Pocket Bikes

Pocket Bikes Are Really Small

Pocket bikes are mini copies of racing bikes. The craze over the bikes is that the price has dropped considerably. Parents are advised that the gasoline bikes are definitely not for kids, but they're sweet little darlings will probably survive the electric version. The gas pocket bikes are strictly for racing, or practicing in school yards, solid surfaces, paved trails, not in the dirt and the sand, and not in regular vehicular traffic. An example of a true gas-fueled pocket bike is the Pocket Racer Pocket bike. For only $249.99, you get a 2-strokes air-cooled, 47 cc gasoline engine, and a maximum speed of 30-40 miles-per-hour. The little tires are only 11-inches; it has a chain drive and a manual pull to start. There is a bit of controversy about these cute little pocket bikes. They are only about 1-foot and a-half off the ground, and when they are out in city traffic, car drivers have trouble even seeing them. For example, in San Francisco, Calif., according to the San Franc. Chronicle, it is illegal to ride pocket bikes on regular streets. If some kids ride them on a quiet dead-end or in a park or track, that's fine, but to drive on a trafficked street in dangerous and illegal. In California, the motor vehicle code states that the headlights of a bike have to be from 22 to 54-inches off the ground. So obviously, the bikes are illegal for motor traffic. The pocket bikes are extremely popular, and are ridden by not only teenagers, but also adults from age 20 to their 50s, who want to have fun. The top speed is about 35-mph and the cute pocket bikes are attractive because they are faithful copies of larger European racing bikes. The vehicles, although very cute looking, are quite noisy. Amazingly, since the bikes only weigh 40-pounds or so, the rider can also pick them up off of the ground. So when one rides the bike, you are forced to put your feet all the way back, sort of like you are in a prone position. However, actually some people take pocket bikes quite seriously. There is pocket bike racing in Japan, Italy and Switzerland. The races are grouped into different classes of bikes, such as junior, stock or racing bikes. So, pocket bikes have a history that goes back at least to the 1950s, to Japan, a country that has always had a knack for miniaturizing everything.