GravelMN

I've got a 10-year-old grandson who has only been riding for a couple of summers. I only get to ride with him a couple of times a month and I can see he's developing some bad habits. The problem of greatest concern is his braking. He will not keep his feet on the pedals. He stays seated and holds his feet out as if to catch himself when he finally comes to a stop. He can get away with it on gradual stops on smooth surfaces, but if he every has a panic stop he's in for a world of hurt. He also takes his feet off the pedals and holds them out to catch himself any time he is worried about falling. Along with this, he refuses to get his butt out of the saddle anytime the bike is moving. When he hits a rough patch or a pothole, he looks like a rodeo bronc rider hanging on for dear life. I've tried many times to correct him but he stubbornly gives me excuses why he "can't" keep his feet on the pedals or stand up. We took him to the skills park of a nearby MTB resort so he could ride with some kids of his own age who had mastered basic skills but to no avail, the old habits persisted even after watching other kids and multiple attempts to get him to try proper techniques. I'm out of ideas and my spouse is getting upset with me for frequently trying to correct him.

My concern is that he is becoming faster and bolder on the bike without developing much in the way of handling skills. At best he's going to take a top tube to the family jewels during a hard stop, but I see the potential for much worse outcomes.

Any suggestions?

CliffordK

Toeclips?

I wouldn't worry about it too much. His riding will evolve over time. Is he still on a BMX or small MTB? His focus might change on a road bike.

JonathanGennick 

Listen to your spouse. He's just ten. Let him ride and have fun and the details will come with time.

We older people can get obsessed with details of technique and technology. There's an art to knowing when a kid is interested and when it's better to just look the other way and enjoy the ride.

Of course don't take him out on trails and terrain for which you don't feel he is ready.

fietsbob

foam pad the frame. hand brakes?

delcrossv

Keep yelling at him to use his brakes, not his feet. I think all of mine did that for a while. They all eventually stopped. Getting them on speedplays might have had something to do with it too (not a lot of friction between the cleat and the road).

cplager

Ha! That's just mean.

GravelMN

I'm all for letting a kid be a kid and figure things out for himself, but you can't just look away when something he is doing is potentially very dangerous. There are no bike paths or MUPs in our community nor even sidewalks in a lot of areas. He rides on public streets and is getting faster and bolder but his handling skills are falling way behind. As I mentioned, my big concern is his braking. He sits bolt upright with his arms locked out and a death grip on the handlebar with his feet off the pedals held forward and outward. He uses pretty much only the rear brake. When he slows down enough that the bike begins to tip, he pretty much falls forward and has to run several steps straddling the top bar or on tip toes still seated on the saddle.

He is riding a rigid framed MTB with hybrid tires and canti brakes that I built for him. I seriously doubt that he would keep foam pads on the frame as the other kids would tease him. He has interest in doing a lot of the things he sees other kids his age doing on bikes but doesn't want to listen or practice the skills it takes to get there. I'm not worried about perfect technique, I just want him to be able to stop safely and quickly when needed. At the rate he is going he is going to learn by face plant, groin injury or worse.

I am hoping for some tips from parents/grandparents who have taught kids to ride and who have had similar experiences.

delcrossv

Ok in all seriousness: How about, "If you are going to ride the bike, either you'll do it correctly or not at all." If he keeps screwing around, bike goes away for a week and he has some "corner time". At some point , kids need some parenting.. ( or as you say, they'll learn via face plant etc.)

Then, when he's chastened, you can teach him the requisite skills.

BTDT. 6 kids riding, 3 regional TT champions.

jfowler85

Read "Breaking bad...", clicked, let down.

CrippledKonaBoy

"10-y-o grandson"; nothing more need be said. Unless his parents asked you to coach the kid, it's none of your business. He'll learn, or he won't, on his own.

My daughter LOVES to ride with me, always has; she's turning 18 in a couple days, wants to do a Jan. 1 ride with me. But when she was 10, *I* had to learn that she didn't just "ride for the ride's sake". I had to adjust to HER.

If you turn your couple-times-a-month rides with him into coaching sessions, you'll see the end of your rides with him inside of a year.

Lighten the he** up.

RPK79

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...-yell-you.html

Miele Man

Many kids LOVE to RIDE WITH THEIR legs sticking out and their feet off the pedals. In their immagination they feel like they're flying a plane or are a bird. The really ENJOY that feeling.

Cheers

joejack951

So far, every 'issue' I've witnessed with how my son rides has been corrected by simply riding more with him (check my thread from back in the summer when he first learned to pedal). I can tell he watches me because he's starting to coast and sometimes even pedal out of the saddle already and I've never once mentioned this to him.

FBOATSB

I don't have kids or grand kids, but I was a kid once many years ago and I couldn't wait for my mean old grampa to go home so I could go ride how I want with my friends just say'in.

Lil Bear

I have 3 nephews who all had some bad habits, but at least they loved riding. Keeping feet on the pedals was pretty easy... I basically stood up when stopping and did a track stand. They thought that was cool enough that they wanted to do it, too. Lead by example, don't "teach." As someone said earlier, he might need to feel pain before he learns. It's a process.

Alternatively, take the seats off the bikes and go for a stand-up ride.