Interesting. Skip*Hop keeps expanding its product line beyond the low-profile diaper and stroller bags which gave the company its start. And now they've picked up what I believe is their first distribution deal; they're now the US distributor for New Zealand-based Wishbone Studio's 3-in-1Wishbone Bike.
The ply laminate walking bike concept is well known now, but Wishbone adds a couple of twists to extend the rig's usable life. The bike can accommodate a rear axle which turns the Wishbone into a trike. And in bike mode, the curved frame flips over to offer either a lowrider stance for the little kids, or a taller stance for kids up to 5 years old. All made in China "out of European birch," they say. Which knocks the whole German-engineered Like-a-Bike vs Chinese knockoff paradigm out of whack.
The Wishbone is available at a whole string of Skip*Hop retailers for about $250. There's also a limited edition Wishbone decorated with designs by Neal Whittington of P&C. I can't say I'm feeling it.
Skip*Hop Wishbone Bike [skiphop.com via skiphop's pr]
$250? OK, people need to get paid for their work. But there's something to be said for producing things that people other than the wealthy can afford. What about the rest of us - and our kids?
There are various run bikes at a range of price points and many have been documented on daddytypes. (We got my son a Strider for under $100 after considering many options and he/we couldn't be happier with it.)
I'm not aware of any others that make the trike/bike transition like this one but I'm not sold on the idea either. Most of the run bike manufacturers promote their product as an alternative to bikes with training wheels. They claim that kids resist removing the training wheels because they grow dependent upon them for balance and are scared to go down to two wheels. I would imagine that kids would have a similar issue when moving from 3 wheels to 2 wheels on this product.