Inspiration
In 1817 Baron von Drais invented a walking vehicle with two wheels in tandem to help him get around the royal gardens faster. The front wheel was used for steering. A wooden frame connected both front and rear wheels. The rider sat astride and pushed it along with one leg on each side of the vehicle, as in a gliding walk.
The wood machine became known as the Draisienne the first popular Hobby-Horse.
Denis Johnson of London purchased a draisienne and in 1818 patented an improved model the "pedestrian curricle". The following year he produced more than 300. They became commonly known as hobby-horses with an iron fork in front and two irons stays in the rear instead of the wooden brace used by von Drais. von Drais and Johnson successfully established that the machine could remain balanced while in motion.
Another significant change to the Hobby Horse came about in 1863, when a French coachbuilder invented the "Boneshaker". The "Boneshaker" was a riding machine also made of wood with pedals, cranks and metal tires. This combination made riding on cobblestone roads an extremely uncomfortable ride.
Concept
Throughout history, children charmingly play at modeling adults behaviors such as horse riding. In the past hobbyhorses have provided hours of joyful romping for young boys and girls too small to ride on real horses.
Now with advancement in technology the riding experience provided by the Hobby Horse has been taken to a superior level thanks to the Hobby-Bike. And, how best to represent the Hobby-Bike but by choosing a Horse as the Hobby-Bike mascot!
Learning to ride a bicycle is one of life's milestones, the first step to gaining true independence.
A child can learn how to ride a bicycle at any age, but the younger the better.
The Hobby-Bike gives a child a huge boost in confidence as they develop critical motor skills.
A child's physical ability such as balance, steering, pedaling and coordination necessary to transition to a two-wheeler are acquired faster on the Hobby-Bike than on a bike equipped with training wheels.
Here's how a child learns:
- 1. To Balance - with both feet flat on the ground and knees slightly bent while seated. In this stance feet can swing freely to push or run along and are always ready to stop a fall. A child can coast downhill and gradually learn to lift the feet off the ground. This is a safe way get use to control the bike when in motion. Although there is a one hand brake, the ability to stop comes from using both feet for safety and balance.
- 2. To Steer - as soon as the child is comfortable with balance, comes learning to steer the bike from one side to the other.
- 3. To Pedal - once the above concepts have been mastered, it is time to fit the pedal system to the Hobby-Bike. Raising the position of the bike will give the child a greater bio-mechanical efficiency.
AS THE CHILD GROWS SO DOES THE HOBBY-BIKE!
Unlike a bike with training wheels, there are no risks of toppling over or loosing braking power when turning with the Hobby-Bike. IT IS SAFE!