Special needs trikes

My 6 year old has problems with balance and motor skills and we’re thinking of getting him a special trike. We’ve looked at the Tomcat ones but has anyone got any other recommendations for stuff we need to look at? He needs some support to keep him sat upright, but should be OK with steering and pedalling provided he’s attached to the pedals.

Not strictly what your after – but this is what we bought for our youngest (6) who would have problems holding on/sitting upright on a normal trailer bike. Weehoo recumbent trailer bike, has a 4 point harness, etc. really stable and well made etc.
http://weehoobiketrailer.co.uk/%5B/url%5D

We’re keen to get him actually pedalling, but having something that we could turn into a tag-a-long ( like the Tomcat) appeals

http://www.watchtreewheelers.co.uk/photos/4560590187
http://www.missioncycles.co.uk/
http://www.ashfieldspecialneeds.co.uk/
http://www.specialkidsintheuk.org/resources/links/mobility.html
http://www.companioncycling.org.uk/links.htm

Are they ones you can specifically recommend? Thanks

Sorry I know you want other options, but we’re impressed with the Tomcat our son has. We’ve got the optional tag along for it as well which has been great.

The service is great, both before and after sale. One word of warning- although the Tomcat splits, it still takes some room up!

I deliberately stay away from upright trikes – they’re just too unstable for many people, especially when there’s a camber. Have you had a look at the Hase Trets or the KMX? Both recumbent, both fantastic fun to ride…

Have an early KMX Kart. Fun, but not light. Anything over a couple of miles is hard. There isnt much opportunity to lighten it, either. If you’d like to try it drop me an email.

http://www.adaptiveMTB.co.uk/

Might be of some use. Graham and Jackie who run it are great and well worth talking to.

Is there any possibility of using a two wheeled bike with your son? The occupational therapists at my local hospital set up a programme to teach cycling to children who had been medically referred for co-ordination problems. I worked with them as a coach, and was surprised to see that even kids who initially had problems walking and pushing the bikes were able to cycle successfully after a few weeks. We just used the saddle down, pedals off technique to turn the bikes into balance bikes, and gradually progressed from walking, through paddling with the feet, scooting and gliding to full pedalling.
I don’t know what your son’s situation is, so this may not be appropriate for him, of course. I was impressed with how well our kids did, however, even in cases where they continued to score low on conventional measures of motor skills, so it might be worth a go.

Hi, My son was really good on his balance bike but could not pedal and balance at the same time. One day in bike shop with me he saw a trike got on and was away. So that months DLA was spent, he loved it. It is a Pashley Pickle. He is now riding a two wheel bike and uses his brakes a big one. So the Pashley is up for sale at £190. If it’s of interest let me know. Cheers 1 shed.

Thanks everyone. Some excellent stuff to look into.

kcr, we’ve tried him with a balance bike (his younger brother has one) and he really struggles even just to walk along with it. He can fall over just walking along so put a bike between his legs increases the challenge.

1 shed, that could be very tempting. I’ll have a look on the Pashley website…

Thanks again