Strider PREbike™ vs. Various Wooden Balance Bikes
By Ryan McFarland

I spend a good bit of time each day answering questions about the Strider PREbike™ as it compares to other models or about certain features that it has. I thought I'd try to hit some key points here that I seem to discuss regularly.

Better seat height adjustment... Strider PREbike™ offers 11" to 16" in any increment you want... you can even buy longer seat posts to raise the seat even higher since it is a standard BMX spec tubing. Wooden bikes that I've seen don't allow the seat to go as low, adjust in only a few set increments, and don't go as high. This limits the useable life of the bike.

Better saddle ergonomics... Strider PREbike™ offers a regular bicycle saddle with a molded plastic shell with a traditional saddle design of narrow nose with wider rear seating wings plus padding and vinyl cover all scaled to fit a small rider. Wooden bikes that I've seen have basically a piece of curved plywood that is not very ergonomically engineered. I don't know of any adult that would want to ride on a similar plywood design on their bike. The bicycle industry has spent millions of dollars on saddle design and development. Our saddle design most closely resembles what has become the norm for a bicycle saddle.

Better handlebar fit... Strider PREbike™ offers 3" of height adjustment in any increment you want. Wooden bikes that I've seen have a fixed height with no adjustment. Strider PREbike™ handle bars also have rearward 'sweep' built into the bars for a better ergonomic fit... as do nearly ALL bicycle and motorcycle handlebars. Again, these industries have invested millions of dollars on handlebar design and ergonomics. Our design most closely resembles what has become the norm for mountain bikes, BMX bikes, and dirtbikes/motorcycles. The wooden bikes that I've seen are simply straight across, no sweep.

FOOTRESTS! This is huge. Only the U.S. Patent Pending Strider PREbike™ design has footrests positioned directly under the saddle, the natural location that allows for rider weight to be shifted to the rider's legs and even allows the rider to ride standing up, to wheelie, and to bunny-hop. The wooden bikes are missing the footrest feature entirely, and therefore cannot even offer children the ability to learn these advanced riding skills. Why buy a bike that has only a fraction of the educational and performance possibilities for your child! Footrests also dramatically reduce the weight/pressure on the groin area when compared to trying to hold your legs up in the air while gliding. As a parent, try this experiment on your bike... coast along for a few minutes with your legs dangling off the pedals... I guarantee your tender parts will be screaming for you to put your feet back on the pedals and relieve the pressure felt from the saddle. When your feet rest on pedals or footrests, half the weight of your legs transfers from the saddle to the pedals or footrests relieving pressure in the groin area. Now take it to the next extreme... ride off a curb with your feet dangling... I didn't think so! :-) We wouldn't want to do this so why make our kids. With the Strider PREbike™, my son can be coasting down the sidewalk, relaxed, feet up on the footrests... if he comes to a bump or a curb, he stands up on the footrests and rolls right over it and absorbs the bump with his knees, just like I do when I stand up on the pedals on my bike.

I hope this is helpful. I really believe we offer the most feature-rich bike on the market and offer the best value running bike on the market.