Teach the Kids to Ride
By Paul Howard
You know the phrase 'it's just like riding a bike'. As far as I understand it, it's intended to imply simplicity and, more importantly, something that can't be forgotten. On the one hand, as an infrequent cyclist (at least, not as frequent as I'd like), this is reassuring. All those days not spent on a bike, when the experiences accumulated over 30 years of riding seem to be receding to some dusty corner of the mind, can be put to one side as soon as the shed door is opened.
On the other hand, as a father of two children until recently incapable of riding a bicycle, the concept is slightly less encouraging. There is certainly nothing in it to suggest how to go about acquiring the knowledge that subsequently can't be forgotten. What is the secret that transforms a mundane bike into a magical machine that can take you anywhere your heart desires?
Magic has never been my strong point, but here are some tips gleaned from personal experience that may help you overcome some of the hurdles that stand in the way of a two-wheeled future. They certainly meant that the process with child number two was a lot swifter and more pain free (physically and emotionally) than with number one.
Look Mum, no stabilisers!
The first plan for initiating my oldest child into the secret society of cyclists was to resort to the apparently tried and tested method of stabilisers. This only lasted the time it took to visit the local bike shop, however. To my pleasant surprise the shop declined to cash in on my enthusiasm and sell me stabilisers. Instead, they suggested it might be better to try without them right from the start. As my daughter met most of the conditions deemed necessary for success - enthusiasm, being nearly four, and being able to turn the pedals herself - it seemed worth a try. Several back-breaking (for me) and knee scuffing (for my daughter) sessions at the park later, not to mention a dangerously declining morale on both sides, it became clear that success was not imminent and a new strategy would have to be adopted.
Look Mum, stabilisers!
That next strategy was hardly rocket science as it simply involved returning to the original plan of fitting stabilisers. But while it temporarily buried the dream of being able to ride a bike 'properly', it at least meant it was possible to ride one at all. The benefits of this were quickly apparent: an immediate increase in riding time thanks to being able to take the bike to the park with only one parent, even if the other younger siblings were in tow (previously it had been impossible to control three other toddlers while hanging on to the back of a by-now four year-olds bike; an equally immediate and probably more important restoration of bike-related enthusiasm for all parties.
All in good time
It also became clear that the next phase in the process was to let this enthusiasm develop through the natural passage of time. While my daughter's desire to ride her bike had been restored, she greeted gentle suggestions that her stabilisers be removed with an icy chill. So be it. As with crawling and walking, each child is likely to be the best judge of when they are ready to make that leap into the unknown.
Sibling rivalry
The next phase, as the clocks went forwards again the following spring, was the introduction of a little sibling rivalry from child number two (son number one). Although only turning three in May, his desire to copy every achievement of his big sister meant cycling his bike was a natural, summer-time activity - this time with stabilisers from the start. Far from putting his big sister's nose out of joint, it merely provided her with an opportunity to share her own discoveries, while her brother's enthusiasm proved infectious, fuelling an unlikely virtuous circle that lasted well into the following autumn.
A balancing act
The penultimate piece of the cycling puzzle came to us by chance, the result of a fortuitous Christmas gift of scooters. While themselves requiring the acquisition of a certain degree of skill, scooters are nevertheless much less complex machines to ride than bicycles. They are, therefore, an ideal way to acquire the real 'magic ingredient' for learning to ride a bike - a sense of balance. After all, it is this, rather than scooters themselves, that is essential for moving to two-wheeled cycling. Had we had the foresight to try them, scoot along bikes - or the children's own bikes with the pedals removed - could, I'm sure, have filled the same role.
The right size of bike
Finally, the combination of perfected pedalling, rudimentary but usually effective braking and this newly acquired sense of balance meant the moment of truth beckoned again ("Please can you take our stabilisers off, you said you would, you said you would, please, please, please...). For my daughter, with a degree of reticence perhaps induced by memories of her first attempts two-years previously, it took swapping back to a smaller bike for her to have sufficient control over the inevitable wobbles to finally be free; yet, in a matter of minutes, the leap of faith was made. For her younger brother, only just four, five seconds of me holding his saddle was enough for us both to realise I was redundant "Look, Daddy, I'm doing proper cycling!".
Just two more
Thus it was that the much-feared summer of running after not one but two wannabe cyclists was miraculously avoided. Instead, after a couple of weeks spent mastering those pesky aspects of starting, steering and stopping unaided (no tuition required, just lots of practice and some more sibling rivalry), plans could be made to visit cycle-friendly sea-front promenades and disused railways. Better still, Daddy, or perhaps even Mummy, could take their bike too. If I can only remember this sequence of events for our now two-year old twins, the prospects for the Howard family time-trial team look good indeed.
