A big thanks this month to Brad K. Evans and the staff of Kickstand Magazine for featuring the Strider PREBike in their kid’s section.
Archive for March, 2010
Strider PREBike: As seen in Kickstand Magazine
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010Can a Balance Bike Help Autistic Kids?
Monday, March 29th, 2010I got this email from a customer last week and it made my day!
-Ryan
Hi! We purchased our Strider PREbike this week, and received it in the mail today. I just wanted to tell you our story and share a video with you.
Our son, Garrett, is 5 and he has a form of autism. We recently took him to buy his first bike. At the store, all of the display bikes had the training wheels set so that the bike rocked instead of all the way down and stable. Due to the sensory issues that go along with autism spectrum disorders, he FREAKED OUT! Needless to say, we didn’t end up getting a bike.
We came home and started shopping online for bikes, thinking that if we just got him one and set it up with the training wheels in the all-the-way-down position, he would be fine. During that process, we found balance bikes. After more research, we chose yours.
We got the bike today and got it put together just fine. We captured his VERY FIRST ride on video for you. Keep in mind that this is a kid that flipped the last time he straddled a bike seat and had a good chance of either failing at this or only succeeding after lots of work. Check out the smile on his face!! He even wiped out on the wet pavement and got back up and kept going. I imagine he’ll be ready to give his Strider to his 3-year-old sister sometime this summer when he upgrades.
I’m going to make sure to tell his doctors about our success with this. More parents with special needs kids should know.
Thank you for your product and for giving us another option, from the bottoms of our hearts
Ryan and Heidi Johnson
From the video description: G has a form of autism. When we went to buy him a two-wheeled bike, all the display models had the training wheels set so the bike rocked and a FLIPPED. After some research, this is what we chose as an alternative to training wheels. This was his first attempt at it. He’s already picking his feet up. He should be riding a pedal bike in no time. Oh, and after the spill, he was fine. He turned to sharp on wet pavement. Oh, well. It happens!
Strider gets your toddler moving in the right direction
Friday, March 26th, 2010
According to the Center For Disease Control, children should participate in at least one hour of physical activity each day.
Sadly, most children fall short. How does your child measure up?
Approximately one-third of our nation’s children are overweight or obese. Because of this, First Lady Michele Obama, has made it her mission to eliminate the epidemic of childhood obesity.
“Teachers are seeing the challenges that kids with weight issues are having — not being able to participate in gym, feeling a little more sluggish,” the first lady said. “It’s not about weight … it’s about fitness and it’s about overall nutrition.”
The Let’s Move campaign aims to reduce childhood obesity in the United States within a generation. And the Strider PREbike is a perfect way for YOUR toddler to get moving in the right direction and establish a healthy, active lifestyle.
Toddlers also need to develop essential motor skills early in life. The Strider™ teaches your child balance, coordination and develops glittering confidence. Tricycles and training wheels simply can’t compare.
If your child can walk…Â your child can ride a Striderâ„¢. Order Strider PREbike today, and get your toddler moving in the right direction.
Team Strider riders have all the fun!
Sunday, March 14th, 2010Our latest Team Strider rider, named JoJo, is just 30 months old and resides in Cleveland, OH. He has the great fortune of an awesome indoor mountain bike park nearby. Check out JoJo as he rides a maze of ladder trails and teeter-totters. This video makes me want to travel to Cleveland with my mountain bike just to have some fun with him.
Strider Riders… it’s Arena Cross time!
Thursday, March 11th, 2010This Saturday night is another Black Hills Arena Racing indoor motocross night at the Fairgrounds Event Center in Rapid City, SD. Come in through the doors on the east side. Doors open at 5:45pm. Strider riders take to the track immediately and can ride until motorcycle racing starts at 6:30pm.… There will be a free pass at the front door for any parent/adult with an accompanying Strider/Rider… one pass per rider. Come have some fun, eat some concession stand junk food and stay for some good race action. God Bless America!
Check out our latest video about the Strider / Motocross crossover…
Strider PREbike Attends the NSSEA Education Expo
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
The gang at Strider PREbike will be attending the Ed Expo at Orange County Convention Center, Orlando, FL, on March 18-20, 2010.
The National School Supply & Equipment Association’s (NSSEA) Ed Expo is the largest back-to-school ordering show, specifically geared toward the educational products retailer and full-line distributor. Ed Expo provides the opportunity to see thousands of products, network with fellow dealers, and increase business know-how through workshops.
Strider will be demonstrating the advantages of a Strider PREbike over tricycles that tip-over, and have the potential to cause injuries and fear.
Hope to see you there!
Tricycle experience misconception…
Monday, March 1st, 2010I’m always surprised when cautious parents make a comment about doubting their child could ride a Strider and say they better just stick with a tricycle… as if the Strider is for advanced kids. Maybe I’ve been so immersed in this for so long that it comes as a surprise. From all of our research and experience, we see it from a completely different viewpoint. We see tricycles as being much more difficult for young children to operate… the weight of the tricycle is just the beginning, climbing on and off is much more difficult, and trying to actually operate the pedals with little legs that are only 12″ long is nearly impossible. If you watch most children on tricycles, they are putting their feet down on the ground (if they can reach!) and trying to push it like a Strider. The other startling misconception is that a tricycle is a safe and stable vehicle for children to be on. The three-wheeled design has to be about the most UNstable design possible… it’s high center of gravity leads to a violent tip as soon as the front wheel is turned. This design is so dangerous that motorized three-wheeled ATVs were actually outlawed in the U.S. because of the number of injuries and fatalities. This same tendency to tip is inherent in the tricycle as well. Watch our latest video with a comparison of children on tricycles vs. children on Striders and you’ll see first hand the difference in the experience. These tricycle clips are all pulled from youtube and are only a fraction of the video content out there… do the research, then save your child the trauma of a trike and advance their skills on a Strider…
And, by the way, a pedal bike with training wheels is basically the same as a tricycle (with an even higher, more unstable center of gravity). We estimate a solid 2 year advancement on balance and bike handling skill when going the route of the balance bike as opposed to the tricycle/training wheels route.
