When we were asked if we’d like to review an Yvolution Balance Bike I jumped at the chance. See I’m ready to get on my bike and enjoy the open road of summer. The only problem is that we’re still waiting for the summer to arrive. It’s been pretty miserable in this part of the world. But that wasn’t going to stop me having fun!

The bike has been sat patiently in the box ready for daddy to assemble and the rain in our home town to ease. I’ve been inspecting it closely, desperate to open it.

So what is a balance bike?

My folks were unsure and slightly skeptical that this wasn’t just a fad on the children’s market. The Y Velo Green Balance Bike is a training bicycle that helps preschoolers, like me, learn how to steer and balance. Hopefully it will help build my confidence and get me used to the saddle. I have a little traditional bike with pedals and stabilizers in the shed but my folks thought it would be good to start me off with this balance bike first to see how I got on. My mummy didn’t even know about these kinds of training balance bikes either, so she was intrigued to see how I coped.

In the box

It came in a sturdy box with a handle and was easy to transport. It seemed quite heavy so at first my mummy was worried about me being able to lift it and steer it once assembled.

Once we press-ganged daddy into assembling it for us and we were amazed how easy and quickly it looked to make. It took him about 10 minutes. Infact my mummy probably could have done it herself! Doh! It came with 2 pairs of allen keys and a clear set of instructions with pictures to demonstrate what went where and in what order. Simple.

Hopefully it will help me to master the art of balancing, gliding and getting used to handling a bike.

The ride

It took me a little while to get accustomed to it. I called it the ‘wobbly bike’ and found it hard to sit down on and feel comfortable. You can adjust the seat height and we found that it was too high, I was on tiptoes!! Silly daddy! I should have been seated so that my little legs could reach the ground comfortably. Thankfully the Y Velo Green Balance Bike features an adjustable seat and handle bars that grow with me! My folks adjusted it, then it was too low, by this time I was getting impatient with this ‘wobbly bike’. But it was easy to adjust out on the pavement and my folks did it super quick – if it had been a racing car they would have clocked no time at the pit stop!

Finally after all system checks had been done, helmet on, wellies on and warm clothes donned, I was ready to hit the road…with my dad holding on for dear life! I wanted to run and cruise straight away but that wasn’t happening and I was stopping by placing my feet firmly on the ground and starting again by asking for a little push. My folks suggested that I simply walked with it to get the hang and feel of the balance bike. However deep down inside it was reassuring to them that I could stop it on my own. Phew!

I liked the padded hand grips, but the seat could have been a bit softer for my little bottom! The wheels were shock absorbing and fair large, good thing too as the pavements round us have lots of potholes! I could steer it with ease which meant the bike wasn’t too heavy for me and the built-in steering limiter allowed me to maintain control around the play park and not crash into any fences. Phew!

What’s the spec then?

• Lightweight but strong aluminum frame
• Rubber over-mould wheels, great comfort and grip with no punctures
• Larger wheels, designed for safer play and easier riding on uneven surfaces
• Higher ground clearance means the frame won’t get caught on uneven ground providing a safer ride
• Older child fork rake means safer steering
• Cartridge wheel bearings giving great long-lasting durability and a smooth ride
• Adjustable saddle so your child can slide up closer to the handlebar and slide back as they grow taller
• Indestructible build quality means a lightweight but long-lasting bike. Trust us this was thrown down on more than one occasion!
• Maximum loading weight: 55.1lbs [25kgs] – we have a confession to make it actually could hold my daddy’s weight! He was showing me what to do!
• Product weight: 9.9lbs [4.5kgs]
• Product dimensions:18 x 26.77 cm
• Seat height: 13.39 cm

Suitable for ages 3+ years (or in my daddy’s case 40+ years) RRP £49.99We’d never heard of this brand before so headed to Yvolution’s website to see what else they did and were pleasantly surprised at the range of other products and ages they cater for. Their range starts with baby Ride-Ons then there are Balance Bikes, one being suitable from 18 months, the other two 3+, Gliders & Scooters and Karts too for older children! Woweeee that’s some range!

The Y Velo Green Balance Bike is an interesting training bike, the proof will be in the pudding though as I have only started using it, so fingers crossed by the end of the summer I would have mastered it. This is a training bike after all and in order to learn I need to keep training. Stay posted to see how I get on over the summer.

My folks thought it was a good investment to help with my balance and develop my motor skills. They thought it was great that I figured out how to use it fairly quickly it’s just a matter of building up my confidence and having no fear or daddy to rely on. The same really with learning to ride a bike, you can’t be expected to get it first time and go wheeling off into the sunset! However I was eager to get out of the play park and try the open road!!

Love Bella X

Disclosure: We received the product in order to write an honest review.