Islabike rothan balance bike to cnoc 14 - stabilisers?

p1tse

Bought my 3 yr old a cnoc 14. Well he's 3 and a few months. He's had his rothan balance bike a year now and is comfortable steering, balancing with it

I was hoping he would be big enough for the cnoc 14 but he's still a tad small

He hasn't got the concept of pedalling yet.
I didn't get it with stabilisers, but now thinking as he can't quite reach floor to ride without I'm thinking maybe I should stick some on, thoughts?

I know people / islabike website suggest use without, but should I
a) continue to use rothan only
b) use rothan and cnoc 14 with stabilisers
c) use rothan and use cnoc 14 without stabilisers with limited usage ( as I will need to hold him him at all times as he's too small and doesn't pedal)

16mm

Take the pedals off the cnoc, and wait till he's big enough and happy on it before you put them back on. Took about 5 months for ours. He got really good on the rothan in that time.

Don't put stabilizers on the cnoc after using a balance bike just so that you can see the new bike being used. Its a backward step.

p1tse

To be honest he's still a little small stood up on the saddle as he can't get flat foot to floor and tip toe on one side

I would try without pedals if he reached ok but just not sure

I can't remember the inside measurement on islabike chart but he was just boarderline

16mm

p1tse wrote:

To be honest he's still a little small stood up on the saddle as he can't get flat foot to floor and tip toe on one side

I would try without pedals if he reached ok but just not sure

I can't remember the inside measurement on islabike chart but he was just boarderline

He's probably still the right size for the rothan. It's frustrating waiting for them to grow:-)

p1tse

I'll keep him on rothan but how do I teach him to pedal?

16mm

p1tse wrote:

I'll keep him on rothan but how do I teach him to pedal?

Get him on the cnoc without pedals first, to get the balance and braking sorted on the bigger bike. Then go somewhere where lots of people are pedalling (luckily we were at Centre Parcs) and he'll want to copy:-)

I think we stuck dinosaur stickers on the cnoc, and then he wanted to ride 'dinosaur bike' with the pedals!

Mine just went from cnoc 14 to beinn20 without a single swerve or wobble. The rothan to cnoc is the biggest jump, so try not to push it.

p1tse

Thanks

I appreciate the cnoc is much bigger to rothan

Just would like to get the concept of pedalling too

Will wait

simon_e

Be patient, he's only three years old!

There's no standard progression rate. My daughter was reluctant to swap from her "horsey bike" (Rothan) to the Cnoc and she struggled with starting off and pedalling smoothly. Once she got the hang of it she was away, happily chasing after her brother.

Let him enjoy it and don't dent his confidence or enthusiasm by rushing him onto the bigger bike. You'll know when he's ready.

p1tse

Thanks

He's keen to go on it with pedals but he's still a little small
Hence thought stabilisers might bring him a bit of confidence in sitting on it but then I'll be worried the hard work of the rothan and balancing will be lost and he won't want the stabilisers on, so thinking I won't

Not sure how he will react with taking pedals off too so will wait patiently

simon_e

p1tse wrote:

He's keen to go on it with pedals but he's still a little small
Hence thought stabilisers might bring him a bit of confidence in sitting on it but then I'll be worried the hard work of the rothan and balancing will be lost and he won't want the stabilisers on, so thinking I won't

What he has already learnt won't be wiped away completely, but stabilisers will delay learning to ride properly andif he's like most kids it will probably take a lot more time and effort persuading him it's time to remove them than anything else. I think they are counterproductive and would urge anyone to avoid them like the plague.

If you use the method Isla recommends - trot alongside with your hands under his armpits to keep him upright - he won't need to reach the floor. At least this way you could try it out and see how you get on.

Daz555

I'd take the pedals off if he needs confidence on the new bike (assuming he can reach floor ok) but I would not put stabilisers on it.

If he's too small then he's too small - there is no rush, just wait.

p1tse

Little lad asked to go out on his new bike
So he straddled it and he's too small for it without stabilisers, so will let he just straddle and touch it as he likes, but he also went back out on rothan.

Decided will avoid stabilisers