Santa’s silly season
Just what is it about Christmas that brings out the optical illusions of parents ? We always try to encourage parents to bring their kids into the shop to have them sized correctly for their santa bikes . A good excuse is to tell the kids that you are just getting the name and size of the bike for their letter to Santa . However there will always be the few exceptions who think that they are more capable themselves of getting the correct size bike and they are usually the ones whose kids leave the bike in the shed for the first three years of having it as they can’t even get up on the bike .
A case in point ;
One day last week a guy came into the shop looking for bikes for his three kids . I suggested that I could show him what we have and that it might be a good idea to then bring them in to have them sized correctly . He said that he couldn’t do that because it would spoil Christmas for them and that he would have a good idea himself anyway .
I asked the ages and was told six , eight and twelve . So I began with the six year old and showed the customer a twenty inch Bumper Solar which would be a very suitable bike for 99 % of six year old girls . I explained the specifications of the bike with alloy v-brakes , alloy wheels , etc. as the customer nodded in agreement . He then asked if it might be a bit on the big side for a three year old , but she’s a big three . I replied that it would definitely be too big for a three year old and pointed towards fourteen inch Bumper Starlet which would be a much more suitable size . She would still get two years of growth out of this size which is what would be the norm for kids between three and eight . An eight year old should then get roughly four years of growth if sized correctly . He disagreed and said that maybe the twenty would be better so that she could grow into it ( and fall of it aplenty if it is even used , I thought to myself ) .
Next came the bike for the eight year old and I proceeded to show him a twenty four inch wheel eleven inch framed Specialized Hotrock . A really nice bike with an aluminium frame , front suspension and twenty one gears . He looked it up and down and then said that she’s six but a big six and I pointed back to the bumper Solar which would be best for most six year olds .
Next up came a bike for the twelve year old . At this stage I was well aware that she was definitely not twelve but I showed him a fourteen inch Giant rock with full size twenty six inch wheels anyway , which would be a good size for a twelve year old . Again he confirmed my suspicions and said that she is only eight but a big eight . So I pointed back towards the Hotrock and again suggested that it might be best to bring them in to have them sized correctly . I said that it didn’t matter if he were going to buy the bikes from us or not but that we would gladly size the bikes for him in order that his kids would be safe on their bikes .
His reply was that he might bring them in at the weekend and we left it at that .
We genuinely do not mind people coming in to have their kids sized and perhaps buying their bikes elsewhere . There is nothing worse than seeing a child precariously balanced atop a bike that’s way too big and just about managing to maintain control over it . Most bike shops feel the same so no matter where you are , if you are getting a bike for a child this Christmas be sure that it is the right size !
Barry
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