Springcykel the Premiere Ride

My youngest daughter Mimmi turned 3 years old this Saturday and we got her the "Springcykel" I wrote about last month.

In short a Springcykel is a kids bike without pedals that you propel with the help of kicking it forward with your feet and when you reach sufficient speed you lift up your feet and just glide along.

On Sunday afternoon we took the bike out for a spin. The bike is really light and Mimmi had no problems with mounting and unmounting the bike by herself.  This is a key feature of the Springcykel in my opinion. I remember how Siri, my oldest daughter, struggled with her 16 inch kids bike that weighed about 3 times more than the Springcykel, making it practically impossible to ride without some kind of support.  

The frame, fork and handlebars are made of some steel alloy. The website simply states that it is made of metal. The wheels are plastic with 12 inch air-pressure tires. The whole package feels pretty stable. There are other models made out of wood but I think the metal one is a better choice if you plan to ride it outside.

The plan is that Mimmi will learn the basics of cycling on this bike and next summer we will get her a real bike with pedals. Of course pedaling will be new to her, but I think that the main issue when learning to ride a bike is how you balance on it and she will definitely pick that up on the Sprincykel.

So, how did the test ride turn out? At first she just walked around with the bike beneath her. But soon she realized that she could sit on the saddle and push herself forward with her feet.  After raising the saddle a bit, it became easier for her to ride it properly. She didn't pick up enough speed to glide any longer distances but managed some 1-2 seconds of  "no-feet" gliding and had no problem with staying on the bike when the speed dropped off, keeping the balance with her feet.

I will try to compile a short video later on so you can see the bike in motion. For now here are some more shots from the ride.