BlazingPedals

Yep. Taking off the pedals and lowering the saddle is definitely the best way to learn. Just do it! Nobody will laugh at you.

icemilkcoffee 

I am slightly miffed that in this day and age you can't learn to ride a bike with a video game simulator, without having to fall repeatedly and/or have your dad huffing and puffing pushing you from behind.

WhyFi

I haven't watched it yet, but this just got posted to my YouTube feed -

smashndash

I would have started by taking off the pedals. I was so afraid tom was going to obliterate his shins on those flats in the beginning

smashndash

no need for a simulator. A throttle operated motorbike/ebike with a low enough seat would work well enough. Basically an electric balance bike.

zandoval 

Easy Peasey... So what if ya only get a copula meters, go ahead and fall, get up and go again... Then at the bottom ya walk back up and go again... Remember slight slope, and try to pick out the place you are going to fall that way when you do its no biggey...

When you say Rollers I hope you are not talking about the stationary rollers used indoors for ridding a road bike on. Those are hard to master and even after mastering them they will get away from ya some times and will put you in the wall or another room in the blink of an eye.

Branko D

I wouldn't, you'll just not fall if you set the saddle down enough that you can plant your feet down. Plus, if you are going to be just balancing, what's the more logical place to put your feet on than the pedals?

Don’t see a need for the whole remove pedals thing.

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smashndash

I'm very confused about what your point is. Are you familiar with balance bikes?

Branko D

Yes. Taught four kids how to ride without buying a special bike which is made to not function like a bike 🤔

smashndash

OK. But you understand that the consensus in the bike community is that the balance bike is the easiest way to learn how to ride, right? And that taking off the pedals is the easiest way to mimic a balance bike? I'm not saying either is necessary. But you're going to have to make a very strong argument if you're trying to claim that it's easier to learn on a regular bike than it is on a balance bike.

plus, I wasn't even saying that taking off the pedals would help him learn. It would just reduce the risk of him slamming his shins on the pedals while waddling.

livedarklions

Well, hopefully the "waddling" will be over pretty quickly, and the adult will want to start pedaling pretty quickly, so disabling the bike in this way seems unnecessary and a bit silly. If there's a "consensus" (and I don't think there is), that's in regards to training a very young child.

Gotta say, I see a lot of parents teaching their kids how to ride, and it's almost never on a balance bike. The training wheels come off, the kid panic falls once, and then is riding, turning and stopping quite competently within a couple minutes.

To be clear, I am not recommending training wheels for an adult.

livedarklions

Unfortunately, there's no substitute for getting on a non-stationary bike and riding it. Bicycling is the epitome of a "learn by doing" as no one can TELL you how to balance, steer and stay stable while stopping.

I don't know what method will work best for you, but I think I should try to make a practical suggestion because the fear of embarrassment seems to be holding you back (that's not a judgment, btw, I admire you for admitting it here). I don't know what city you're in, but it seems likely that a park is the only realistic choice for where. I can tell you from riding habits that if you go to most parks right at or just after sunrise, there's usually very few people or even no one there. Maybe that might work for you as you aren't going to attract an "audience" at that time of day.

Maelochs

Yeah .... care to prove that?

Not sure where you live, but here on earth almost everyone I know started with a tricycle or a Big Wheel, then got a bike with training wheels ..... which allow the rider to balance but also prevent falling. And which are adjustable from full support to a good deal of lean ....

Yeah, buying a balance bike for the few minutes it takes someone to balance ..... is great for the people who make balance bikes. But I bet most people who visit this site learned to ride Not on balance bikes ....... Hmmmmmm .......

Also .... while a toddler might have a hard time with pedals (I didn't and I was and remain pretty stupid and uncoordinated .... so sorry for your situation .... ) I cannot see why an adult cannot grasp the idea of keeping clear of the pedals for the few times it takes to roll without falling off the bike with a lowered seat. In the video which sparked the comment ---- The Guy Didn't Hit His Shins. So while someone's completely unfounded and imaginary fear send us into turmoil .... the Video Evidence shows how easy t really is.

But I know .... personal feelings trump reality nowadays, and evidence is whatever you want to accept because it supports your preconceived imaginary notions, and the rest is fake news .... I get it.

It is amazing how many people will claim "I believe in 'Science'" and then fail to realize that science is a tool, based on Real-World Observation, designed to keep us from getting fooled by our preconceived notions (see "Copernican Revolution" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copernican_Revolution) )

So ... we have a video of a guy learning to ride a regular mountain bike, pedals and all (I would think that at least one should lock out the suspension ... ) .... and everyone is arguing that it cannot be done safely, that disaster will ensue, that you need to buy a pre-bike, that you need to disassemble a bike to learn to ride a bike .....

"Science" isn't something you "believe in." "Believing" is the opposite of science. Science is observing and accurately interpreting to the limit of the information you possess .... it is the best understanding possible at a given time of Actual, Observed Events.

Skip the whole BS thread. watch the video and go learn to ride a bike, OP. You will be surprised at how easy it is.

shelbyfv

Maybe this has been mentioned, but OP could go directly to a 'bent trike and skip the learning part altogether.

Darth Lefty 

OP claims shame; he’s not ready for iconoclasm

Sy Reene

Yeah, something along these lines. If you're in a city/town that has a bikeshare program, these bikes may be about perfect to start practicing on as they have pretty large step thru, and if you can find a park path that's flat (and allows bikes), that would be ideal.

seypat

Is there a playground with a merry-go-round close by? You could mount the bike, hold onto the merry-go-round and peddle around in circles. Let go every so often and see how far you can go.

There really is no best way, other than doing it. Find yourself a stretch that is slightly downhill. It needs to have some kind of object you can lean up against, mount then push off from. Go for it.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet. When I was a kid starting out, most people couldn't start from a standing stop. Instead, they would take off running holding the bike next to them. Then put a foot on one pedal and swing up over and mount like a horse rider in a wild west show. That would give them the momentum to keep going.

urbanknight

This is exactly what I was going to suggest.

Route 66

First of all, congrats to you mokapim for wanting to learn a skill that will bring you years of enjoyment. You'll never regret this decision.

I have three suggestions:

1. Buy yourself a bike.
2. Lower the seat to the point that your feet can lay flat on the pavement (for now).
3. Remove the pedals because they'll only get in your way (until your balance improves).

70sSanO

While I hope this is a legit post, I am a bit cynical and my suggestions are to find a new set of friends and to move to another city.

But in the event that it is legitimate, or more importantly, there are others who are wanting to learn, here area few thoughts.

There are basically 2 parts to riding a bike; balance and pedaling.

If I wanted to learn to ride as an adult, I would probably find a gym with upright, Peleton style, stationary bikes and learn to pedal correctly and powerfully enough. The traditional way most kids learn to ride is a progression from a tricycle to bicycle with training wheels, to a bicycle. By the time they are ready to attempt the balancing part, their pedaling is well defined, as stated previously where a Dad is huffing and puffing running alongside their child. He is out of breath because at this point the kid on a bike is strong enough to smoke him. I'm guessing that the pandemic has bred some great Peleton riders who may have never ridden an actual bike.

Once you are able to pedal, then all of the above suggestions about a lower seat and an open area is a good way to learn because your ability to pedal will kick in and off you will go. If you can't pedal then you can't get up to speed and balance is an issue.

John

Cyclist0108

from the best book on the topic ever written:

Cyclist0108

downtube42

I've taught an adult to ride using this technique in an hour. Pedals off, seat lowered to where you can sit flat footed, do figure eights around a parking lot. Learn to coast like that. Then add pedals. Then raise the seat a bit. Boom, done. Oh, you'll skin an elbow and knee in the process. We all did.

Maelochs

Learning to pedal? No one needs to learn to pedal. Pedal efficiently? Sure ... but a lot of riders who have been cycling for a lifetime pedal squares ......

People .... it is just riding a bike. Just ride a bike.

Every one of us, at one time or another, got behind the wheel of a car and learned to drive .... vastly less natural and more complicated, yet somehow, without going to a gym to practice sitting or wheel-turning or pedal-pushing or shift-lever shifting ....

The only thing holding this guy back is that he is tense because he thinks he might fall and embarrass himself. He just need to ride a freaking bike.

And if it is his friends who are mocking him, yeah, definitely, dump those "friends." Hanging out with losers is for losers .... don't hurt yourself that way.

Shoot, if a friend of mine wanted help learning to ride I would be all over that. I'd do whatever it took just in case he or she really liked it.

Maelochs

NOT a good idea. Biking while tripping is an advanced technique. Stay home and have a good trip in your living room .... with friends who won't make fun of you.