Age-Learning to ride bike

[shootingstar]

I was 11 yrs. old.
I am wee late bloomer 'cause I grew up in an 1-bedroom apartment right in the downtown commercial main street in a a city. Then we moved to a house where there was space to store a bike and practice riding up and down the sidewalk. Also streets for children to bike where there was less traffic.

The park was 1 km. away and it was tiny. But too difficult for young children to walk by themselves to get there 'cause of some major busy traffic intersections.

My father rode a bike as a young child under 10 but I think he forgot and wasn't interested in relearning. Beside no time, no money since he had to support 6 children and wife. He was more focused on getting a car.

[moonfroggy]

i am pretty sure i was at least 7 and younger than 11 but other than that i have no idea when i learned.

[PamNY]

I don't remember my age -- maybe 8? My bike was too big because it had to last my entire childhood. I used it until high school. It was an aqua Monark and I wish I had it now.

My mom didn't know I wanted it and gave it away. She was very regretful, and never threw away anything of mine after that.

[TrekTheKaty]

When I was about six, my Mom bought me a full size Schwinn. Her theory? I would grow into it! The thing terrified me. I couldn't even jump up onto the seat.

But that is how I was raised--treat her like one of the adults

[sgtiger]

A little after turning six. I had training wheels for what seemed like forever. I really wanted to try to ride without them but my dad was hesitant to take them off. This despite the fact that they were coming loose and weren't even engaged a third of the time. Then I saw my one of my friends who was just a couple weeks shy of his 5th birthday start to ride without his training wheels and that was it. I was going to take them off myself if I had to! I got out the wrench and was in the processing of getting the first one off when my dad caught me. I think he figured if I was that determined, he'd help get them off but he gave me the dad lecture that if I hurt myself he wasn't to blame. I did alright. I think I only fell a couple of times with minor scrapes.

[PamNY]

I would grow into it!

That was my parents' idea, too. And sure enough, we did grow, didn't we? I had only gravel to ride on, so it was a treat to discover sidewalks when we moved to another town.

[shootingstar]

First bike was shared with 4 other sisters. And I am the oldest. So the bike was abit too big for me. Brother had his own bike to learn later on. I don't think he asked for it, my parents just had this gender-split, biased mind-set.

You can imagine it was WAY too big for younger sisters. It had no training wheels. We helped each other learn to ride a bike.

This meant falling abit against a tree lining someone's lawn. Ouch!

[sempronialou]

I got a pink Huffy bike complete with a banana seat for my 7th birthday. I never had training wheels. My parents, my brother, and most of the neighborhood helped me to learn how to stay upright. It didn't take me too long before I was riding on my own. By 11 or 12, I was on a Schwinn 10-speed bike (I guess it'd be called a road bike now days). It was mint green, nice little bike. It'd probably still fit me now since I didn't grow much after that. I wish I still had it.

[Catrin]

I was 50 years old when I first tossed a leg over a bike - a mere 9.5 months ago! It would, no doubt, have been much easier if I had learned as a child, but it is pretty cool to watch people's expression when they ask me how long I've been riding

[shootingstar]

Yay, Catrin! You just might learn as the oldest learner. Real child at heart.

You've come a long way "baby"!

I love it, sgtiger. I can imagine you wielding that wrench as a kid!

[zoom-zoom]

I said 5-6, but maybe I was younger. The first bike I really remember when I was maybe kindergarten or 1st grade. That was the bike that I started with training wheels and pretty quickly transitioned to no assistance.

But I didn't start riding seriously and with any regularity until last Nov., when I got my first road bike...at the tender age of 36. Now they can have my bike when they tear it outta my cold, dead hands!

[Miranda]

I think it was before I turned 7yo.

I just remember it was the neighbor's yard sprinkler that got me to keep my balance on two wheels lol. I didn't want to get wet, so somehow I kept pedaling, vs. falling over.

Then 20+yr break after I got my driver's license. I had forgotten how freeing riding a bike could be.

[marni]

I learned on a borrowed bike in order to commute to graduate school in California although I have vague memories of possibly being exposed as a very young child, kindergarten perhaps, with training wheels.

[Roadtrip]

Like Catrin, I was older when I got my first bike, which was just this past June... I am 35!!!

Shannon

[Biciclista]

as a 6 or 7 year old, i was put on a little bike with training wheels. A grownup would push it and let go. I was absolutely terrified and after that experience, I had no interest at all in cycling. When i was 9 my father bought me a 24" wheel bike. He got on it and rode in a circle. he gave it to me.. I did the same. I was riding! just like that!