Kids bikes with drop bars

[mustang1]

I saw a few kids bikes with drops bars from a couple of main companies that make good adult bikes. The brifters look huge! How can the kids even be comfortable on those hoods? Seems like more examples of not very good design or is it a case of the marketing guys saying "build it and they will come"?

Even the kids-friendly bike brands seem to have quite large-for-kids brifters.

 

[DCLane]

Some have Shimano but quite a lot have Microshift which seem to be easier for small hands.

 

[Reynard]

Yep, my Wiggins Rouen 650 runs these: http://www.microshift.com.tw/en/product/sb-r482/

Can't compare and contrast unfortunately, but as someone who has tiny hands and wears XS gloves, they feel ok to me.

 

[atbman]

We've a stock of Islabikes with brifters. Kids don't seem to have any real problems once they've ridden them for a bit

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

My drop bar Raleigh from when I was a kid had full adult-size Weinmanns with suicide levers from what I remember. I certainly didn't have any problem riding it - either with the brakes or the downtube shifter. A lot of kids then also rode frames that had plenty of "growing into" potential built into their sizing. If your feet touched the ground, you were big enough to ride!