Kick scooter: Difference between revisions
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The feet being lower to the ground, it is easier to step on and off a scooter, hence the rider can alternate walking and pushing as energy and route dictate. Large wheel scooters --such as the Kickbike -- are a more effective [[cross training]] workout than standard bicycles as the whole body is engaged in the effort of kicking. Pushing or kicking a large wheel scooter places less stress on the knee joint than does pedalling a bicycle. Although the bicycle is a very effective long distance machine especially as it is ridden while seated, in 2001 Jim Delzer pushed a kick bike across the United States.{{Fact|date=September 2007}} |
The feet being lower to the ground, it is easier to step on and off a scooter, hence the rider can alternate walking and pushing as energy and route dictate. Large wheel scooters --such as the Kickbike -- are a more effective [[cross training]] workout than standard bicycles as the whole body is engaged in the effort of kicking. Pushing or kicking a large wheel scooter places less stress on the knee joint than does pedalling a bicycle. Although the bicycle is a very effective long distance machine especially as it is ridden while seated, in 2001 Jim Delzer pushed a kick bike across the United States.{{Fact|date=September 2007}} |
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Kicksled is the winter version of kick scooter. |
Kicksled is the winter version of kick scooter. |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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{{commonscat|Kick scooters}} |
{{commonscat|Kick scooters}} |
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Revision as of 05:38, 2 October 2007
A kick scooter or push scooter is a small, 2 or more-wheeled platform that is propelled by a rider pushing off the ground. The most common scooters have two hard small wheels, are made primarily of aluminum and for children, and fold for convenience. Some kick scooters have 3 or 4 wheels, or are made of plastic, or are large, or do not fold.
Models and history
Aluminum scooters
In the late 1990s, a sleeker, narrower folding version of the kick scooter by JDBug (commonly known as an aluminum scooter or Razor) became wildly popular in Japan. In 1999 and 2000 the craze spread to the United States, with a wide variety of colors and styles, with the bubble bursting in 2000. Popular brands include Razor and Micro. The two companies continue to produce these types of scooters, which are popular with children and with a niche market of young adult riders who use the scooters to perform stunts.
The average aluminum scooter has a 18-24" long deck (45-60 cm), with collapsible handlebars, a folding / locking mechanism, 10 cm (4") wheels, and a friction brake. Stunt riders often reinforce and replace many parts of a scooter, sometimes to the point where the deck is the only part left of the original scooter.
"Adult" folders
Adult sized folding kick scooters include Xootr with 7" wheels. These scooters generally have more durable parts, and are designed with wider and longer decks, hand brake and larger wheels, for smoother transportation.
Big wheels
Scooters made for racing use bicycle wheels. They do not fold. Some are used in dense urban areas for utility purposes, being faster than a folding scooter and handier than a utility bicycle. Some are made for off-road usage. Popular brands include Sidewalker and Diggler but since the development of the Kickbike in Finland from 1994 this type of push scooter has changed the way scooters are viewed. The kickbike has a large standard size bicycle front wheel and a much smaller rear wheel. This combination generates a much faster ride.
Besides commuting, sports competition and off road use, large wheel scooters are a favorite for Dog scootering where single or team dogs -- such as Huskies -- pull the scooter and rider in the same way that a sled is pulled across snow. Today variations on the Kicksled with scooter design features are also available -- such as the Kickspark.
Early scooters
Primitive scooters have been hand-made in industrial urban areas for at least 100 years. One common homemade version is made by attaching roller skate wheel sets to a board with some kind of handle. Steering is provided by leaning, or by a second board connected by a crude pivot. The construction was all-wooden, with 3-4 inch (75-100 mm) wheels with steel ball bearings. An additional advantage of this construction was loud noise, just like from a "real" vehicle. An alternative construction consists of one steel clamp–on roller skate divided into front and rear parts and attached to a wood beam.
Compared to bicycle
To the basics of a kick scooter, a bicycle adds a seat and drive train. These complications bring more speed, cost, weight and bulk. At the end of a journey a folding scooter can be more easily folded and carried indoors than a folding bicycle or even a portable bicycle. Even a non folding scooter is easier to bring into crowded places, since it lacks pedals jutting out and snagging. Thus the transport advantages of a bicycle apply more to longer journeys and open spaces, and those of a kick scooter more to shorter and more crowded ones. Kickers seldom have a luggage rack, so the rider usually carries any cargo by backpack or other bag.
At minimal speeds a bicycle is difficult to control while pedalling, which is why bicyclers may sometimes be seen kicking their way through dense traffic or other conditions where they cannot take advantage of the speed of their machine. Thanks to the superior low-speed stability of a kicker, it is allowed on many footpaths where riding a bicycle is forbidden.
The feet being lower to the ground, it is easier to step on and off a scooter, hence the rider can alternate walking and pushing as energy and route dictate. Large wheel scooters --such as the Kickbike -- are a more effective cross training workout than standard bicycles as the whole body is engaged in the effort of kicking. Pushing or kicking a large wheel scooter places less stress on the knee joint than does pedalling a bicycle. Although the bicycle is a very effective long distance machine especially as it is ridden while seated, in 2001 Jim Delzer pushed a kick bike across the United States.[citation needed]
Kicksled is the winter version of kick scooter.
External links
