# Toddler to Teen ... The evolution of bikes for kids.



## zul (Mar 19, 2004)

What bike and when? As parents, by the time we know, it’s often too late. Wasting money or missing out on quality riding time and experience for the kids. Maddening. 

Without a doubt, the timing of a child bike purchase is very important. In order to have correct timing, you must have some advanced information; which is difficult (or impossible) to find. So the purpose of this post is to find and pass along some wisdom: Age range, child size and other helpful information for parents. If you have older kids and past experience, POST UP!! I will be editing this post and inserting information ...

Trailer: (two wheeled basket for toddler, clamps to chain stay)
Start age: 1
End age: 3 
Price: $150 
Key: Get started once the child can sit up and manage the weight of the head. Not for infants. 

Trail-a-Bike: (one wheel, clamps to your seat post)
Start age: 3 
End age: 7 
Price: $150-$200. 
Key: Child's feet must firmly reach both pedals and hold the bars. 
Start on paved roads but soon you’ll be rolling fire roads and single track. Once the child is 4, this setup can handle bumps, curbs, rocks and roots. Just about anything. The result is many years of memorable riding. 

Stryder Bike: 
Start age: 2
End age: 4
Key: Eliminates any bike with training wheels. Gets your child riding a real bike sooner and safer. 

12 inch: 1 gear, coaster brake.
Start age: xxx Get a Stryder Bike instead xxx
End age: xxx Get a Stryder Bike instead xxx

16 inch: 1 gear, coaster brake.
Start age: 4
End age: 6 or 7
Price:

20 inch: 1x7 with hand brakes.
Start age: 6 or 7
End age: 8 or 9
Price: 
Key: Ability to reach the brake lever with enough strength to stop, primo importance.

24 inch: 1x7 or 3x7 
Start age: 9 or 10
End age:
Price: 
Key: 


26 Small Frame:
Start age:
End age:
Price: 
Key:


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## NS-NV (Aug 15, 2006)

Were I think most parents mess up is when they try to get their children riding on the adults terms, and not on the child's terms... Using Trail a bikes and training wheels so the kid can keep up are for parents, not kids. It does not matter how many miles they can put on, just time on the bike having fun. Bikes are freedom for us all, let them be free! 

Run bike until your grom can reach pedals (and has the co-ordination to operate them). 18mo to 3-4 yrs old

2 week training wheel transition period. When they can pedal, stop and turn, get rid of them as fast as possible. This period sucks.

Once they are pedalling, get bikes that are size appropriate. If they have gears great, but I would not worry about it. Simple is always better.


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## ctxcrossx (Jan 13, 2004)

NS-NV said:


> Were I think most parents mess up is when they try to get their children riding on the adults terms, and not on the child's terms... Using Trail a bikes and training wheels so the kid can keep up are for parents, not kids. It does not matter how many miles they can put on, just time on the bike having fun. Bikes are freedom for us all, let them be free!
> 
> Run bike until your grom can reach pedals (and has the co-ordination to operate them). 18mo to 3-4 yrs old
> 
> ...


I agree with most of what you posted, except for the trail a bike being for the parents. Parents can certainly abuse this, but if used keeping the kids in mind, it can very beneficial by showing your child what is possible. They are able to do things on a trail a bike that they cannot do by themselves. As you've mentioned, we have to keep the best interests of the kids in mind.


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## NS-NV (Aug 15, 2006)

I totally admit, I am 'unreasonably bias' towards the trail a bike. Not my cup of tea, but it does not mean I think they are a waste of time, or I look down upon those who use them (we're not talking roadies here .

In reality, any time spent with your kids is good time spent.


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## kkjellquist (Oct 31, 2006)

My daughter's progression;

3rd b-day - skuut/strider
3 yrs 6mos - 12" wheel w/ no training wheels, and the strider was passed along to friends.
5ish - 16" wheel, single speed
6 1/2 - saved her money and bought herself a 20" mtb with 1x6 gearing.

Trail-a-bike - been on and off road since 3 1/2 or so...can't recall really.

For the average parent this is probably over the top, but biking is a major family activity for us. Luckily once you hit 20" wheels the bikes last a bit longer between wheel sizes.

I worked in a shop for a while and one thing I found was most kids who are well into 24" wheels can get a XS 26" bike that will get them more years for the $$.


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## disfocus (Aug 26, 2009)

Not sure about your time-line for the trailer. My oldest is a (admittedly tiny) 3 1/2, and while she might be a happy on a trail-a-bike for short distances, there's no way she'd be comfortable over the kind of distances we cover with the trailer. It's basically my family car, so there's the added inconvenience of also having to accomodate my 20mo, and having no fall-back position if she fades 10km from home!
I reckon my trusty trailer will keep seeing a fair bit of use for a while yet...


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## Rhinofly (Aug 30, 2010)

My son is a normal sized kid. He was riding a 16" wheel bike with coaster brakes and training wheels at 3 yo. The training wheels came off at 4 yo and he could do 5 miles of flat trail easily. At 4.5 yo he is now riding a geared 1x9 mountain bike with handbrakes and 20" wheels. He is just big enough with the seat all the way down and 135mm cranks. My daughter at 7 yo is also riding a 20" geared mountain bike. Next year I will build her a 24" wheel geared mountain bike. 

Point is....you can start on the real 20" wheel mountain bikes as early as 4, depending on the kid and the bike.

Your point about the brakes being useable for small hands on the 20" bike is a very important one. The bike my 4yo rides was a custom build and I paid careful attention to making sure everything (especially brakes) was smooth and easy to use...even for small hands.


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## yo EDDY (May 22, 2006)

I'm hoping to transition my 3 yo to a pedal bike this season. He has been on a strider for a year and tears it up. So much so that lately I feel like he is really over riding the strider. With the steep head tube angle, that thing gets twitchy at speeds and no brake always has me a little nervous. 

Anyway, I'd really like to go right onto a 16" wheeled bike since those 12" look like he would only get a few months out of it. 

Can anybody suggest a 16" bike which maybe has some of the lowest standover height/seat height or are they all pretty much the same? 

Also, what do you guys think as far as the transition to pedal, let him use the training wheels or skip them all together?


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## Cinq (Jan 2, 2003)

yo EDDY said:


> I'm hoping to transition my 3 yo to a pedal bike this season. He has been on a strider for a year and tears it up. So much so that lately I feel like he is really over riding the strider. With the steep head tube angle, that thing gets twitchy at speeds and no brake always has me a little nervous.
> 
> Anyway, I'd really like to go right onto a 16" wheeled bike since those 12" look like he would only get a few months out of it.
> 
> ...


My 4 year old son has a Hot Rock 16. I am not sure if it has the lowest standover height though. He learned keeping balance on a wooden balance bike and we skipped the training wheels altogether.

Kind regards,

Clemens


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## normonster (Jan 12, 2008)

My daughter was TALL, but I still wish they had the strider bikes when she was 1.5

12" w/ training wheels at ~2yrs. As soon as her feet could touch the ground, the training wheels came off along w/ the pedals. Walked / ran around the block w/ her everyday for a few weeks. Great exercise, but hurt my back a bit from running bent over over. She was riding w/ no pedals by 2.5 and never looked back... Kept this bike until the seat was raised several inches and the handlebars tilted out..

16" upgrade ~ 3.5yrs. Bought it used on craigslist. Princess bike came w/ coaster brake and handbrake. The handbrake had a little screw adjustment to decrease the reach.. 

20" ~ 4.5. Only handbrakes on this one. Again had to tighten up the reach on the handbrakes. 7 spds on the rear cog, this was a fun bike

26" XS @ 8yrs. Triple on the back, and 8 spds on the back... 

My boy just inherited her 20" , he's 6yrs old... He grew a little slower, so he took a few more months all around...

Both kids were done w/ the Trail-A-Bike by 5. They were too heavy for it. But they loved it, and sometimes were too lazy and wanted to only go in that. 

Burley Trailer: Is still awesome for carrying things around town. We'll never get rid of this thing. Both kids were in this early, pre 1yr. And if one was riding and got tired, just strapped the bike to the stroller bar, and the kid got in... Looked like a bike on a hitch rack..


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## yo EDDY (May 22, 2006)

At the transition from balance bike to pedal bikes....do you guys feel like the child should be able to touch the ground while on the seat? Or can they immediately catch on to the move forward of the seat and stand over the top tube when stopped?


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## NS-NV (Aug 15, 2006)

I think they should be able to touch the ground. Lower centre of gravity, it helps them learn to stand on their pedals and stops a lot of wipeouts.


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## normonster (Jan 12, 2008)

at least for my kids, it has been a requirement. I've been trying to show them to how stand over the top tube, but they're not interested.


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## kkjellquist (Oct 31, 2006)

yo EDDY said:


> Also, what do you guys think as far as the transition to pedal, let him use the training wheels or skip them all together?


Skip! That's the whole point of the stryder/balance bikes.


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## RolledMeat (Jan 13, 2004)

A lot of people downplay the 12" bikes because they have a limited lifespan but I disagree. My son was on a Strider from 1-3. He was really good by his third birthday so I had a 16" bike waiting for him, at the advice of the bike store. They said that he would outgrow a 12" bike too quickly. He's a pretty tall kid and could ride the 16" bike without training wheels if I helped him get started but it was so big, he couldn't start and stop on his own, he'd just fall over. So he had developed all this confidence on the Strider but it was all washed away once he started riding the 16" bike, which was more than 1/2 his body weight.

One day, I saw a 12" bike in my neighbor's trash down the road so I grabbed it. Turns out the bike wasn't in bad shape so I cleaned it up and gave it to my son that afternoon. He saw that thing and just lit up. It was just the ticket. He could control it easily and get his feet on the ground. Now he's turning 4 in a couple weeks and can ride the 16" bike very well but it's still relatively big and cumbersome. I have a set of ramps that we ride in the driveway and I take him to the skatepark quite a bit. For all that "technical" riding, he still prefers the 12" bike and I'm sure he'll continue to use it after he turns 4. If I knew one year ago what I know now, I definitely would have gotten him a 12" bike for his 3rd birthday. Probably not an expensive bike store bike, just something from the dept store because that's all this bike is and it's holding up just fine.


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## sbaryenbruch (Jan 4, 2004)

"12 inch: 1 gear, coaster brake.
Start age: xxx Get a Stryder Bike instead xxx
End age: xxx Get a Stryder Bike instead xxx"


This part of your post is 100% pure bullsh**. You look my kid in the eyes and tell him that for the past 1.5 years he should not have been riding his 12" bike......good luck. He started on that bike with training wheels and then rocked it for a year without them.


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## zul (Mar 19, 2004)

sbaryenbruch said:


> "12 inch: 1 gear, coaster brake.
> Start age: xxx Get a Stryder Bike instead xxx
> End age: xxx Get a Stryder Bike instead xxx"
> 
> This part of your post is 100% pure bullsh**. You look my kid in the eyes and tell him that for the past 1.5 years he should not have been riding his 12" bike......good luck. He started on that bike with training wheels and then rocked it for a year without them.


Let us know when you have something nice to say.

Does every parent need to buy every bike on the list? Is there one bike that could be skipped??
Perhapse it's the 12" that is a good buy, skip the 16" and get onto the 20" bike with gears (1x6) and hand brakes sooner.

IMO, the sooner you get your kid onto gears and hand brakes, the better: Age 7, 20" bike???


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## cmc4130 (Jan 30, 2008)

Don't forget about BMX bikes. There's room for both XC-mtb and BMX.

At least when I was a kid, we all wanted to jump things, pop wheelies, do tricks and race.

Like these kids:










There are sizing options available for every age group:
https://www.jrbicycles.com/storefront/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=189


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## Dpechter (Jul 6, 2012)

Not too sure I 100% agree with you, I think which bike when really depends on the ability and the size of the kid. 
for example...My son's progression: 
18 mo started on a Kinderbike Strider with a handbrake and pneumatic tires.
Age 2.75 he (not us parents!) insisted on a pedal bike. He is small, so a 12" wheel was the only option, chose the Opus Dash as it was the lightest available in Canada. Has coaster brake and a hand brake. He was riding it unassisted after a couple of hours and racing it at cyclocross (kids) races within a month.
Currently age 3.5 regularly rides the Dash in the trails, on the road, and along the bike path for 1.5-2 hrs (up to 5mi is normal). We do still have the 1 yr old in the trailer so can always throw the 3 yr old and bike in too if he runs out of steam...rarely happens though! 
His bike handling skills are unreal, he shifts his bike under him when required, carves turns and 'bumps' over roots...always in control. Highly recommend run/balance bikes and a transition to a pedal bike (no training wheels!). We have a 16" Early Rider Belter (no coaster, just handbrake) on order for this summer and he can't wait! It will likely last him awhile as he is just 30lbs now. 
My advice...you as the parent knows your kid and their abilities best...getting them out on a bike (with a helmet on) having some outdoor fun with you is the most important thing, they all figure out how to ride eventually, just enjoy your play time!


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## LB412 (Nov 28, 2012)

just turned 6 and upgraded to a 20" Marin. made it 7 miles, including one small stream crossing. 

lots of water and snack breaks were key to keeping it fun.


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## traffic002 (Dec 16, 2008)

Training wheels are evil. It teaches you the wrong mechanics.

Steer left to go left; steer right to go right. But in reality, you steer opposit to tip your bike and your bike turns automatically into the lean.

Get a glide bike. Even for older kids that don't know how to balance on two wheels. Add pedaling later.


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## LB412 (Nov 28, 2012)

You can also take the pedals off of a larger bike for the older kids. Once they learn to balance put them back on


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## GrayJay (May 16, 2011)

zul said:


> Does every parent need to buy every bike on the list? Is there one bike that could be skipped??
> Perhapse it's the 12" that is a good buy, skip the 16" and get onto the 20" bike with gears (1x6) and hand brakes sooner.
> 
> IMO, the sooner you get your kid onto gears and hand brakes, the better: Age 7, 20" bike???


If you want to skip a bike, skip the overpriced stryder bike and just remove the crank from a 12" to teach them ballance first, then add the crank/pedals back on later. Skill of pedaling is comparativly easy to learn and they probably will already know how to pedal from a tricycle. 
A 20" bike is almost 2X the size of a 12", I wouldnt suggest skipping 16" wheel size. Just get them used bikes for free/cheap instad of buying new. Dont worry that these first bikes may be heavy junk, they will not be held back and wont care so long at the color is acceptable! I sources both useable 12" and 16" bikes from the curb on neighborhood trash day. 16" wheel are noticeably more stable than 12" so they will be able to ride strait and turn smoothly without wobbeling all-over.


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## GSJ1973 (May 8, 2011)

kkjellquist said:


> I worked in a shop for a while and one thing I found was most kids who are well into 24" wheels can get a XS 26" bike that will get them more years for the $$.


I would disagree with this statement. Basically you would be keeping them on an undersized 20" too long and on a 26" bike too soon. For just riding bike paths this might be ok, but not for MTN bike riding.

Buy the bike which fits.


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## slapheadmofo (Jun 9, 2006)

GrayJay said:


> If you want to skip a bike, skip the overpriced stryder bike and just remove the crank from a 12" to teach them ballance first, then add the crank/pedals back on later. Skill of pedaling is comparativly easy to learn and they probably will already know how to pedal from a tricycle.
> A 20" bike is almost 2X the size of a 12", I wouldnt suggest skipping 16" wheel size. Just get them used bikes for free/cheap instad of buying new. Dont worry that these first bikes may be heavy junk, they will not be held back and wont care so long at the color is acceptable! I sources both useable 12" and 16" bikes from the curb on neighborhood trash day. 16" wheel are noticeably more stable than 12" so they will be able to ride strait and turn smoothly without wobbeling all-over.


Agree with not buying a strider, unless it's for a really, really young kid that's gonna be on it for a while. Seems that most 3-4 year olds will be ready to pedal after a handful of hours coasting with the pedals stripped off of a 'regular' bike. Also agree that the 16" are a great size for learning; my son rode a 16" for park/DJ from the time he was 5 until almost 9 (and he's pretty tall) until just recently moving up to an 18". He's still too small for a full sized BMX bike for this type of riding, though he was racing on a 20" Mini at age 6, and also DHing on a 24" Hotrock.

Totally disagree on putting the kids on crapper bikes if they're real riders though; that can be a dangerous way to save a few bucks, and can definitely hold them back depending on their ability/enthusiasm level. You want the right tool for the job - no way I'd let my son ride stuff like this roll-in on a second-hand Sprawlmart bike, but he rips it all day long on his 16" Haro and I don't have to worry about it falling apart under him at any moment. Well worth a few hundred bucks.


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## normonster (Jan 12, 2008)

*on skipping the balance bike*

I wish the balance bikes had been out when my kids were younger. 
Note that 12" bikes tend to be taller than the balance bike. I did the 12" bike without the pedals and seat dropped for my long legged daughter before 2yrs, but had to wait much longer with my short legged son's legs were long enough to touch the ground. Could have started a lot sooner with the balance bike.


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## ghettocruiser (Jun 21, 2008)

GrayJay said:


> If you want to skip a bike, skip the overpriced stryder bike and just remove the crank from a 12" to teach them ballance first, then add the crank/pedals back on later. Skill of pedaling is comparativly easy to learn and they probably will already know how to pedal from a tricycle.


This was also Sheldon Brown's advice as well, and it's a good cost-cutter.... AS LONG AS the kid is actually tall enough to use a 12" bike with a slammed seat as a strider. Most of the dedicated run bikes allow the seats to go WAY lower, allowing use by much younger and/or shorter kids.

My daughter has been riding for 2 years now, and with her stature, I think she might STILL be too short to have her feet flat on the ground on a 12" bike with the crank removed.


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## ghettocruiser (Jun 21, 2008)

And FWIW, between friends and family our Run Bike has already been through 4 kids, and the 5th in line is getting antsy waiting for the 4th to finish with it. He's almost there.


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## coldbike (Feb 24, 2011)

I actually skip the 12" and 16", I could not find a 16" bike that weighed less than my kids when they were the right height for it and so I went right from the run bike to a mini BMX race bike. My daughter goes faster on her run bike than any of the neighbour kids on pedal bikes. 
My daughter loves the tag along, we have a Burley Piccolo and it rocks. I like the Trail-a-bike brand as much as I like being hit with a baseball bat.
Bikes are our way of getting around town, so for our situation, we care about light bikes that the kids can ride far. Crap bikes have no place in our world.
We refer to training wheels as "catapults" after my son was on them for half an hour during which he was launched over the bars 3 times.


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## XJaredX (Apr 17, 2006)

My son was on a Specialized Hotwalk at about age 2.5; for his third birthday he got a Hotrock 12, after one week of training wheels he was pedalling just fine and we removed them. 

Beyond this, it is all about his size. He fits his 12" really well right now, I don't want to put him on a 16" which he could technically ride because he would lose so much agility compared to the 12". 

The balance bike, that still is used as he turns 4 this month. In the house! He tears back and forth on it from room to room. Plus we took it to a pump track last week, so it still is very useful. 

I do have a used trail-a-bike that I came into possession of, but it appears to be for like a 6-7 year old. I'm unsure of when or how I will ever use it.


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## TitanofChaos (Jun 13, 2011)

My 4 yr old (5 in sept) is 46" tall but like 45# he's going to outgrow the strider soon (already has a longer seat post) but doesn't quite have the strength to get the pedal bike to balance (20") 

Should I keep trying the pedal bike which discourages him when it doesn't have training wheels or get the new 16" strider?


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## GrayJay (May 16, 2011)

TitanofChaos said:


> My 4 yr old (5 in sept) is 46" tall but like 45# he's going to outgrow the strider soon (already has a longer seat post) but doesn't quite have the strength to get the pedal bike to balance (20")
> 
> Should I keep trying the pedal bike which discourages him when it doesn't have training wheels or get the new 16" strider?


Sounds like he needs a 16" pedal bike, not an overgrown strider.


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## GrayJay (May 16, 2011)

XJaredX said:


> I do have a used trail-a-bike that I came into possession of, but it appears to be for like a 6-7 year old. I'm unsure of when or how I will ever use it.


I have daughters age 4 and 7. While the 4-year old can ride solo on a 2-wheel 16" bike she doent really have the stamina or skills needed for longer and more difficult rides. Having a trail-a-bike is a great option with us because I can take her along on it for longer rides to keep-up with her older sister riding solo. Both my kids enjoy the novelty of the trail-a-bike, even the 7-year old still wants to take a turn at riding it whenever I hitch it up for her little sister.


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## normonster (Jan 12, 2008)

Strider to a 20" is jumping two wheel sizes (12" & 16")? I believe the 12" bikes are still bigger than strider. Maybe just get a beater 12" or 16" on craigslist... Dont need anything fancy at that point. Go big on the 20".


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## avines (Apr 29, 2013)

I have twin boys that are turning 12 in August and are 59" and 60". They have 24" Huffys that are anchors and while they can get around the Veloway in Austin, I can tell they aren't having as much fun as they could be.

I've been trolling CL for the 24" MT200-240s and Hot Rocks but haven't found anything yet. I'm also considering buying them new bikes but I'm worried they are on the cusp of needing a bigger bike and wouldn't want to spend the money on new bikes that won't last several years. 

What is the height cut off for a 26" MTB? Can you find top tubes that are 15-17" fairly easily? 29ers seem to be all the rage right now so there may not be as many options for the older style bikes. Thanks for any input.


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## J_Westy (Jan 7, 2009)

avines said:


> What is the height cut off for a 26" MTB? Can you find top tubes that are 15-17" fairly easily? 29ers seem to be all the rage right now so there may not be as many options for the older style bikes. Thanks for any input.


I just put my 5'0" daughter on a Small 16" 26er and all seems fine. :
http://forums.mtbr.com/families-riding-kids/2005-cdale-f800-re-build-my-11-yr-old-851395.html

The geometry is here:
Cannondale Geometry - Optimo, Furio and Verso Mountain HeadShok

Hopefully I'll get her on the trail on Sunday.


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## LB412 (Nov 28, 2012)

"
Originally Posted by avines 
What is the height cut off for a 26" MTB? Can you find top tubes that are 15-17" fairly easily? 29ers seem to be all the rage right now so there may not be as many options for the older style bikes. Thanks for any input."

Marin makes a 13" frame and Kona a 14" (not top tube). My 4'9" daughter can stand flat footed over her Kona. That said if I had to do again I'd buy the Marin. Also, shortening the stem helped a lot.


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## avines (Apr 29, 2013)

Thanks for the replies. We are headed to the LBS this weekend and when I went through yesterday they had 5-6 small 26" frames from 13-16" in different styles/makers.


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## LB412 (Nov 28, 2012)

Good luck


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## avines (Apr 29, 2013)

It looks like a Hard Rock 15" and a Trek 3500 are in our future! Bdays aren't until August so it will kill me as well as them to wait but this should be fun.


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## linzter (Dec 8, 2010)

GrayJay said:


> If you want to skip a bike, skip the overpriced stryder bike and just remove the crank from a 12" to teach them ballance first, then add the crank/pedals back on later. Skill of pedaling is comparativly easy to learn and they probably will already know how to pedal from a tricycle.
> A 20" bike is almost 2X the size of a 12", I wouldnt suggest skipping 16" wheel size. Just get them used bikes for free/cheap instad of buying new. Dont worry that these first bikes may be heavy junk, they will not be held back and wont care so long at the color is acceptable! I sources both useable 12" and 16" bikes from the curb on neighborhood trash day. 16" wheel are noticeably more stable than 12" so they will be able to ride strait and turn smoothly without wobbeling all-over.


I just found this thread while doing some research on the Early Rider bike and have to disagree with this statement. Light weight balance bikes (not all balance bikes are light weight!) really do help little guys. Small children are not very strong so the more cumbersome a bike is, the harder time they'll have learning how to use it. My little guy is only 18 months old and is already getting started on his. If you get a light weight balance bike (either new or used) - they can always be sold again to recoup most of your money.


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## ProjectMayhem (Aug 23, 2013)

linzter said:


> Light weight balance bikes (not all balance bikes are light weight!) really do help little guys.


I agree, this is my youngest's progression:

19 months - Puky LRM balance bike (smallest we could find)
22 months - learnt to ride a pedal bike with no training wheels (an ancient heavy 10" wheel)
2 years - Specialized Hotrock 12 for his birthday (was the only bike small enough for him!)
2.5 - LikeaBike Jumper (the Puky was seeming a bit small and he was still having great fun doing jumps and tricks on it)
2yrs 11 months - custom build 16 inch pedal bike (is a little big for him but he manages it just fine and is able to ride rougher trails and a lot further, 3 miles+)


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## northernblades (Jul 22, 2011)

I only have a 4 year old.
at She is a very small 4 year old.
She was in a chariot until 3
Now I have the trailablike out witht he pedals tied to horizontal. (still too small to pedal them)
She has been on the balance bike since 3
for the last month of this last season (right before 4th birthday, I had her on a 12 inch POS.

In the spring, She will be 4 years 4 months, I will put her back on the POS, Untill she Clearly fits the 16 inch banshee

When she outgrows the banshee. I hope to justify the cost of a savage.
if not, she will likely be getting an MEC bike. As She was not interested enough to justify a savage.


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## Whitewater (Nov 17, 2012)

I'm debating the 16" BMX or a 20" 1x7 for my 5YO daughter. She started on a 12" with training wheels in parallel with the Strider, I let her pick which one she wanted to ride but admittedly pushed toward the strider at times. One day she simply told me she wanted the trianers gone, took em off and 5 minutes later she was railing down the driveway. Recently took it for a spin in some gravel and that 12" tire turned out to be pretty detrimental in all but pavement and hard pan. I think she will outgrow the 16 in a year but she's going to have some initial problems getting the 20 moving because her tippy toes just barely touch from the lowest the seat will go. I'll cut 1" off the post and hope for the best. Right now I'm leaning to the 20".


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## Vorar (Oct 23, 2010)

We have two boys ages 3.9 and 6.2. My oldest is getting a new bike while my youngest is getting his brothers old bike. I realized this has been the case every Christmas. Here is their bike progression:

1st son:

3 years old: Gets strider for Christmas. Rides in the house all winter.
Spring comes and starts riding 12" 30lb. clunker, no training wheels.
4 years old: Christmas, gets 12lb. 18" Redline Flight Micro Mini, Races that summer has fun, wins a few.
Gets a used 16" Hotrock this summer as well.
5 years old: Christmas, gets 20" Redline Proline Mini BMX race bike (half as expensive as his last Redline). Races a bunch in the summer, wins almost all races and smiles alot. 
6 years old: Fall comes, I take him Mt. biking with me with his race bike (narrow tires and one rear v- brake). Pretty rough.
6 years old: Christmas comes this year. I have a new bike hiding under the bed waiting for him on Christmas day: A 2014 Commencal Ramones 20" The thing is pretty rad. 21lbs single speed. Hydralic disk brakes 

2nd Son:

At 2 years begins riding his brothers strider.
At 3.4 years begins riding 12" Hotrock no training wheels.
At 3.5 starts racing with his Strider at local BMX track. Wins all his races and smiles alot. 
At 3.6 Learns to ride his brother 18" Redline Micro Mini
At 3.7 prefers his brothers 16" Hotrock over his own 12" Hotrock.
For Christmas this year his brother will give him his 18" Redline and 16 inch Hotrock.

Both still love riding the Strider. Based on my families experience I do not recommend replacing the strider with a 12" bike. The Strider is much lighter.(5lbs. vrs 30lbs.) and played a huge role in both boys progression and love of riding.


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