Freeheeler1690

Hello

My 7yr old recently got his first racing bike

It's a 24' Frog

It comes with traditional toe cage and straps

As I thought, he was having quite a bit of trouble getting into the straps at the start because they always ended up upside down and it took quite a bit of fiddling to get his feet in and of course he was taking his eyes of our pathway and wobbling quite a bit. I took the straps off and the toe cages and he was fine but there did not seem to be a lot of grip on the pedals by themselves and he has slipped off using his running shoes. He competes in kids triathlons so he gets on the bike with his running shoes.

Any suggestions for keeping the toe cage 'upwards instead of underneath or should i just get a better pair of pedals?

Thanks

alcjphil

Before you go any farther check to find out if kids his age are allowed to use any device to secure their feet to the pedals. If not, platform pedals with spikes would do the best job

Iride01 

If they aren't participating in races or other competition, I'd probably will be unlikely to encourage a 7 yo to use clips or clipless of any sort. Just plain old flat pedals.

If they grew up on a bike since pre-K, then I might be of a different opinion. Do you ride yourself and use clips or clipless?

Freeheeler1690

I have speedplay myself

The bike came with the toe cages and straps so I think I will just try and find a lightweight pair of pedals to replace them which look to have good grips. He's been racing on bikes since he was 1 3/4 yrs old. Started on his strider, then BMX racing and has been doing tris since he was 4

Russ Roth

Platforms or clipless, toe clips and straps are a bad idea in my experience for anyone. I've still got the technique down for myself but with my kids I put platforms on their MTB and BMX and clipless on their road and track bikes; track bikes really need it. I only put clipless on my daughter's road bike to keep her feet from wandering all over her pedals which caused her feet to slip off. 8yo's road bike is still platform. Something halfway decent with plastic spikes that don't dig into their shins works well. For the shorter distance tri that your kid will do platforms will also be faster since there's no shoe swap to deal with and they're not on the bike long enough for the minimal time the bike ride runs.

alcjphil

So, I was curious about the rules for children and I consulted this website:
https://www.trikids.ca/rules-safety/...20group%20only.
The rules state among other things: "⋅Cage pedals are NOT permitted at any age."

70sSanO

Wow! At 2yo I couldn’t even find my butt with two hands.

John

Freeheeler1690

Good to know

Thanks for that

Mind you, i don't think too many of the youngsters that do the job of marshall at the events would know that. A lot of the young boys that race are topless. The first triathlon we went to when he was 4 was so competitive, we only went for socialization with other kids but my goodness the parents were pushing their young boys and girls so hard. In the transition zone I was busy drying him off, putting his shirt on, socks on, putting sunscreen on, his bib all and kids were zooming past us.

I'll maybe transfer his metal BMX pedals with spikes over and see how they go. Otherwise I'll look for some rubber pedals

Thanks

dsbrantjr

Power Grips straps might be a good compromise between nothing and clips/straps/clipless, and might be rules-compliant: https://www.powergrips.com/

sweeks

He seems a bit young for constraints on foot position. That said, what about "strapless" toeclips? Easy-in, easy-out.
Strapless

Ironfish653

Instead of ‘rubber,’ I like the plastic (nylon) bodied BMX pedals like the Animal “Hamilton” and Odessey “Twisted”. They’re fairly light, have decent grip, and come in all kinds of funky colors (bonus for kids’ bikes). You can find them all day long for $20 or often less.