What really makes a good first pedal bike for kids? For anyone searching for reviews of bikes suited for young kids, this is a likely first question you’ll ask yourself. It was for us.
Both our kids started out their bike riding journeys with Spawn, a bike company based on the West Coast of Canada that delivers quality rides for kids.
Whether you’re a parent looking for a bike worthy of the pump tracks, dirt tracks or neighborhood paths, there are a few key components that will ensure your kid is on a quality bike.
What to look for in a kids MTB
First and arguably most importantly, look for a lightweight frame that ideally weighs 30% or less of your child’s body weight. The Spawn Yoji offers one of the lightest frame options out there with bikes coming in at just over 13 lbs for the 14” option or 14 lbs for the 16” option.
Rachel Bertsch
Secondly, the bike will need geometry that ensures your child is upright and can both comfortably pedal and hold the handlebars simultaneously. With head tube and seat post angles coming in at 72 and 71 degrees, the Spawn Yoji is designed to provide balance and improve steering while being used on a variety of terrain.
Thirdly, the bike should have ergonomically designed and child-size components on important features such as the brake levers, grips and pedals. Adult-sized bike components on a child’s bike not only rack up unnecessary weight, but they can make it difficult for kids to brake leading to safety concerns or just be uncomfortable or not as nimble.
Spawn Yoji Mountain Bike
- Weight: ~13 lbs (14”), ~14lbs (16”)
- MSRP (USD): $475.00 (14”), $495.00 (16”)
The Spawn Yoji has it all: one of the lightest frames with smart geometry and child-sized components. It’s easy to see why parents around the world who love mountain biking will rave about the Spawn Yoji.
With two sizes of wheel diameter, 14″ and 16″, the Spawn Yoji is a premium beginner bike designed for ages three to five years old, although the lower seat post height makes it accessible for taller two year olds, too.
The Details
The Spawn Yoji stands out for all the right reasons. Kids and parents will both like the aesthetics, which make this look like a serious mountain bike.
Big nobbly tires, 1.9″ wide, and made special for Spawn, ride well over dirt tracks and provide extra grip to little rippers. An added bonus is that the tires come with puncture protection.
Dual Tektro mini v-brakes with child-sized hand levers allow kids to start with good habits compared to the coaster style (back pedal brakes). This will also allow for more stopping power and better control for little riders learning the basics.
The 102mm 3-piece alloy cranks are custom, and with crank arms this short your small child will have comfortable hips and knees while riding and more efficient pedal strokes.
Most importantly, the Spawn Yoji performs excellent thanks in great part to the lightweight aluminium frame meaning this bike will be easily managed and maneuvered by the youngest of riders.
Where many bikes falter with heavy bikes and unnecessary bulky items, the Spawn Yoji feels like just the right amount of bike that will let kids gain confidence quickly while being happy on all surfaces.
SIZE AND MODEL SPECS
- Wheels: 14”, 16”
- Frame material: lightweight aluminum 6061 – T6 Alloy
- Gears: Single speed with alloy 64mm BCD chainring with 24 teeth
- Fork: 4130 Chromoly
- Tires and rims: Spawn cycles loam star, 19” on alloy single wall rims
- Rear Hub: Alloy, freehub with sealed bearing
- Headset: sealed bearing
- Stem: Forged alloy 40mm
- Handlebars: Alloy, 520mm wide, 22mm
- Seatpost: alloy pivotal with quick-release seatpost clamp
- Brakes: Tektro Mini-V Brakes
Ride Impressions
Our kids rode their 14″ and 16″ Spawn Yoji’s for two seasons in a variety of settings.
The Spawn Yoji excelled in practically all conditions: dirt trails, pump tracks, and paved paths.
We found our kids riding independently almost instantaneously after our first attempts. Within a few days they were adapting to proper biking techniques like pumping in pump tracks and able to navigate tight maneuvers with ease.
Our kids took such a liking so quickly to these bikes we ended up bringing them for the kids to pedal alongside us as we bike packed and cycle toured across five countries and three continents.
Even with the smaller tires, I was impressed by the speed they could maintain and sustain over longer periods of time.
It’s not common for kids this young to be so dependable on their bikes, and I greatly contribute the success we have had as a riding family to the foundation these bikes provided.
I will always tell others how I loved how lightweight these bikes are. Inevitably, there will be times when kids will get tired but I never felt as though it was the bike itself wearing my kid down. The bikes were easy to maintain, and the stock components handled hundreds of kilometers of use.
Even in terrain where our adult bikes experienced numerous flats, the Spawn Yoji’s never had a puncture.
The Spawn Yoji really is an excellent beginner mountain bike for very young kids getting their first taste of double track, flat cross country mountain bike trails, or anything really.
My only negative is only one that parents need to be aware of rather than concerned with. My personal belief is that the v-brakes are the right design choice for a bike this size. They give more stopping power than coaster brakes that are typical of bikes for this age category, yet are also considerably lighter than the disc brakes that become more common with bigger mountain bikes. But while v-brakes have a great amount of stopping power for trails you’d expect to find a 2-5 year old on, they are not sufficient for steeper and prolonged descents. Which means that even if your three year old feels capable of attempting downhill singletrack, if the downhill sections are too long the brakes might prove tiring for little hands.
Overall, the ride impression is positive every single ride and even when life with toddlers can be unpredictable, the Spawn Yoji delivers a reliable high quality bike.
Geometry
The ideal geometry in a kids bike will ensure kids have a low center of gravity while remaining in an upright position. This will allow them to balance easier as well as have a clear field of vision. With the head tube and seat tube angles at 72 and 71 degrees, this will ensure your child remains upright and well balanced.
With lower seat tube lengths, these bikes will have a lower standover height requirement which makes it more ideal for younger and smaller riders to get on and off the bike. The top tube length felt just the right size for our kids without making them overreach or be cramped by the handlebars.
- Seat Tube Length: 175mm (14”), 190mm (16”)
- Head Tube Angle: 72 degrees
- Seat Tube Angle: 71 degrees
- Top Tube Length: 335mm (14”), 380mm (16”)
- Head Tube Length: 110mm
- Fork Length: 240mm (14”), 275mm (16”)
Overall Thoughts
With a price tag that is significantly higher than the majority of bikes designed for 2-5 year olds, the Spawn Yoji is an investment.
It’s for the kids in a bike family that want to prioritize a future that includes biking. My kids loved their Spawns because of the colours, I loved them because of the components.
They loved it because they could go fast, I loved it because they learned to pedal faster than I could have hoped for.
They loved it because it could go off road, and I did too.
We all loved these lightweight bikes so much it inspired us to bike as a family around the world for two years. Maybe it’ll inspire your family to just get out and bike more often.
Wherever this bike takes you, the Spawn Yoji is an excellent first bike for aspiring mountain bikers.