Hi All, Father of a passionate 4yo biker here. My daughter has always been an aggressive cyclist. She enjoys the pump track and trail rides as well as ripping around the neighborhood. She is currently on a Prevelo Alpha 2 but lately she has been wanting to ride on trails a lot. I was contemplating getting her a dedicated trail bike. I own a stumpjumper myself but I'm not particularly knowledgeable regarding the technical aspects of MTBs. She will tell me that her hands get tired when riding her current bike over rocks and roots on trails. This had me wondering if the front shocks on the Zulu two mk2 heir (link below) might be helpful for her. Any thoughts on the most recent iterations of these two bikes? Thanks so much in advance.
Answer to Mod Bot Questions Below:
- The type of riding will you be doing
MTB trails
- Where you will be riding.
Bay Area California
- Your budget (with included currency).
1K+ USD
- What you like/didn't like about your current bike.
Like the build quality of the alpha 2 but wondering if something more trail specific would help her on rougher trails
- Your experience level and future goals.
Daughter is an enthusiastic biker, advanced for her age of 4.
by Illustrious-Coach364
3 Comments
Both of those are way more than I’d spend on a bike they’ll only ride for a year or two, with way more features than a 4-6yo needs. I’ve been there, I get it (I’m currently setting my 4yo up for tubeless 20″ wheels on his Specialized Riprock coaster), but over-biking a grade school aged kid is not a sound investment. A front suspension is heavy, and while she might be more comfortable, she’ll have a much heavier bike to deal with.
Consider looking at the Commencal Ramones 16″. It’s a bit heavier than both of the bikes you listed, but it’s substantially less expensive for an “in between” bike size that she may or may not use long term.
For what it’s worth, I was looking at the Zulu and a few other options for our daughter (4.5 years old now) for her 4th birthday. We’re in Sacramento, so similar trails to what you guys have, depending on where you go. The reading that I did made me realize the suspension fork wouldn’t REALLY benefit her, given her weight and that we’re not doing any jumps or huge features at the moment. The tires provide plenty of “suspension” for what our kiddo is doing.
The only thing I wish the Ramones had that she was using on her Shotgun balance bike is hydraulic discs rather than the cables, just to make stopping easier for her. The cable brakes are plenty powerful, but the hydraulics with the Magura lever was definitely more kid-size friendly and made it a bit less effort.
I just put my almost 4 year old daughter on a Zulu 2 mk2 (no suspension), from a Zulu 1 mk1. It’s a great bike and she has no problem on trails or pump track. Very well made bike and relatively light. I have been happy with the prevelo bikes so far. The Zulu 1 lasted about a year before she outgrew it and I imagine this one will only last a year or 2. I have heard of kids going straight from 14 inch bikes to 20 inch bikes, so maybe that’s an option if she’s on the taller side, especially if she’s already on a 16 inch bike