Love this article! Some of my best riding memories are relatively tame rides with my offspring.
My tips after 15 years (now I feel old) of BikeDad-dom.
1) Run/balance bikes are awesome, run bikes with a rear brake are awesomer.
2) Small gloves - look at Moto-X brands, my kids had Fox gloves as their first gloves as their XS kids ones are tiny.
3) Ignore suspension on kids bikes, at first. My boys had Islabikes initially (i.e. sub-24in wheels) for easy UK Blue trails and laps of the village and pumptrack. They were light and Just Worked.
4) Weigh stuff - the application of a set of scales and a relatively small £/$ value can reduce kid bike weights by a couple of lbs easy. Tyres, posts, bars, saddles and stems are the usual culprits.
5) Fit a dropper post - my kids cornering technique increased exponentially as soon as I was able to fit one. Worth the extra weight IMHO.
6) Prioritise your kids bike stuff over your own. You probably can do without that new shiny thing or jersey in the on trend colour but your kids will always get bigger.
7) Finish your ride with cake/ice cream.
8) Take LOTS of snacks and have back up snacks.
9) Ride with other families, kids love riding with other kids.
Things like the MacRide and Towhee weren't around when my kids were little (they are now 13 and 15, and nearly as big as I but we definitely would have used them if they were.
May 22, 2023, 3:28 a.m. - Dan Lees
Love this article! Some of my best riding memories are relatively tame rides with my offspring. My tips after 15 years (now I feel old) of BikeDad-dom. 1) Run/balance bikes are awesome, run bikes with a rear brake are awesomer. 2) Small gloves - look at Moto-X brands, my kids had Fox gloves as their first gloves as their XS kids ones are tiny. 3) Ignore suspension on kids bikes, at first. My boys had Islabikes initially (i.e. sub-24in wheels) for easy UK Blue trails and laps of the village and pumptrack. They were light and Just Worked. 4) Weigh stuff - the application of a set of scales and a relatively small £/$ value can reduce kid bike weights by a couple of lbs easy. Tyres, posts, bars, saddles and stems are the usual culprits. 5) Fit a dropper post - my kids cornering technique increased exponentially as soon as I was able to fit one. Worth the extra weight IMHO. 6) Prioritise your kids bike stuff over your own. You probably can do without that new shiny thing or jersey in the on trend colour but your kids will always get bigger. 7) Finish your ride with cake/ice cream. 8) Take LOTS of snacks and have back up snacks. 9) Ride with other families, kids love riding with other kids. Things like the MacRide and Towhee weren't around when my kids were little (they are now 13 and 15, and nearly as big as I but we definitely would have used them if they were.