Sugar & Spice: All Things Nice at Halfords

In September we went away for a long weekend at Centre Parcs and with so much to see and do there we had the most amazing time as a family. One thing that quite clearly stuck out for Alyssa, as she still hasn’t stopped mentioning it, was the fact that Mummy hired a bike with a kiddy trailer on the back which she absolutely adored and just hated it when I couldn’t go any faster thanks to the practically vertical hills that dotted the site. I honestly wasn’t sure I would enjoy it but I did… I need to seriously up my fitness level before we really get into biking again but luckily I have a year or two yet before she will be ready for a proper bike to go riding with Mummy. However, Halfords got in touch and asked us if we’d like to review one of the bikes from their new children’s range! Well, Alyssa obviously got to sit on and have a little go (despite being a couple of years too short) so we also invited some little friends of ours to try it out too…

Is it me or does every little kid dream about their first bike? Or is it us adults that make it into a big thing? Because it is a big thing isn’t it?! There’s the getting of the bike with the stabilisers and them being confident and riding well and then there’s the monumental moment, which if you go down a stereotypical family moment, sees the stabilisers removed and “dad” holding onto the bike and child rides and then suddenly letting go and the child is off, doing it for themselves, by themselves, with squeals from the remaining family at the sidelines. Yeah, it is a big thing and if it’s a big thing, you might as well have a pretty damn cool bike.

So, as I said Halfords got in touch and asked if we’d like to review their Bike Buying experience which as a family we had been experiencing recently anyway as Bear had bought a bike from them too. So, what happens is, you order your bike and then when it has been built (!!! is it just me who thought they’d have shelves of ready made bikes out the back?!) they give you a call and off you go to collect it.

Now, after checking you are actually the owner of said bike, one of their specialist bike technicians will go and retrieve it for you and if you can it’s a good idea to take the new owner of the bike with you because they will adjust the bike there and then. Out they wheeled this gorgeous kids “Sugar and Spice Bike” which is from their new range (which FYI is ON SALE right now at HALF price!) First initial thought was, “Damn, why isn’t this in my size!” The technician was great as he adjusted a few settings for me but also showed me how to do it at home as well.

DID YOU KNOW… when buying a bike that Halfords offer a FREE 6 week bike check-up for you to check that everything is working correctly and that the breaks have stretched and are working? How good is that?! I know for a fact, because of Bear, that the insurance package you can get with them is definitely worth it, where if anything goes wrong you can take it straight in to be fixed and they only charge you for the parts which again I think is brilliant.

After paperwork signing and wheeling out to the car (thank you lovely bike technician who carried it to my car and loaded it for me) it was time to test it out. Now, obviously Alyssa had to have a play and a sit on it because how could I not. I did wonder with her being so tall whether she’d get away with it but unfortunately not. However, she loved having a look at the beautiful white wicker basket on the front that has 3 pretty flowers on it and she mastered the little bell in seconds.

The bike has such a vintage look but with the colours and decorations of a modern bike. One thing we really liked, when getting a friend’s child to ride the bike, was the fact it had a guard around the chain as I can remember countless times as a child getting grease all over legs and trousers or clothing caught in the cogs so that was great. It comes with reflectors, which you can remove if you like, but are a legal requirement when selling the bike so I was told. The bike has a 16″ wheel span and what felt, so I was told, like good strong wheels.

If you’re looking for that stand out, EPIC gift this Christmas or if you have birthdays coming up at any time of the year, I’d definitely suggest taking a peek through the bikes at Halfords…. I’ve already got my eye on one of the adult vintage bikes with the brown wicker baskets on the front. Whether it be a future dirt biker in the making, a bmxer or a Sugar and Spice bike that will also carry your dolly along for the ride too, there is sure to be something for everyone – they even have balance bikes too which if course I am now going to have to get for Alyssa too! As I said, there is a sale on RIGHT NOW (Nov 2017) so hurry hurry hurry!!

*We were given the bike in exchange for an honest review – all opinions are our own.