All Participants Need a Bike
All iCan Bike participants need to have an appropriate personal bike brought to camp for use by no later than Thursday (Day #4). Our goal is to transition all riders to their personal bike by the last day of camp (Day #5) such that they are comfortable with the bike they will be riding at home. Determining which bike to purchase from all the available options can be overwhelming for parents.
Parents should start by reading the “Selecting the Right Bike & Helmet” document detailing bike features that are desirable for people with disabilities (found near the bottom of this page).
Here are the general takeaways of features we recommend:
- Getting the largest wheeled bike on which they can fit, sitting on the seat with their feet mostly/confidently on the ground
- Low-slung easy step through frames (e.g. ‘girls’ frame) which is easier to get on and off
- Upright riding postures, meaning that the handlebars are significantly higher than the seat height
- Single speed bikes (gears tend to be overwhelming)
- Handbrakes for stopping in lieu of using a coaster brake because it’s easier to learn and practice that ‘your feet make you go, your hands make you stop’
- Using a handbrake connected to the rear wheel to minimize risk of the rider flipping over the handlebars during abrupt stops (we recommend removing handbrakes connected to front wheels)
Bikes We Use for Teaching (Recommended)
Four out of five bikes used by us for teaching in our iCan Bike program are Retrospec Bikes
We decided to primarily use Retrospec bikes in our iCan Bike program after careful consideration of the pros and cons of all available bikes on the market. From our assessment, Retrospec bikes seem to offer the best overall design features to accommodate the needs of riders with disabilities.
Retrospec bikes, unlike bikes bought from bike shops, are ordered online and include free shipping directly to your home. Because Retrospec bikes arrive in a box, some simple assembly is required before bringing the bike to camp (e.g. connecting the front wheel and seat to the frame by tightening bolts).
We recommend the following Retrospec Bikes (NOTE: Retrospec does not ship to Canada):
Retrospec Bike Sizing Chart
As with people, bicycles come in a wide range of shapes and sizes. The chart below is a general guide for sizing riders on the Retrospec bikes that we recommend.
We believe a rider’s inseam measurement, that allows them to sit on the bike with their feet flat on the ground, is the best estimator of their appropriate bike size. Confident riders with an inseam at the top of a range can likely size up to the next size bike, while less confident riders with an inseam at the low end of a range may want to size down.
However, no practice of bike sizing works better than having the rider actually sit on a bike to assess proper fitting.
Single Speed Retrospec Bikes (Beginners)
We recommend the following single speed bikes for those who are about to or have recently completed one of our iCan Bike camps and have little to no experience independently riding a conventional two-wheel bike. We mention below some minor modifications to some of these bikes, such as adding a rear wheel handbrake, to make them into ideal learning bikes:
- Retrospec Koda Plus & Beaumont 16”: Both are essentially the same bike and come with a handbrake connected to the rear wheel (our recommendation), which is hard to find on a 16” bike. The Koda Plus also comes with a coaster brake and front wheel handbrake (we recommend disabling/removing the front wheel handbrake to avoid the rider flipping over the handle bars during abrupt stops).
- Retrospec Koda & Koda Plus 20”: Both are essentially the same bike and are good for smaller riders who are too big for 16” bikes. Both bikes come with front and rear wheel handbrakes (we recommend disabling/removing the front wheel handbrake to avoid the rider flipping over the handle bars during abrupt stops).
The one drawback with both bikes is they have rear freewheels, meaning they can be pedaled backwards without anything happening. This can potentially be a source of distraction or confusion, depending on the rider (ask your iCan Bike staff if this is applicable to your rider).
If you prefer a 20″ bike that does not have a freewheel feature, either the Chatham Single Speed Beach Cruiser (immediately below) or a non-Retrospec bike included in the document below entitled ‘Selecting the Right Bike and Helmet’ is a good option.
- Restrospec Chatham Beach Cruiser Bike – Step Through Single Speed 20″: This bike is good for larger riders with shorter legs who can’t yet quite fit on a 24” bike. This bike only comes with a coaster brake, so we recommend a rear wheel handbrake be installed. This bike also comes with a wide seat, which is a nice comfort perk. Note: We do NOT recommend the ‘boys’ version of this bike, but only the ‘step through’ version. To see the available step through versions, simply select each of the color options for this bike after clicking the below green button.
- Restrospec Chatham Beach Cruiser Bike – Step Through Single Speed 24″: This bike only comes with a coaster brake, so we recommend a rear wheel handbrake be installed. This bike also comes with a wide seat which is nice for comfort. However, in order to get some shorter riders to fit onto this bike with their feet confidently on the ground, we recommend switching to a more narrow seat allowing for slightly more leg reach. Note: We do NOT recommend the ‘boys’ version of this bike, but only the ‘step through’ version. To see the available step through versions, simply select each of the color options for this bike after clicking the below green button.
- Restrospec Chatham Beach Cruiser Bike – Step Through Single Speed 26″: This bike only comes with a coaster brake, so we recommend a rear wheel handbrake be installed. This bike also comes with a wide seat which is nice for comfort. However, in order to get some shorter riders to fit onto this bike with their feet confidently on the ground, we recommend switching to a more narrow seat allowing for slightly more leg reach.
Multi Speed Retrospec Bikes (Intermediate)
We recommend the multi-speed versions of the above Koda 20″ (7 Speed) and Chatham Beach Cruiser Bike – Step Through 26″ (3 and 7 Speed) Retrospec bikes for those who:
- completed one of our iCan Bike camps;
- are seeking to transition to a bike with a few speeds; AND
- are quite proficient at independently riding a conventional single speed bike