With foam tires and no handbrake, the Haro Balance Bike is a basic, but well-built bike for the youngest toddlers ready to ride. We cover all the details in our review!
Haro Balance Bike Overview
RATING: Recommended
MSRP: $109
BEST FOR: Young toddlers in 18-months pants looking for a good quality budget bike. Footrest may be problematic for petite riders with narrow frames.
SEAT HEIGHT: 11″ – 17″
WEIGHT: 8.8 lb.
TIRES: Foam
FRAME: Steel
FOOTREST: Yes
BOLTS: Exposed
BRAKE: None
PROS:
- Adjustable handlebar
- Real headset with bearings
- Limited lifetime warranty on the front fork and frame
CONS:
- Footrest hinders small riders’ stride
- Rough grip tape on footrest scratches legs
- Exposed bolts can scratch kids’ ankles
Haro Balance Bike Review – Results of our Test Rides
Haro is one of the larger bike companies in the balance bike market. The z10, with 10″ tires, is a smaller version of the z12 which has 12″ tires.
We tested the Z10 out with two, 22-month-old toddlers (two weeks apart in age). From 18-months, toddlers are generally ready to start walking around on their bikes, but their ability to manage a bike can be a concern. Weighing 8.8 lbs., the Z10 is 2 lbs. heavier than the Strider, which also has a minimum inseam of 11″. After two weeks on use, the weight of the Z10 was clearly not an issue for the taller and heavier one-year-old, who was already sitting and running on the bike. The smaller one-year-old, however, did find the Z10, as compared to the Strider, harder pick up after a fall, but had no problems managing the bike once on the bike. Being adventurous, he also insistent on doing several “tricks” on his bike that he had seen his older brother do.
Footrests
Our greatest concern with the PreWheelz were the footrests. While our older testers loved using them, when riding with shorts, the grip tape, which wraps around the sides of the footrest bar, did scratch our five and three-year-old testers. Our toddler testers never rode their bikes with shorts, but upon watching them ride, it was quite clear that they would have been scratched had they been wearing shorts. In addition to the grip tape, we also found that the footrest, in general, was much too big for the Z10. Not only did the footrest hinder their stride, kids small enough to fit the Z10 are most likely too young to actually use the footrest anyway.
Bottom Line
The Haro Z10 is a great bike for the price, but the wide footrests make it less than ideal for petite toddlers.
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