It’s amazing how quickly mileage can rack up. One year, eight months and 26 days ago Z received a Smart Trike™ 3-in-1 tricycle for his first birthday from his Nana and Pops. Since then the trike has been the primary mode of transport to our our local park, and back – averaging about two trips a day to walk the dog and take Z out to the playground equipment.
Smart Trike™ Sport 3-in-1 Tricycle
Now time for the math. The park is roughly 1.2 miles round-trip from our house. Zs been riding the trike for 635 days, averaging two trips per day (2.4 miles). That’s an amazing 1,524 miles! That is more than the return trip between Land’s End, Cornwall and John O’Groats, Caithness (separated by 601.5 miles as the crow flies). Yes! My two-year-old has ridden the length of Great Britain twice. This doesn’t even calculate in the meandering path of a toddler or the circuits around the patio.
Apart from seizing the opportunity to brag about my son I bring up the Smart Trike™ to sing its praises and to join Z in mourning its recent demise.
From the moment Z set eyes on the Smart Trike™ Sport, 3-in-1 box you could see thoughts of riding the open road sidewalk fill his head. From what I recall of 635 days ago the trike was easy to assemble, even through a one-year-old had stolen my tools and eaten the instructions.
The tricycles three-in-one name refers to its ability to accommodate a child growth and development from around 10 months up to 4 years. Basically it turns from a funky looking stroller to a fully fledged trike. For the younger riders the trike provides; 1) a safety bar to surround the occupant; 2) a telescopic handle for allow for parent propulsion and steering; 3) a Foot Rest (for short legs); 4) a clutch to disengage the peddles; and 5) a sun canopy. As your youngster grows the safety bar and sun canopy are removable, the foot rests collapse into the frame and the parental controls can be taken off – at your own risk! All ages benefit from the bucket style seat that offers back support and the 3-point harness.
The safety bar was more of an inconvenience to both Z and I as we struggled with getting on and off the trike. We welcomed its removal after only a few weeks and found the 3-point harness more than sufficient to keep his precious little bottom firmly rooted to the seat.
The foot rests and clutch provided the necessary developmental stages, but it wasn’t long before Z’s legs were able to rest on the peddles and powerful enough to turn them. When Z was peddling, the trike coped well with solid smooth surfaces (e.g., the sidewalk or street) but struggled with uneven and soft terrain – the tires aren’t made for off-road travel.
The sun canopy really was the weakest feature of the bike. It didn’t sit high enough to avoid being in Z’s reach and the clamps weren’t strong enough to keep it in it’s upright position. After only a few days it had been bent out of shape and with the slightest touch or vibration would slip down to obscure Z’s view. We struggled with it for a week or so before opting to make Z wear a hat instead.
The parental propulsion and steering feature (a.k.a., telescopic handle) was simply the best feature in my opinion. Not only did it minimize the risk of Z inadvertently entering traffic, but provided a means to return the little guy home after his legs ran out of steam.
Now, I mentioned the tires aren’t made for off-road travel, but they do have a nice rubber tread affixed to the plastic wheel. The rubber gives better traction and makes for easier peddling. It is these tires however, that brought about the demise of Z’s Smart Trike™ Sport. Today as we approached mile 1,523 the rubber finally de-laminated from the hard plastic wheel. It had started to come unstuck a week or so ago and the application of super-glue hadn’t corrected the situation. The final mile was most challenging as the rubber tread span around the wheel ultimately getting stuck between the wheel and fork of the handle bar.
Z was most upset, but I can’t really complain; after-all the trike had a great run, and I’m honestly not sure it’s meant for such long distance travel.
Pops is working on a fix to reattach the rubber, or replace the wheel. In which case, the trike will certainly stand-up to use by another toddler. For Z, we’ll be focusing on his Scooter skills and shopping for a replacement that will accommodate a few more of his growth spurts.
Product Rating: Smart Trike™ Sport, 3-in-1
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