Little Rippers: MTB Kids

One of the coolest (and frankly cutest) things you can see is a two year old kid with an over-sized helmet and tiny knee and elbow pads pushing around his little pedal cart or plastic trike. I’ve been noticing a ton of kids at Joyride 150 this winter learning how to ride in the safety …

One of the coolest (and frankly cutest) things you can see is a two year old kid with an over-sized helmet and tiny knee and elbow pads pushing around his little pedal cart or plastic trike. I’ve been noticing a ton of kids at Joyride 150 this winter learning how to ride in the safety of the indoor bike park. I sat down last week with Mark and Scott from Joyride and we started talking about the fact that more and more kids are showing up these days – and I’m not talking about 8-14 year olds – I mean 3 and 4 year olds!

I saw one little kid on a plastic push trike making his way along Joyride’s IMBA training course. He even did a teeter-totter on his own (dad was spotting just in case) and pushed off like a pro. I was surprised to see a bunch of other kids, all under age 8, encouraging the even younger ones to make it around. It’s truly amazing and inspiring to see kids at that age encouraging one another to achieve.

Speaking of rippers, there were a few kids on the pump tracks that could put most of the adults to shame. One guy in particular really stood out – he was riding a pro-level Redline BMX (purchased by his parents no doubt). This kid was nearly twice as fast as everyone else on the track, a blur around the course. He cleared the doubles like a seasoned pro and was perfectly parallel to the ground on the banked corners. No fear, just pure determination on his face. Maybe the next Johnny T, who knows…

It’s also interesting to note the number of kids’ parties at indoor bike parks like Joyride 150. Think about it – an enclosed location, medium supervision, a party room, and something every kid on the invite list will want to do. Plus, it’s a place where mom can sit and have a coffee – why weren’t places like this around when I was a kid!

So if you have a little ripper yourself and are planning on doing some kind of special family trip that includes riding, you may just want to check out what Joyride 150 or Ray’s have going on. And you don’t have to plan your trip for winter months either – riding indoors is a great way to beat the summer heat. Let’s face it, as great and wonderful as the outdoors are, sometimes it can be a bit too much for the little ones who are just starting out.