Have you ever taught an adult to ride a pedal bike? Do you have any tips or advice?

Answer 1

No I haven't but here's my 2 cents:
1. Use a smaller comfortable bike that's easy to ride.
2. Use a quiet street or parking lot for room and smooth surface.
3. No spectators to intimidate
4. Patience and encouragement
5. Competent teacher that is trusted.
6. Stress staying centered on the bike, sounds obvious but its not to a beginner.
7. Get the student up to 10mph or so ASAP, the faster you go the easier to balance. Beginners want to go slow but that in itself makes balance difficult.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Hi roscar62, I'm a special needs tutor, teaching cycle maintenance and cycling to young adults with learning disabilities and have much experience in this one!

Over the years I have found the main skill needed is balance, keeping the bike upright is the most important thing. I have found that pedalling always complicates matters. What I do is take off the pedal arms, leaving the bike with no means of propulsion other than pushing along with feet...Flintstones style. This takes away the complication of pedalling, which until it is mastered switches balance from side to side too much.

I make the saddle height a bit on the low side, so that both feet can rest flat on the floor. Then I get my students to scoot around a level car park, building up confidence in the bike (make sure brakes work). Then I work on building up speed, turning and stopping using brakes. I also use an old exercise bike to introduce pedalling, making sure they turn the pedals evenly and smoothly. Gradually I raise the seat post on the pedal-less bike so that the balls of the foot are touching the floor, but the heels do not.

After a short while (hopefully) the rider gets used to balancing and gains confidence enough to try riding with the pedals attached. For some of the more nervous riders I introduce a bike with stabilisers for confidence, but for the majority this isn't necessary.

Don't forget to wear a helmet, and make the experience as informal and fun as possible. Before long you'll have opened up a whole new world to someone who may use the bike for exercise, fun, or independent travel, I found this can really liberate and inspire my students, and lead to increased confidence in other areas of life.

It's a very worthwhile ting to do...good luck..If you want any more advice email me!

Answer 3

1. Make sure you can put the toes of both feet on the ground
2. Make sure your posture is good
3. When pedalling, look straight ahead, and don't let your centre of gravity (cog) move about too much.
4. It's not a race (yet)
5 . If you can learn to free-wheel down a gentle incline, this will help your balance immensely - this is how I learned as a 5 year old (along with financial bribes from my father)
6. The free-wheeling down a hill is accompanied with the starting to pedal just before the bottom and maintaining forward movement on a flat piece of ground. Steering comes next, but don't exaggerate the movement of the handlebars.
7. Don't be tempted to go off-road say on a mountain bike ride until you have mastered the art of control. This includes balance, pedalling, steering and brakes. Gears are a separate issue, so if your bike has them, get a friend to set them for you in one which isn't too hard to push, but doesn't mean you pedal frantically to move just a few yards either!

Don't learn on your own. Don't forget to wear a helmet!

Good luck!

Answer 4

Oddly enough I am teaching my girlfriend to ride a bike. She's 40 and has never bothered to learn before. As has been stated patience is the key as adults have to learn to balance on these machines. We have local park so she's been able to wobble round the football pitches and get a soft landing if she topples over. She's now progressed to paths and the odd bit of road! Also -find the right bike and keep the saddle low: the learner must be able to touch ground with their feet or they will not feel safe. My old mountain bike was too long and too high. A borrowed smaller bike and a new girl specific saddle made things much easier. Best of luck.
EDIT: One thing is that they must learn is that speed is their friend. The slower they go the more they'll wobble so once they get going on their own, make them get a bit of speed up and they'll be able to balance better.

Answer 5

Find a nice, open space that is level with no traffic - I learnt in the garage area of a small estate

I was taught at 13, and I recall my friend held the saddle upright so the bike was balanced, and I sat on it to get a feel, then he'd push it a few yards, to get a feel for it

Also did a bit of pedalling with the bike off the ground, can't remember how I did this, think we might have had my mate holding the back of the saddle whislt I tried pedalling.

Anyway, within 2-3 hours: I could ride!!!!

PS: get them to wear a helmet

PPS: good luck

Answer 6

well no, but its gonna b pretty much the same as teaching a child - just try not 2 b patronising
find a wide open space prefferable with a soft landing (e.g. grass) if you have a park close enough that would be ideal
it will take a lot of patience especially as adults tend not to have great balance (due to their height)
try holding the bike as they ride & then letting go when they are steady - keep going untill they can start on their own
start with both their feet on the pedals & you holding the bike up, then when they can do that have them start properly on their own
- gd luck 2 both of u!!

Answer 7

The advice Paul g gives is good, along with the people who suggest grassy areas with a gentle slope.

Bikes that keep people lower to the ground with the ability to touch their feet to the ground while still seated include:
Giant Suede, Trek Pure, Electra Townie, etc. They have the pedals more forward than a regular bike and seem very stable for beginners. Good luck.

Answer 8

My daughter is learning to ride at the moment. You do not want stabilizers, so you might consider this. You need to learn how to balance the bike beneath you, as well as learning to peddle. Take the peddles off and lower the saddle so that your feet are firmly on the floor. Rather than deddling, strole. Try this for a few weeks, picking your feet up as confidence grows, before replacing the peddles. Should help with ballance.

Luck

Answer 9

i think of it replaced right into a joint attempt on the area of my father and my 2 brothers....I found out quite previous due....i replaced into 11 years old on the time. driving a bike immediately became something I enjoyed to do....yet I honestly have by no potential extremely achieved it everywhere different than on the island in Maine the place our summer season house is.

Answer 10

if the Adult is young it is very easy, just give the bicycle to them then counsel them to take it for a ride, give a inspiration speech to raise the adrenalin , If the adult is not young then you have to treat them like a child but keep in mind they are not young as children, instead one fellow , two fellows can go for a ride with them , just to give them confidence

Hope it will work out,

Happy Ridding