be ready. She might be pleasantly surprised.

Good luck!

2 moms found this helpful

Hi T., don't worry...my son is 9 and just learn how to ride a bike without training wheels. At 7 he did not care at all to ride a bike so I didn't force him, I did some research on line and I found that is better to teach them without training wheel at this age, they even suggest to take the pedals off and let the kid ride with his fit. So this year I went bike shop with him, he found the bike that was more comfortable, making sure that his feet were touching completely the floor for him to have balance and in less than a week he is riding like a pro. So don't worry she will learn to ride when she is ready!
S. D'Arpino

My husband is currently teaching my 5 and 3/4 year old daughter how to ride without training wheels. She's not quite there yet, but every day gets a bit better. She was EXTREMELY hesitant to let go of the training wheels. What pushed her towards it though was a new(used) bike that came without training wheels, with a bell, and a kickstand. Also, her six year old friend down the street, who rides without training wheels, barrels through the neighborhood at lightening speed. That upset my daughter and now she wants to learn so that she can keep up. Maybe that would work for your daughter too. A new bike that she really loves, that doesn't come with training wheels and if she sees a lot of other kids having fun without their training wheels maybe she'll be determined to keep up.

Having said all that, I know a bunch of kids 7 and 8 who are still on training wheels or actually who refuse to ride because they are too nervous about falling. She'll ride when she's ready.

Both my sister and I (at 7) and now my nephew (5) learned how to ride on a smaller bike in the yard. You had to push harder but it was easier and less scary then a driveway or a road. You also have a lot more control. Just a thought that may help.

She is oerfectly normal. My daughter didn't really learn untill the summer after she turned 7 (in Nov).

Start her out slowly without training wheels with a bike that she can reach the ground flat footed (not tip toes)

Then find a small gradual inclined place where she can start at the top of the hill and coast down dragging her feet.
Then ask her to lift her feet a little.
Then have her lift her feet to pedal hieght.
Then lift her feet on to the pedals.
Then practice stopping (back-pedaling)
Then pedaling forward.
The last thing she should learn is balancing the bike with one foot on the ground and the other on the starting pedal position (the 1:00 position)

Good luck she should progress quickly and learn to love riding independantly

Both my girls learned at age 8. They only ride occasionally in the summer so they do not get a lot of practice. I bought them a razor scooter at age 7 to learn some balance. We then took them to a neighbor's driveway that slopes gently down. They basically sat on the bike with their legs extended just to learn the balancing act of rolling downhill, just like a scooter but sitting. At first they even had both feet dragging on the ground. Then we did the running behind them holding the saddle. It took several days of trying it this way before they got the courage during the fairly long roll down the driveway to pick up their feet and put them on the peddles.
They will learn at their own pace, but if they are interested to learn and only fear is holding them back, try the rolling down the gentle slope method.
Another mom told me she took her child to the track behind the school: it is long so you don't have to worry about turns (or traffic) at first and when they do get to doing turns they are very rounded.

My just turned 10 year old just started riding a bike without training wheels. So I really wouldn't worry about it. Just keep encouraging her. We didn't have a whole lot of opportunity to learn in a place she felt safe without much of a yard. Bring her to a big park with a lot of grass that she can feel a little safer on should she fall. Oh and FYI my 7 year old daughter is still using training wheels. She however isn't the greatest peddler yet. She hasn't gotten the hang of it so no point in taking the training wheels off. I was around your daughter's age when I finally rode a bike without training wheels. I did it for the first time at a park with a bunch of friends. So if she has a lot of friends who are riding without training wheels that could be a good motivator for her to get up the courage and try without. Have you tried doing just the one training wheel so she can see that she has her balance? With my 10 year old she did that for a while before she would let us take the other one off. We had to keep telling her she's not even using the other training wheel for balance (she wasn't) that she could do it. I didn't want to push her too much because I have a cousin who never learned to ride a bike at all and I really didn't want that to be my kids so I just try to wait until they are ready. Because one fall before a hesitant child like that is ready and they might never get on the bike again.

M.

My older girl learned to ride w/out training wheels at 6. But my twin boys are ready this summer at 4.5! If you can move up the training wheels so she had to try to balance a little by herself. I have done that with my boys and it is working well.

First off every kid is different. She will do it in her own time. It can be really scarey. I have four children and two of them rode without training wheels at 4. But one was almost 7 and the other is just 4 now and no where near ready to do it. If you push her to do it and she falls, it could scare her enough to wait even longer. Give her time she will do it and before you know it you won't be able to catch her.

Hi T.
Some kids just don't want to ride a two wheeler.
My son refused to ride a two wheeler at the "usual" age.
But he had a scooter with two wheels that he rode everywhere.
He said he was afraid he couldn't balance on the two wheeler so we didn't have the heart to explain to him that what he was doing on the scooter was so much harder than a bike.
When he did get a bike (probably 7) it was huge because he was tall. Let her do things her way-not yours!
My scooter rider just graduated college last Saturday with a 3.5 GPA. So I wouldn't worry unless there are other signs that cause you to worry.
J. H

If she doesn't enjoy it why push her to do it? I hate riding a bike and haven't ridden on one since my parents forced me to one summer. Find something else she's interested in and pursue that instead. Maybe swimming or a summer sport, roller blading, etc.

I was about eight or nine when I learned to ride without training wheels. Don't push her; she'll learn when she's ready.

When my daughter learned to ride it was training wheels or nothing for her. I figured eventually she'd give them up. One day she took a turn and one of the wheels fell off. She didn't notice it and I couldn't tell her because she was across a field from me, but when she got back to me and I pointed it out, she was so excited that she'd been doing it on her own that she insisted I remove the other one. The whole time it was just a fear of falling. She was almost 8 that summer. Kids need to own the experiences of youth. If it's something she wants she'll do it when she's ready, but she needs to know she can do it her way. Just support her no matter her choice, or how long it takes and before you know it those training wheels will be a fond memory.

My husband is a professional cyclist and my 9 year old son won't go near a bike at all - training wheels or not. I think it just depends on the child. We don't push it.

She may be afraid of crashing. We had our son go from the driveway onto the lawn so if/when he fell he would not get hurt. Once he felt safe and confident we could not keep him off of the bike.
Good Luck

Not necessarily...my 8 yr old is still riding with training wheels and my 11 almost 12 yr old doesn't ride a bike at all. Don't rush her to get rid of the training wheels because she will get scared and NOT want to ride at all.

My son is 7 1/2 and just learned w/o training wheels this spring. Honestly, we don't have a great yard/drive way for riding so it hasn't been a priority for us (we're very active otherwise w/kayaking, hiking, gymnastics, etc.). I say it's definately something you'll want her to know how to do, but if she's not into it, don't make a big deal out of it. There are lots of other sports and things she can do stay healthy and active! But you'd probably regret it if she didn't learn to do it at all.
E.:-)

I wouldn't worry, I have two daughters and they are very much different from one another. My youngest one was riding without training wheels at the age of 6 while my other daughter just started riding her bike without it. She just turned 9 when she decided it was time.
You daughter will do it on her own time, as long as no one pushes to to try, she will one day want to try on her own.

Hi,
My daughter just learned w.out training wheels.She is six but my son was about 9 when he learned.Everyone is different.

Hi T.,

Like anything else, the more she does it the faster she'll learn. Lot's of kids your daughter's age can't ride a bike without training wheels yet. Obviously, the less motivated she is to learn the longer it will take.

Initially, your daughter will need to build her muscles for this particular activity. Having her ride frequently for a week or so will help.

After your daughter has developed her muscles, adjust the training wheels up to allow the bike to wobble side to side a bit, this will encourage her balance. Eventually remove the training wheels altogether. When we first removed the training wheels, we had our daughter ride on grass. She was less worried about falling there. Also let her learn on a small bike, even if the bike seems too small for her.

Best Wishes,
J. L.

Hi T.,
You've got a lot of advice, most people telling you to let your daugther follow her own timeline. I agree with that.

I suggest getting her on a scooter, if she doesn't already ride one (don't know if others have suggested this too). My son rode a scooter before a bike, and it helped him master the balance thing and feeling in control, because he could simply put his foot down and stop whenever he wanted. He didn't feel vulnerable sitting on a seat and depending on brakes to stop. I think it ultimately helped him when riding the bike.