Any Experience with Glider/balance Bikes

My son learned to ride on a wooden balance bike at 3. He got on a regular bike and rode alone on his first try about two months later. I'd highly recommend this over training wheels...

That said, in hindsight, I might have just gotten the 12 inch bike and taken the pedals off. If you do that (or when you're little guy is ready to transition) tighten up the front steering column so it's tight and doesn't turn easily... it's a lot easier to balance that way, and they learn to turn by leaning instead of steering dramatically (which is more the way an experienced rider rides, anyway).

You can get a balance bike for about $75. Prince Lionheart makes a good wooden one (that's what we ultimately bought. It has all the same features as the most expensive wooden bikes).

Maybe you can just go to Goodwill or to a yard sale and get a regular bike for cheap then take the pedals off and get a good bike when he is ready.

Rather than buying a balance bike, my friend bought her children normal bikes and took the pedals off. They essentially became balance bikes, but once they learned to ride, all they had to do was put the pedals on. It saves you the money of buying two separate bikes and makes it all last longer. Her kids were all riding two wheelers without training wheels when they were four years old as a result of this method.

K.
http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/karenchao

I think $75-$100 was the price range on them when I was looking a year or so ago. I really wanted to get one, but we couldn't afford it :( So I ended up getting a 10" bike from Toys R Us (it was like $40), and just didn't put the pedals & training wheels on it. My daughter already had a tricycle & loves to pedal. Unfortunately she's just not interested in the "balance" bike yet! She loves to pedal so much that she still prefers to ride the tricycle lol But, I'm hoping that when it gets warmer she'll try the new bike this Spring/Summer. :)