Pink Bikes Are On Their Way

Many of you have asked and it is finally happening. Our pink bikes are on their way! I estimate to have them in the online store by September 15th. It may take a little longer for retailers to begin carrying them, but if everything goes as planned, you should be able to purchase a Sunrise Pink Boot Scoot on or soon after September 15th. So get ready all you little princesses! 

Made in China

I have been asked a couple of times where our bikes are made, so I wanted to clearly state that they are made in Zhejiang China.

Great Feedback

I just received this email today from one of our customers. It made me so happy, I just had to share it:

"I just wanted to send a comment regarding your great bikes. We got one for our 5-year old and one for our 2-year old. They both love them, and my 2-year old is never outside without his. My main comment is that my 5-year old asked me if she could try her "big bike" without the training wheels today because she saw some older kids on theirs. I removed the training wheels, she climbed on and started pedaling. I followed here for half a block, and then she took off! No more help from me. I was astounded; I have never seen a kid pick it up so fast. I owe it all to the Boot Scoot bike; thanks so much for a great product!"

Isn't that fantastic!! I love hearing how much people love their  Boot Scoot Bikes. 

Boot Scootin' Photos

We've just added a great new feature to our website. You can now upload photos of your little Boot Scooter riding their balance bike. You can find the link on the Video/Photo Gallery page.

If you don't see your photos in the gallery right away, don't worry. My awesome web designer has set it up that I have to approve the photos first so we don't end up with something inappropriate on the site.

I can't wait to see photos of kids across the country riding their Boot Scoot Bikes, so please share your photos with us!

 

Oh Sweet Sadie Show

Boot Scoot Bikes will be available for purchase at the Oh Sweet Sadie! shows on

May 2 (9:30 AM-7:00 PM) and May 3 (9:30 AM-5:00 PM)

Desert Point Builders Model Home

6042 W Desert Star Lane

Herriman, Utah

May 9 (9:30 AM-7:00 PM) and May 10 (9:30 AM-5:00 PM)

Rainey Homes Model Home

14727 S Woods Landing Ct.

Suncrest Community, Draper, Utah

There are a lot of great items at these shows, including our balance bikes (of course). You can get a preview of what will be at the shows at www.ohsweetsadie.com. Hope to see you there!

Check out Boot Scoot Bikes on Good Things Utah!

This morning, my son, niece, and nephew turned into television stars on Good Things Utah. The studio floor was a little slick, so there were a couple spills on the balance bikes, but they brushed it off and kept going because, after all, the show must go on!

Check it out here: 

http://www.abc4.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=80903@video.ktvx.com&navCatId=462

Good Things Utah

Be sure to watch Good Things Utah on ABC4 in Utah next Tuesday, April 8 at 10:00 am. We will be giving away a balance bike to an at-home viewer, so don't miss it!

New colors for our balance bikes

Many people have inquired as to if and when pink Boot Scoot Bikes will be available. As a mother of two boys, I guess I didn't realize the NEED for pink. 

We create our inventory in very large quantities. As such, we cannot make certain colors on demand. However, as soon as we make a new batch of bikes, I guarantee pink bikes will be available and I will announce it on this blog. For those of you who must wait for pink, the soonest I can project this happening is 4 months (but could possibly be longer).

KUTV News

Our balance bikes were featured on KUTV Channel 2 in Salt Lake City on Thursday, March 20. Hopefully we'll have a video from that feature to show soon. For now, here is the address where you can view the story: 
http://www.kutv.com/content/morning/story.aspx?content_id=ea392864-c3df-46c6-8a8e-aed229bd5926

Short Article About Balance Bikes

Balance Bikes for Kids: Reinventing the (Two) Wheel

An ancestor of today’s modern bicycle is the Laufmaschine, German for “running machine.” Patented by Karl von Drais in 1818, this running machine had two in-line wheels and was propelled by the rider pushing along the ground as if walking or running.

Though the Laufmaschine was short-lived, Drais’s basic concept has recently made a comeback in a much smaller version as balance-training bikes for young children. Very small bikes with 12” or smaller tires and no pedals or crankshafts are becoming more and more popular as an alternative to tricycles and even bikes with training wheels.

The benefits of balance bikes (also called walking bikes, running bikes, or push bikes) have been largely ignored, especially in the United States. Some people feel that young children don’t have the ability to balance on a two-wheeled vehicle. The “AGE DETERMINATION GUIDELINES: Relating Children’s Ages To Toy Characteristics and Play Behavior” published by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission in 2002 states (http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/adg.pdf, 169), “Children at age 3 have developed the ability to pedal, and have the coordination required to use a steering wheel or handlebar. They can use three-wheeled scooters, but they have not developed the balance required to operate two-wheeled scooters and bicycles.” However, one look at numerous online videos proves that children as young as 18 months can and do balance on two wheels.

Perhaps we have underestimated our children’s ability and it is time to rethink the way we help our kids learn to ride bicycles. So often we see children on bikes that are much too big for them leaning to one side or the other because the training wheels hold them up. They may learn to pedal, but the training wheels only give false confidence and teach bad habits that have to be unlearned when the parent finally convinces (or bribes) their child to try the bike without them. The parent then ends up running behind their child, holding on to the bike while the child screams, “Don’t let go!” and scrutinizes the shadow on the ground to ensure their parent is still holding on tightly.

With balance bicycles, children learn balance at their own pace, just as they learn to walk at their own pace. Some need more encouragement than others, but with a balance bike the skill of balance comes more naturally because it begins with walking rather than pedaling.

As soon as a child has mastered walking and can place their feet flat on the ground while straddling the balance bike, he or she can begin to walk/ride their bike. As children become more comfortable, they soon sit on the seat and do more running or pushing. Before long, they can glide for short distance, lifting their feet off the ground entirely.

Compared to tricycles, balance bikes are much more maneuverable and versatile. Because they are running and gliding, children move more quickly than when riding tricycles. However, they can quickly stop by just placing their feet on the ground. Whereas pedaling a tricycle becomes very difficult on dirt and nearly impossible on grass, riding a balance bike is just a matter of pushing on the ground a little harder. This is an amazing benefit to parents who like to go for walks or mild hikes with their children. A two or three-year old, who is beginning to get a little heavy for a baby backpack and often has to be prevented from mauling a younger sibling in a double stroller, can easily keep pace with a walking or even jogging adult.

Though balance bikes are definitely not a new concept, they are worth revisiting when it comes to helping our children learn balance easier and more naturally.


Katie Stirling, President
Boot Scoot Bikes, LLC
katie@bootscootbikes.com
www.bootscootbikes.com