Back in 1817 the German Baron Karl von Drais invented what he called a running machine. It was made of wood and had a wheel in front and one in back. The rider could steer it with handle bars. The rider sat on the saddle and pushed the machine along with his feet. The design was patented and several thousand of these big wooden toys were manufactured.
The odd machines became known as Draisiennes or Hobby Horses or Dandy Horses. They soon became something of a fad but it was short lived. The machines were not practical for travel over any significant distance. They worked best on level ground on well tended paths and walkways.
The Draisienne quickly gave way to more practical designs with pedals for efficiency and brakes for safety and the modern bicycle was born. The Baron’s original machine was all but forgotten until someone made an important discovery. There is a demographic for whom this ancestor to the bicycle is ideal.
There are people who do not travel significant distances. There are people who stay on well tended paths and sidewalks. There are people who do not ride their vehicles down steep hills. For a toddler who has learned to walk but isn’t yet ready for a real bicycle a tiny, updated version of the Baron’s invention is the perfect intermediate step.
A runners bike also known as a balance bike is a tiny toddler-sized vehicle that any child who can walk can enjoy. The tricycle which has traditionally been the intermediate step to bicycling, eliminates the need for balance. The runners bike helps the child to learn to balance.
The scariest part of learning to ride a bike is the out-of-control feeling of not having your feet on the ground. The balance bike enables the rider to learn to coast and steer with the confidence of knowing the ground is right under their feet. Baron von Drais probably had no idea that his invention would inspire wooden toys that would give two year olds their first taste of bicycling adventure.
Little wooden bikes are also called balance bike or
push bike.
Please check out balance bike
