BikeBiz

Kid's stuff

Kona

Kids who are serious about their riding need the right bike to progress, says Paligap. The Kona Stinky 2-4 is a pro-level freeride bike designed for smaller, younger athletes.At £1,000 a pop, the 24-inch Stinky isn’t exactly a mass market kids bike but if you’ve got a customer with money to burn and a super-serious cycling sprog, the Stinky is manna from heaven. The spec includes a 4-inch travel fork, a Marzocchi Dirt Jumper 2 100mm rear shock and a chain with a name you won’t want to repeat in front of the kids.

Slightly more affordable (and with a non-swearing chain) is the Shred 2.0, a 20-inch jump bike with a RRP of £290.00. It’s a “kids’ bike designed by a guy with a few of them.” It has a 14-28, 7-speed block and Tourney shifter.

Moore Large

FreeSpirit, Moore Large’s competitively-priced, IBD-only brand, has a junior range of models from 18-inch to 24-inch wheel sizes. All bikes feature full Shimano or SRAM transmission, V-Type brakes and alloy wheels. The Confetti 20-inch girls bike has a hi-ten steel frame, Shimano gears and SRAM twistshift shifters, for £89.95 RRP. The Robobike 24-inch boys bike has a steel frame, but also a front fork and 18 gears. It retails for £99.95.

BMX brand Haro has a new IBD-only MTB range which will be launched in time for Christmas. Haro’s Flightline range is kicked off with two 20-inch and 24-inch wheel models. They feature alu frames and have an American pedigree. The Flightline Twenty has a SR Suntour 30mm suspension fork and a Shimano TX30 rear derailleur with SRAM MRX 6-speed twist shifter, and Tektro direct pull brakes. RRP is £169.95. The Flightline Twenty Four is ten pounds more expensive and features a bigger frame and 20mm more travel.

Bumper Bikes is an IBD-only brand and has bikes in wheel sizes from 12-inch to 20-inch. “All Bumper Bikes come complete with real bearing, gearing and braking systems,” says Moore Large. There are alloy V-brakes on all 16-inch wheel models and above. All except the 20-inch have stabilisers. The Sparkle has a dolly carrier on all sizes, except the 20-inch.

Moore Large markets Barracuda to the trade as the ‘50 per cent margin brand’. Barracuda’s junior bikes range from 16-inch to 24-inch wheel sizes. All feature alu frames.

IntecYippee, more high-quality race bikes for wee ‘uns! Intec (it stands for Individual Technology), available from Sonic Cycles, specs its kid bikes with a whole raft of new kid-specific parts such as a Miche 38-48 chainset and Rubena tyres. As well as road race bikes and MTBs in alu, there are plans for kiddie carbon fibre frames, made to order. Intec will also supply steel hybrids and MTB-style touring bikes. The race bikes are yellow but can be ordered in one of 20+ colours.

Raleigh

“We pride ourselves on designing kids bikes for all tastes – football fans, Motocross riders, fighter pilots, hip and trendy chicks, little princesses and girls about town – whatever your little angel or monkey wants to be, we have a bike that fits,” says Raleigh. The bikes ship with add-ons such as football training sets, handbags and walkie talkies.

The new Ollie “is the bike for the football star of the future, with non slip safety pedals and cool wheel add-ons. With the Ollie bike taking care of your pre-training warm up, you can then use the skill set and football to work on your skills to become number one!”

Raleigh’s Airfighter copy states “You can now patrol the skies on the new Air Fighter – with turbulence taming stabilisers and walkie talkies to keep in contact with your wing man you have the chance to become Top Gun!”

Mystique, Reflection and Destiny are aluminium hardtail girl’s bikes for “the girl about town,” says Raleigh. “The hi-gloss paint finish, distinctive airbrushed decal design together with polished silver components, mean these bikes will turn heads."

Hope Originally coming to life as a ‘look at what we can do’ project and a need for the boss’s son to have his first ‘proper’ bike, Hope has developed a kiddie frameset, first seen at Eurobike and which will be on display at the Cycle show. “Part concept, part needed and part ‘why not?’ – this frame and subsequent bike build is really showing what is possible with the right expertise and machinery,” says Hope.

The head tube, seat column and rear stays are all individually machined from solid 2014 T6 aluminium billet. A snip at £1,700.RidgebackThe Scoot encourages the learning of balance on a bike allowing the child ride confidently without the added distraction of pedalling. Unlike some other learner bikes the Scoot has a rear V-Brake. The Scoot is also supplied with both a long and a short seatpost to fit riders of different ages – or growth spurts. The Scoot has a 6061 aluminium frame, alloy rims and Kenda tyres.

Land RoverTo date, 2x2 have only put the Land Rover name on the 20-inch Cordonza and the 24-inch Criador boy’s bikes. Now the range consists of six junior bikes.

There are two 16-inch wheel models, the boys’ G4 and the girls’ Mimi; two 20-inch wheel models, the boys’ Cordonza and the girls’ Cavallo; and two 24-inch wheel models, the boys’ Criador and the girls’ Casella.

All feature 7005 series alu frames, Suntour forks, Suntour chainsets and Shimano drive trains. Prices ranges from £129 for the Mimi through to £184.99 for the Criador.

Avocet SportsThe hi-ten Rocket is available in 12” and 14”, with the 14” having a RRP of £69.95. The hi-ten Concept Princess - complete with dolly carrier - is available in 12”, 14” and 16”. The 16” retails for £84.95.

The 24” Maniac is part of the Coyote Cubs range and features an alu 6061 frame, front suspension, Shimano 6 speed with Sram gripshift. RRP £119.99. Also part of the Coyote Cubs series is the girl’s 24” Crystal, similar in spec to the Maniac but without the suspension fork. RRP £135.00.

PlaymobilPlaymobil is one of the best known brands in the toy market and this range is its first venture into the wheeled toy market. The range consists of a scooter, trike and 12” bike. There’s also a selection of branded accessories.

FirstbikeFirstbike is made from glass-reinforced polyamide. Cross is MTB-style with knobbly pneumatic tyres. Street has skinny tyres. Both are available with or without a brake. FirstBike can also be converted to a snow-bike by removing the front wheel and adding the optional ski.

Like a BikeThis is the German wooden learner bike which kick-started a whole category!

Bike-XBike-X has a wide range of kid-friendly P&A, including bells (pink and blue). RRP £4.99; knee pads, RRP £7.99; ergo saddle, RRP £7.99; and character accessories such as a Barbie bell or a Dennis the Menace helmet.

LazerThe Max Pack is a clear plastic backpack, with main compartment to hold Lazer’s Max helmet, and smaller compartment to hold a hooded poncho. The Max is for two to five year-olds. RRP £29.95.

BuffThe Baby Buff (ages one to five years, RRP £9.35) and Junior Buff (ages six to 12 years, RRP £10.99) are smaller than adult Buffs and feature characters from Disney, Warner Bros, PowerPuff and Les Tres Bessones.GiroThe Rodeo features six vents and a front bug-mesh. The Acu-Dial retention system ensures a comfortable and secure fit. RRP £19.95. The 20-vent Flume, RRP £29.99, offers a wide degree of adjustment to both fit smaller heads whilst leaving plenty of room for growth (50-57cm). Rainbow Racer

Rainbow Racer, by Character Options, clips to bike wheels generating an array of light patterns as the wheels go round. The device fits to wheels from 20-inch to 26-inch. Rainbow Racer combines an 8-bit microprocessor, next generation LED technology and ‘nano-tech light transmitting polymers’ to generate single and multi-colour light patterns in the wheels as they turn. RRP £14.99.Adie

Adie stabilisers have been manufactured for over 50 years. The newest conform to the new CEN regulations which will be shortly adopted throughout the EU. One of the regulations is that a 30kg weight is required to be suspended from the stabiliser wheel without the bracket distortin – a tough test that Adie surpasses.

Adie stabilisers are tested by TuV to the new CEN regulations. 07330 Adie Multi fit stabilise fitsr 12-inch to 20-inch wheel bikes. 07332 Adie 200 + fits 11-inch to 20-inch wheel bikes with crossbars. 07326 is an add-on kit to enable a child to ride a stabilised bike with derailleur gears.

Koolstop Vans Tennis Shoe is available in black, white, lavender, pink, yellow, green, blue or orange.