When should I take the training wheels off my child's bicycle?

When should I take the training wheels off my child's bicycle?

Pat Hines (Traffic Safety Educator & Executive Director, SafeMoves) gives expert video advice on: How old should a child be before riding a bicycle with training wheels?; How do I safely teach my child to ride a bicycle without training wheels? and more...

Training wheels can stay on your bike as long as your child feels they need them. And then what you can do to get them used to riding a two-wheeler is to take one of the training wheels off. Let them know you're taking one training wheel off and if they feel like they're going to fall, they can lean to the right or whatever side that training wheel is. So it's a little extra safety measure. And then you can start raising the little training wheel so it's higher and higher off the ground. So they know the training wheel is there, but they're not using it. But it goes back to where your child is. Is your child ready to take the training wheels off? Don't force a child to ride a bike without training wheels if they're not ready. It'll make them not like bicycle riding, they won't trust you and they won't feel safe. So talk to your child. Leave the training wheels on as long as they want, and take training wheels off when they're ready to take them off.