Bike for a 10 yo girl

[lucky67]

My DD needs to get a new bike for cycling proficiency at school...next week (!)
She hasn't really used her old one much (now too small)..maybe 10 times in 2-3 years. I think mainly cos it is a nightmare to get it out from under the stairs... although hopefully this year I'll be getting a new shed and she can start keeping it in that. (And I might get a bike too so I can go out with her and her wee sister...)

Thinking to get her an adult size (26 inch wheels) - pointless buying her 24 inch wheels if it will be too small in a year...

Visited LBS and they have a Ridgeback MX3 (2010 model) for £200

Halfords have an apollo one for £140

Main difference in specs is Ridgeback aluminium frame, 15 inch frame, 21 gears (ez fire) and 13.5kg
Apollo is steel frame, 14inch, 18 gears and 18 kg
(She has never had any gears on a bike before!)

So is the ridgeback worth the extra £60? Will it be so much better? Weight difference? Gear use?
Thinking maybe could get the cheaper one and if she does become a keen cyclist she could have a better one in a few years - (this one going on to younger sister) or would the Ridgeback be more likely to not need replacing? (My sister is a keen cyclist and used her first adult bike (raleigh) for 15+ yrs before she decided she needed a better one)
Any views?
I should have said she sat on both and like them...but likes the colours on the apollo one better! But she could be persuaded to get the Ridgeback!

 

[coffeejo]

I can't comment on sizing, etc but I would say that if you want her to use it, it has to be the one she loves, no matter how appalling her taste may be

 

[Crackle]

Yep, the Ridgeback is worth the extra. My son has a 24" Ridgeback, his friend a steel Apollo. There is no competition. The Apollo is a beast by comparison. Pay the extra. It's not always worth it but in this case there is no doubt in my mind.

Edit: And the Apollo has already been back for a dead rear block, the gears have gone out of adjustment several times and the brakes are poo. I know this because I get to fix it as he knows I know how. By contrast, nothing on the Ridgeback which has been down a few trails as well and the Apollo just used on the road.

 

[ChristinaJL]

My DD has a 16" rigid fork Ridgeback and it's a lovely bike. Way nicer than my son's cheap Halfords bike. And just look at the weight of the halfords job, 18kg will be a beast to ride up hills.

 

[steve52]

i though id comment on the lack of use, i have grand children that love to cycle ,prob because i take them out and make there rides fun for then and an adventure we can share with their perants, Quote " mummy pop fell in the water again"

 

[summerdays]

Yep, the Ridgeback is worth the extra. My son has a 24" Ridgeback, his friend a steel Apollo. There is no competition. The Apollo is a beast by comparison. Pay the extra. It's not always worth it but in this case there is no doubt in my mind.

Edit: And the Apollo has already been back for a dead rear block, the gears have gone out of adjustment several times and the brakes are poo. I know this because I get to fix it as he knows I know how. By contrast, nothing on the Ridgeback which has been down a few trails as well and the Apollo just used on the road.

I second this opinion.

However you do need to sit her on the bike and see how it fits..... if it is too big she will struggle trying to signal etc. I did go down the 24" route with my younger two as they were smaller than the eldest who did make the jump straight to a 26" bike. (And the middle child is still riding the 24" which is too small for her now 4 years later but only just, and so far I've had 2 years out of the youngest one's 24" bike which is still fine.)

 

[Rubber Bullets]

I know it's an awful lot of money but these do look fantastic, and have really been thought about in terms of design.

A triple chainring isn't often necessary on a child's bike, my own daughter never leaves her middle ring unless by accident, and front suspension is only a heavy encumbrance at that price point. Look at the weight gains on these bikes. Only 13kgs!

If I can afford it, and she wants to cycle more often then I would try to get an Islabike when she needs a new one.

RB

 

[summerdays]

One of my 24" ones is an Islabike (the youngest one's bike), but I was assuming that the OP didn't want to stretch that far. Yes they are very nice, I've currently got feelers out to acquire a 26" one from a friend.

 

[funnymummy]

Main difference in specs is Ridgeback aluminium frame, 15 inch frame, 21 gears (ez fire) and 13.5kg
Apollo is steel frame, 14inch, 18 gears and 18 kg
(She has never had any gears on a bike before!)

4.5 kg is a LOT of weight difference, I had to Google it, I still do lbs & stones!
Although she may like the Apollo more I think the weight may be an issue for her, although knowing what kids are like she may not agree, ask her to try lifting something of the equivalent weight.
As fro gears, she doesn't have to use them at first, she will get used to them with practise.
If these are your only two choices i'd go for the Ridgeback, but that may be because i've had to fix alot of my friends kids Apollos over the years! There are as others have suggested lots of other bikes to choose from.

 

[funnymummy]

[QUOTE 1369252"]
Decathlon have started doing their kids' road bike again.
[/quote]

Bubba #3 turns 7 in May.... It's top of his present list!

 

[lucky67]

Thanks for the feedback - I'm going to take her back to sit on the Ridgeback again...and if it is comfy go for it...(we live on a hillside so plenty of hills to get 18kg up - also she has to carry it up/ down steps to the road)...and persuade her she can put stickers etc on the 'boring' silver frame...

Islabike - wow a lot of money - maybe if she does start using one more...

To steve52 - I do take them out (honest!) - she did use her previous bike more...mainly while I pushed her much younger sister out in her pram...then she started getting fed up of waiting and having to cycle back to me ... so locally she started scootering more (hung on back of pram when she got fed up while she chatted to me)
Also I couldn't fit a bike in the car (with pram and 2 child seats) and reluctant to get a cycle carrier cos I knew I only had a year or so left in my old car...

Now have new car (will get carrier) and younger sister is more mobile (giving up on balance bike - I've probably carried it further than she used it - frustrated with trying to keep up with her big sister on her scooter - so time for one with stabilisers) - and with some better storage we should have space for me to have a bike too...and she is now old enough to go out locally on her own with friends...so really hopeful it will be used more... (fingers crossed!)

 

[lucky67]

Funnymummy - left it to last minute I need it for this Wednesday - I know I am c**p.
So these (apart from another Apollo one - same price but a road bike) are really my only choices!
(runs off to hide head in shame as a rubbish mum)

 

[funnymummy]

Funnymummy - left it to last minute I need it for this Wednesday - I know I am c**p.
So these (apart from another Apollo one - same price but a road bike) are really my only choices!
(runs off to hide head in shame as a rubbish mum)

LOL!! I have been there too - too mnay times, doesn't make you a rubbishmum, just a busy one trying to juggle family life XX

I said it, as I know lots of people don't have a LBS to pop into, so are stuck using the likes of Halfords & Argos for their bikes, which doesn't leave them alot of choice.

Good Luck to your daughter I hope she loves her new bike & passes her test with flying colours xxx

 

[Crackle]

[QUOTE 1369258"]
The other thing to note is that, though children may see the colour as an influencing factor, more importantly the easier a bike is to ride the more likely they will be to ride it. So weight matters, but so does fit. Too often parents buy bikes with 'growing room' and the child struggles to ride such an unwieldy thing.
[/quote]

This is true. No1 son made the transition form 20" wheel bike 26". I have to say, I did dawdle getting him a new bike and the old one had definetly had its use. No.2 son on the other hand outgrew his 20" bike but not enough for a 26", hence the 24" for him. It depends on the bike and the child but I've always bought a bike to fit them as that way they get used and I've always bought decent'ish bikes which will sell 2nd hand. An Islabike is a case in point. Expensive yes but I sold one for virtually what I bought it for after 3 years use. The Ridgeback will hold a higher value than the Apollo if you do intend to sell on and a 24" will hold a better value than a 26" as it's percieved as a childs back, so buy her one that fits.

 

[lucky67]

The 26inch does seem big - but she is tallish for her age...
The guy in the LBS said that was what she needed - after he sat her on a few for size first and he said it wasn't worth bothering with a 24 inch ...or even one with a 13inch frame...
The guy in Halfords did show her a couple of 24 inch - but she didn't like them and on their height chart thing she is at the top of the 24 inch marker...

As well as I've noticed she is getting a bit podgy round the middle - which in the past has meant she will have a growth spurt within the next month or so ... (otherwise time for a very discreet diet!)