# Dyspraxia and cycling for kids



## Boris Bajic (30 Dec 2012)

This seems a strange thread topic, but if one of your offspring is dyspraxic it can have some impact in many areas of life. One of those (if you are a bicycle family) may be cycling.

Dyspraxia is more of a scale covering a gazillion activities than a single set of symptoms, but there will usually be an extent to which it affects coordination, balance and spatial awareness.

Our middle child had faced a bit of a struggle learning to master some seemingly simple physical tasks, so learning to ride was going to be tough. But he wanted to get it done. I watched as he struggled and I had a glaum around on the Internet and found - nothing. Lots of bare ladies, but no useful information of cycling and dyspraxia.

In the end (and after many failed plans) I bought a *tag-along*, to allow him to feel the sensation of balance and the flow in and out of bends while not having to do any balancing or steering himself. It was a fairly desparate, last-ditch purchase, but the effect was electric. He went very quickly from being a non-rider to becoming a tag-along dynamo to wanting to ride his own bike EVERYWHERE. To this day I am amazed at the transformation it brought, when so many other strategies had crumbled and died.

This was several years ago. He is now in his late teens and remains a keen cyclist. He races a little and cycling has provided some of the key moments in his formative years. It would have been so much easier to quietly admit that learning to ride was too difficult for him. As he whips past me on big climbs these days, that notion seems absurd.

Up to quite recently I still has his bike set up with higher bars and a shorter stem than might have seemed appropriate - and he had his bottle on a cage mounted on the bars, as reaching to the usual position caused wobbles. But even that is in the past now. He stoops low over a long stem, rides unfashionably narrow bars and his bidon lives in the frame triangle. TT bars are the next mod, but we'll take it steadily. He dislikes the unpredictability of off-road riding, but on smooth tarmac he is in his element.

Another big change in his cycling progress came with *clipless* pedals (when he was ten). That may seem young, but before that he'd had trouble keeping his feet in the right place on his pedals. Clipless (once he'd mastered them) was a massive benefit. With the extremities in fixed positions, a lot of the other stuff about riding in traffic and at speed was much more easily acquired. It may seem barmy, but going clipless young can be a great boon for the dyspraxic rider.

Many hours and many miles were spent behind him, getting him to put his thumbs under (not over) his handlebars. There were other quirky idiosyncracies to his riding, all ironed out over months of quiet encouragement and reminders. Sometimes I thought he'd turn round and tell me to kindly go f**k myself. He never did.

Popping out of the saddle still doesn't come entirely naturally, but that is a detail. He can churn along at a good speed and he goes up hills like a rabbit.

All three of our children ride, so I could watch and make comparisons. If you are teaching a child with dyspraxia to ride a bike, it might take a little extra effort on your part (and a lot on theirs) but the rewards are enormous. In terms of acquired balance and coordination the benefits cross over into many other areas.

I am not a doctor and certainly not an expert, but if anyone is in the position I was in eleven years ago with a dyspraxic child who is keen to ride but faces a seemingly impossible challenge, I hope the above offers some cheer.

A word of caution: He mastered it because he wanted to. He really wanted to ride and would not be put off. Had he been indifferent, it would have been a much steeper (or an impossible) hill to climb.

If you are still looking for the initial breakthrough moment teaching a dyspraxic child to ride, do consider a tag-along. There are sunny days ahead.

I hope this post will be of some use to others who face the questions and worries that confronted me on this toipic.


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## summerdays (30 Dec 2012)

I helped a child in my son's old primary school - he was struggling to cycle. As you say he couldn't keep his feet on the pedals, one on, the other would come off. We went out several times and gradually he improved a little though each time it would take a little time to get back the progress (with lots of encouragement). There were times when he didn't want to cycle especially near the beginning. He started to really enjoy cycling as he saw he was able to do more and more. He also struggled to signal as well.

He moved to get into a different catchment area for secondary school and we lost touch. But I hope he is still cycling.


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## Rohloff_Brompton_Rider (30 Dec 2012)

My son who is now in his twenties has severe dyspraxia continuum symptoms, it's never stopped him doing anything in life. It just takes him longer to learn things.

Patience, love and repetition is what works for him and he always gets there in the end. Did well at school, did well at college and is excelling in his m.h nurse training.

For those who don't know what is, it used to be referred to as clumsy child syndrome. My son agrees that's a really good analogy, and he uses it to explain some of his issues to new people in his life.


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## ColinJ (30 Dec 2012)

bromptonfb said:


> My son who is now in his twenties has severe dyspraxia continuum symptoms, it's never stopped him doing anything in life. It just takes him longer to learn things.
> 
> Patience, love and repetition is what works for him and he always gets there in the end. Did well at school, did well at college and is excelling in his m.h nurse training.
> 
> For those who don't know what is, it used to be referred to as clumsy child syndrome. My son agrees that's a really good analogy, and he uses it to explain some of his issues to new people in his life.


My nephew has it and is very similar. He's a lovely lad but he can be clumsy and does daft things like spending 30 minutes in the shower, forgetting why he is in there and eventually emerging without having washed! Wearing odd shoes, forgetting important things like when he is getting a lift or catching a bus ...

He is much brighter than he appears to be. If people bother to see below the surface, they discover that he has a jumbled mind, not a slow one. TBH, I think I have a touch of the condition myself, as some of you may have noticed when talking to me on forum rides.

Talking of getting confused and missing appointments - I am 10 minutes late for coffee and mince pies... Byeeee!


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## sabian92 (30 Dec 2012)

ColinJ said:


> My nephew has it and is very similar. He's a lovely lad but he can be clumsy and does daft things like spending 30 minutes in the shower, forgetting why he is in there and eventually emerging without having washed! Wearing odd shoes, forgetting important things like when he is getting a lift or catching a bus ...
> 
> He is much brighter than he appears to be. If people bother to see below the surface, they discover that he has a jumbled mind, not a slow one. TBH, I think I have a touch of the condition myself, as some of you may have noticed when talking to me on forum rides.
> 
> Talking of getting confused and missing appointments - I am 10 minutes late for coffee and mince pies... Byeeee!


 
Yeah, I think that is the problem. I'm dyspraxic (although not as bad as some others in this thread) and people sometimes treat me as an idiot when I'm not - my brain just does things differently. It took me years to learn how to tie my shoes and I still write like a 10 year old but do I care? No, because that's not reflective of my intelligence level. I've recently been accepted into university to study Forensic Computing - they obviously think I can do it so that's good enough for me! I'm no Einstein but I'm certainly not stupid.

I'm forgetful as well. I think a lot of the symptoms for dyspraxia vary between people (and their severity) but forgetfulness seems to be a common one across the board. I remember my dad used to go nuts at me for forgetting to do things and he always used to say it was "selective memory" and that I chose to "forget" to get out of doing things. Yeah, as you can imagine, he wasn't very good with dealing with it and now if it's implied or mentioned about how I forget things it makes me really annoyed, because it's not deliberate whatsoever. I remember it used to make me cry and he'd carry on saying it 

I think it's good that people who struggle persevere because at the end of the day - why not? I could sit defeated and say I couldn't learn to ride a bike, or drive a car because my coordination is bad. I can drive a car, ride a bike, play the drums and everything in between, yet I can't put a key in the front door!


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## Sandra6 (30 Dec 2012)

That's a really refreshing tale. Thanks for sharing Boris. 
Too many people think a child with additional needs can't/shouldn't/won't do all the things that "normal" people do, but you just need to find a way to remove the obstacles.
A mum I know who has a 6 yr old with severe developmental delay was talking to me in the shop the other day and said she'd like to buy him a balance bike -he can't ride a normal bike, but is too big for a balance bike - specialists cycles are too expensive so I suggested a normal bike, with stabilisers, and no pedals. She looked at me like I'd grown an extra head. 
Sometimes we just need to think outside the box.


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## SportMonkey (30 Dec 2012)

More proof that you're a good man Boris.

There is some research (I'm too lazy to find it on the internet, as it's over 10 years old) that shows that particularly balance sport can help with all sorts of developmental disorders. I know we saw some children benefitting at my old canoe club from racing.


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## defy-one (30 Dec 2012)

Sandra6 said:


> That's a really refreshing tale. Thanks for sharing Boris.
> Too many people think a child with additional needs can't/shouldn't/won't do all the things that "normal" people do, but you just need to find a way to remove the obstacles.
> A mum I know who has a 6 yr old with severe developmental delay was talking to me in the shop the other day and said she'd like to buy him a balance bike -he can't ride a normal bike, but is too big for a balance bike - specialists cycles are too expensive so I suggested a normal bike, with stabilisers, and no pedals. She looked at me like I'd grown an extra head.
> Sometimes we just need to think outside the box.


 

i may try this with my daughter - thanks for the suggestion. i used to take her out on my bike when she was small, but now at 19 she is too big, she still comes and stands next to my bike and i know she loves the idea of bikes even though she hasn't ridden one.


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## summerdays (30 Dec 2012)

defy-one said:


> i may try this with my daughter - thanks for the suggestion. i used to take her out on my bike when she was small, but now at 19 she is too big, she still comes and stands next to my bike and i know she loves the idea of bikes even though she hasn't ridden one.


What about a Tandem - though I've not ridden one myself to know how much the stoker (is that the right term for the one on the back), needs to be able to balance.


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## Sandra6 (31 Dec 2012)

Is it worth a google to see if there are any clubs nearby offering cycling for the disabled? 
We have one called Watchtree which is really good, they have a range of bikes for hire like adapted trikes so that everyone and anyone can have a go.


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## MossCommuter (31 Dec 2012)

My nephew has an adults' pedal go-cart (he's 17)

It's _way_ cool


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## Boris Bajic (2 Jan 2013)

[QUOTE 2227381, member: 76"]My nephew has lots of the issues described here (still in velcro strapped shoes, and can't do up a belt). I have tried and tried all sorts of tricks to get him on a bike, all to no avail. The problem now is that he can't cycle, swim, run, skateboard, scoot or much else at all except eat. He can not get in the rugby or cricket teams now either as they are picked on merit. I would still like to get him riding but now he is 14 years old nearly 6 feet tall and weighing in at nearly 13 stones!

Any ideas? I am stumped![/quote]

This sounds like dyspraxia, but may be one of a gazillion things. Nihil desperandum.

Look on a dyspraxia website and you should finfd a list of 'common' symptoms. You should also find a lot of methods you can use to work through things and gradually improve balance, coordination, awareness of body position etc.

It can seem like a long road, but is better started at 13 than at 15.... and better 15 than 20. Today is the best time to start. Always. Yesterday is not an option on the drop-down menu.

My dyspraxic boy is a keen footballer now (and for many years), but at five he needed to be 'taught' to run off the balls of his feet. Piston action in the arms when sprinting took a loooong time. But there are few backward steps. Progress tends to stick, even if making it can take some time.

Be positive. Always be positive - and where appropriate be honest about the condition if you are sure that's what it is.

Nihil desperandum.


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## xpc316e (7 Jan 2013)

There is an organisation that loans tandems out to families with children who are disabled, or who have special needs:

http://charlottestandems.weebly.com/

I bought a tandem myself to encourage my young son onto bikes. I think that he is slightly dyspraxic, and the tandem has certainly got him into being able to 'get' the pedalling motion. He has toe clips and straps, and these too have assisted him in keeping his feet on the pedals.

As a Bikeability instructor I often come across children in schools who cause me to go to their teacher and discuss whether they are dyspraxic. Normally, it has never been raised before, but I find that nothing revelas a potential dyspraxic better than a bike ride! In my experience it is usually boys who have the problems - in fact I have never come across a dyspraxic girl.


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## simon.r (7 Jan 2013)

There's a fair amount of info on cycling with disabilities here: http://www.velovision.com/showStory.php?storynum=559

Also a couple of downloadable PDFs:

http://www.velovision.com/mag/issue19/vv19specialneeds.pdf

http://www.velovision.com/mag/issue11/specialneeds150.pdf


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## xpc316e (7 Jan 2013)

A check of the Charlotte's Tandems site reveals that they now have some trailer bikes to lend out. Might be worth trying one before going to the expense of buying one.


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## Charlotte's Tandems (6 Oct 2014)

We have had several borrowers that have Dyspraxia and they seem to have done really well on our tandems.

Charlotte's Tandems lend tandems for FREE. For full details see CharlottesTandems.co.uk


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## kelvecion (17 Apr 2015)

My boy suffered from Dyspraxia when he was a child. It was fairly mild and his co-ordination suffered. His doctor warned us that he would have trouble later in life but he has improved greatly. In the early days we used the tandem bike for him but now he can manage a bike on his own. I'd never heard of Dyspraxia until my son's diagnosis. Seems we're not alone. Respect.


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## Dave the Smeghead (21 Apr 2015)

kelvecion said:


> My boy suffered from Dyspraxia when he was a child. It was fairly mild and his co-ordination suffered. His doctor warned us that he would have trouble later in life but he has improved greatly. In the early days we used the tandem bike for him but now he can manage a bike on his own. I'd never heard of Dyspraxia until my son's diagnosis. Seems we're not alone. Respect.


Exactly the same here (only with my daughter)


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## Sara_H (21 Apr 2015)

Boris Bajic said:


> This seems a strange thread topic, but if one of your offspring is dyspraxic it can have some impact in many areas of life. One of those (if you are a bicycle family) may be cycling.
> 
> Dyspraxia is more of a scale covering a gazillion activities than a single set of symptoms, but there will usually be an extent to which it affects coordination, balance and spatial awareness.
> 
> ...


One of my nephews has dyspraxia. 
My sister in law paid for a course of physio sessions when he was about 12 that aimed to make him aware of and improve his core strength. 
It did seem to help him a bit and the physio said that the effects should be lifelong.


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## Dave the Smeghead (21 Apr 2015)

Following the programme from DORE really helped my daughter.


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## Simontm (28 Apr 2015)

Just seen this thread 

My daughter has dyspraxia and would love to ride but cannot get her head around the pedalling - but we persevere. The worse thing is that the LHA is refusing access to the specialist - she is heading into secondary next year and will need computer assistance because of writing issues - so yet another battle to head into


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## Dave the Smeghead (28 Apr 2015)

Simontm said:


> Just seen this thread
> 
> My daughter has dyspraxia and would love to ride but cannot get her head around the pedalling - but we persevere. The worse thing is that the LHA is refusing access to the specialist - she is heading into secondary next year and will need computer assistance because of writing issues - so yet another battle to head into


Contact DORE and get her on a programme really quickly. Best money I have ever spent. Just a shame it isn't funded by the NHS but it isn't a high enough priority.
Don't think about it - just do it. The difference in your daughter will be immense month on month you will be amazed.


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