Which bike for a 7yo?

I'm going to get my 7yo daughter a new bike and am looking for opinions
on which to get. She is a very good rider for her age and I think she is
ready to step up to a multi-geared bike. So far my main choices are the
Trek Mountain Track 60 or Specialized Hotrock 20. She's fairly tall for
her age and I think a 20" bike is the right size. I don't mind spending
a little more on a good bike with better quailty components. Are there
any other bikes to look at? Thanks for any input,

Scott

I'm going to get my 7yo daughter a new bike and am looking for opinions
on which to get. She is a very good rider for her age and I think she is
ready to step up to a multi-geared bike. So far my main choices are the
Trek Mountain Track 60 or Specialized Hotrock 20. She's fairly tall for
her age and I think a 20" bike is the right size. I don't mind spending
a little more on a good bike with better quailty components. Are there
any other bikes to look at? Thanks for any input,

Scott

Scott: Don't know about the Specialized (we don't sell that line) but the
TREK Mountain Track 60 is a very solid bike that should survive her and
maybe a couple other kids afterward. But even with a kid's bike, the
differences between one shop and another (in terms of how carefully they set
it up) can be a bigger difference than what you find between brands.

And, of course, color can be a big issue for kids!

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

Mike Jacoubowsky wrote:
I'm going to get my 7yo daughter a new bike and am looking for opinions
on which to get. She is a very good rider for her age and I think she is
ready to step up to a multi-geared bike. So far my main choices are the
Trek Mountain Track 60 or Specialized Hotrock 20. She's fairly tall for
her age and I think a 20" bike is the right size. I don't mind spending
a little more on a good bike with better quailty components. Are there
any other bikes to look at? Thanks for any input,

Scott

Scott:

rant
I've always wondered why kids' bikes in the US are - well, kids bikes.
They're heavy, overburdened with "features" like suspension that most
kids don't need, and for some bikes, weigh more than the kid. (No, I'm
not kidding - read the specs and heft one of these monsters.) A riding
buddy of mine bought a full suspension kid's bike for his kid, and it's
so heavy his kid can't ride it for any distance. In other words, some
of these bikes are toys, meant to look pretty under the tree and then
rust in the driveway.

I would guess the Trek and Specialized are a cut above, but still, the
Trek weighs a lot - I know, I considered it for my 6 year old.
/rant

Fuji makes a great kids touring bike. I can't find the link to it at
the moment, but it comes with road tires, 20" wheels, fenders, etc. The
catch is that it's sold in UK. Not in the US.

Author makes a line of great kids bikes. I like this one:
http://www.author.cz/index.php?kolo&...dk=41&idkk=732
http://www.author.cz/index.php?kolo_...=2004&idkk=732
20 lbs, aluminum frame, real functioning brakes and gears, narrower
hybrid tires, beautiful. US$170. The catch? Only available in the
Czech Republic (My 6 year old happens to have one of these. It really
is a great bike.) All of the parts on the bike are the standard stuff -
Quando hubs, Shimano shifters, etc. It's basically a Trek Mountain
Trask 60 without the front suspension (and the weight). I even think
the Trek has slightly better components.

I can't figure out why a bike like this can't be sold in the US. Is it
because parents (or kids) have featureitis and want the dual suspension
super duper whammy jammy without regard to rideability?

-Kamus

--
What am I on?
I'm on my bike, o__
6 hours a day, busting my ass. ,/'_
What are you on? --Lance Armstrong (_)\(_)

wrote in message . com...
I'm going to get my 7yo daughter a new bike and am looking for opinions
on which to get. She is a very good rider for her age and I think she is
ready to step up to a multi-geared bike. So far my main choices are the
Trek Mountain Track 60 or Specialized Hotrock 20. She's fairly tall for
her age and I think a 20" bike is the right size. I don't mind spending
a little more on a good bike with better quailty components. Are there
any other bikes to look at? Thanks for any input,

Scott

I looked at two bikes for my seven year old and chose the Specialized
Hotrock 20 over the Trek model. At the time, the Specialized had
slightly better components. This was two years ago, and it's possible
that Specialized has decontented the Hotrock by now. Either one would
be fine.

If you have a Performance shop near you also check them out as they've
added some kids bikes to their line-up. The Performance K-2000 is
about $120, though the ten speed gearing is overkill, and the 6-7
speed Trek and Specialized models are more than sufficient.

Kamus of Kadizhar wrote in message ...

rant
I've always wondered why kids' bikes in the US are - well, kids bikes.
They're heavy, overburdened with "features" like suspension that most
kids don't need, and for some bikes, weigh more than the kid. (No, I'm
not kidding - read the specs and heft one of these monsters.) A riding
buddy of mine bought a full suspension kid's bike for his kid, and it's
so heavy his kid can't ride it for any distance. In other words, some
of these bikes are toys, meant to look pretty under the tree and then
rust in the driveway.

I would guess the Trek and Specialized are a cut above, but still, the
Trek weighs a lot - I know, I considered it for my 6 year old.
/rant

Fuji makes a great kids touring bike. I can't find the link to it at
the moment, but it comes with road tires, 20" wheels, fenders, etc. The
catch is that it's sold in UK. Not in the US.

Author makes a line of great kids bikes. I like this one:
http://www.author.cz/index.php?kolo&...dk=41&idkk=732
http://www.author.cz/index.php?kolo_...=2004&idkk=732
20 lbs, aluminum frame, real functioning brakes and gears, narrower

hybrid tires, beautiful. US$170. The catch? Only available in the
Czech Republic (My 6 year old happens to have one of these. It really
is a great bike.) All of the parts on the bike are the standard stuff -
Quando hubs, Shimano shifters, etc. It's basically a Trek Mountain
Trask 60 without the front suspension (and the weight). I even think
the Trek has slightly better components.

I can't figure out why a bike like this can't be sold in the US. Is it
because parents (or kids) have featureitis and want the dual suspension
super duper whammy jammy without regard to rideability?

The state of kids bikes in the U.S. is appalling. It is virtually
impossible to buy a kids road/touring bike in the U.S. You have to
travel to Europe or Asia to pick one up.

I may suggest to someone I know that imports commute bikes that he
consider adding a 20" wheeled and a 24" wheeled model. They are widely
available and there is enough demand for at least one shop in the U.S.
to sell them.

The Fuji trekking bikes can be seen at: "http://fujibikes.com/youth/".
Look at the Lion and Tiger models. I would have bought one of these in
a heartbeat versus a Hotrock. Alas, as the text states, "only
available in Europe." Fuji has a lot of potential in the U.S..

"Kamus of Kadizhar" wrote in message
...
I've always wondered why kids' bikes in the US are - well, kids bikes.
They're heavy, overburdened with "features" like suspension that most
kids don't need, and for some bikes, weigh more than the kid.

It may be heresy, but for anybody under adult size I think there's a good
deal to be said for getting a used bike, a simple, inexpensive bike, or even
a good *mart bike.

1. Many people on this list can put together a kid's bike. It's not rocket
science, especially if you keep the bike simple. Actually, the assembly
information that came with the Murray and Huffy bikes I bought my daughters
some years ago were substantially better than the information that came with
the Giant Sedona I bought my younger daughter this year -- perhaps because
Giant assumed that trained personnel would assemble it, and Murray and Huffy
assumed it would be a parent or relatively unskilled retail help.

2. They will outgrow it.

3. You may tell yourself that if you get the kid a good bike, they will
learn to take care of it, but part of being a kid is having some things that
you don't have to take much care of.

"Mike Jacoubowsky" wrote in message
. com...
I'm going to get my 7yo daughter a new bike and am looking for opinions
on which to get. She is a very good rider for her age and I think she is
ready to step up to a multi-geared bike. So far my main choices are the
Trek Mountain Track 60 or Specialized Hotrock 20. She's fairly tall for
her age and I think a 20" bike is the right size. I don't mind spending
a little more on a good bike with better quailty components. Are there
any other bikes to look at? Thanks for any input,

Scott

Scott: Don't know about the Specialized (we don't sell that line) but the
TREK Mountain Track 60 is a very solid bike that should survive her and
maybe a couple other kids afterward. But even with a kid's bike, the
differences between one shop and another (in terms of how carefully they
set
it up) can be a bigger difference than what you find between brands.

And, of course, color can be a big issue for kids!

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com


I agree that there is small difference between brands. For a neighborhood
bike to use and abuse, they do the job.
As a parent who hopes to one day tour and do club rides with his daughter, I
see these lead pipe specials as a threat.

I want my child to enjoy riding and later remember it as a magical and fun
part of her childhood.
Those heavy bikes virtually ensure that my daughter will be disinterested in
cycling long before she can fit a Terry or other small woman's bike.
My daughter needs a light and responsive road bike *now*!
A single importer who would be willing to market a lighweight child's bike
would be rendering a very valuable service to people like us!

On Mon, 01 Dec 2003 03:33:26 GMT, "Frank & Joni Knox"
wrote:



I agree that there is small difference between brands. For a neighborhood
bike to use and abuse, they do the job.
As a parent who hopes to one day tour and do club rides with his daughter, I
see these lead pipe specials as a threat.

I want my child to enjoy riding and later remember it as a magical and fun
part of her childhood.
Those heavy bikes virtually ensure that my daughter will be disinterested in
cycling long before she can fit a Terry or other small woman's bike.
My daughter needs a light and responsive road bike *now*!
A single importer who would be willing to market a lighweight child's bike
would be rendering a very valuable service to people like us!


On first blush, this seems reasonable, but a 7yo would probably not
notice all that much difference between a low end or high end bike. I
would suggest shying away from the 'mart bikes and looking for a low
end trek, specialized, schwinn, GT, etc. 21 speeds will work fine for
a couple years until she is ready to graduate to newer, high end
stuff. The difference between an $80 'mart bike and a decent used Trek
800 is minor (maybe even the same) and will suit her needs much more.
If you are looking for a road bike at 7yo, well... your options are
severely limited, but the same holds true.

Dan Brussee wrote:

On first blush, this seems reasonable, but a 7yo would probably not
notice all that much difference between a low end or high end bike.

Given that my experience with kids is limited to my own but...

My 6 year old is a mountain biker. I say this half seriously - I'm a
roadie, and have all the grace and ability of a overcooked yam on a
mountain bike, so I was really hoping to get her road riding. Alas, she
gets bored after even a mile of straight road. My wife took her on a 3
mile nature trail, though, and from what I hear, this kid was jumping
roots and had a blast. (I had my recumbent with me at the time, so no
root jumping for me.)

While gears, bike sophistication, geometry, etc. are lost on her - she
uses two speeds, slow and wide open - the weight of the bike is
paramount for having fun. That's where my problem with kid bikes
available in the US lies. They're all too heavy!

Most weigh in at 30 lbs or so. A 40 or 50 lb kid just can't muscle that
kind of weight with any sort of enjoyment. There is no reason why
someone couldn't build a sub-20lb kid's beater bike, and market it for
under $200.

If you are looking for a road bike at 7yo, well... your options are
severely limited, but the same holds true.

For a kid that young, putting road slicks on a 20 lb rigid frame bike
will make it a road bike. Drop handlebars would just confuse the issue
and possibly even be dangerous due to the brake lever placement - kids
have very short fingers and reach could be an issue, since there are no
kids road brake levers anymore...

-Kamus


--
What am I on?
I'm on my bike, o__
6 hours a day, busting my ass. ,/'_
What are you on? --Lance Armstrong (_)\(_)

In article ,
Kamus of Kadizhar wrote:
I can't figure out why a bike like this can't be sold in the US. Is it
because parents (or kids) have featureitis and want the dual suspension
super duper whammy jammy without regard to rideability?

I can't recall the precise details of the Giant bike I bought my (quite
tall, quite heavy) seven year old daughter for her seventh birthday in
April, but I'm pretty sure from a swift web search that it's the rigid
version of the Giant MTX225, either the '02 or the '03 model. I just
went into the local bike shop and said ``something good for her'' and
let them sort it out (and then did the same for myself, which
kickstarted my interest in riding bikes).

It's heavy, presumably because it's a steel frame, but it's been a
raging success. The shop's simple statement was that suspension is
pointless, heavy and unreliable at that price, which makes sense. Even
given she's tall and strong, the seat post is pretty much right the way
down, but that means she'll get several years of use from it. She had
struggled on a previous bike with stabilisers when we took them off, but
on the new bike (partly, I suspect, because she'd set herself the goal
of succeeding on her new bike, and once she sets herself a target it
doesn't get missed) she was riding it confidently within a few days.
And having decent brakes is handy, as we live on a hill.

Her first ride beyond the confines of the park at the bottom of the road
was on a local cycle track (Rea Valley route, Birmingham-ites) and she
managed a four mile round trip on that, and last weekend we went out for
a ride with a friend and she did about six and a half miles without
obvious strain, including several quite sharp hills, some muddy
sections, and four quick laps of a semi-abandoned 440yard running track
nearby.

I think (if such things existed easily) a bike with Rapidfire-style
gears would help, as her hands and wrists aren't really strong enough to
make using the twist-grip gears easy, but with it left on the smallest
chain ring she's happily using a range of gears reasonably sensibly.

ian