H Grossman Lightning Strike Scooter

~~~~Reason for purchasing~~~~~

My granddaughter was two years old in May and I wanted to buy her a scooter. I had seen little girls near where I live playing out in the evenings on their scooters and they always seemed to be having a lot of fun. Rather than trail around the shopping arcades I decided to look on Amazon. There were several designs to choose from including 'My First Scooter for Girls ' which was very pink with bright yellow wheels. I quite liked this one but thought she would soon grow out of it. As I wanted to buy her something that would last more than a year or two I decided to go with the Lightning Strike Scooter in pink.

~~~~Manufacturer's warning~~~~~

Now, I know the manufacturer stipulates that this scooter isn't suitable for children under 3 years old but I knew that I would be the one supervising my granddaughter so I wasn't too worried about the warning. I wasn't about to let her scoot off into the distance on her own.

~~~~Packaging and assembly~~~~~

Well packed in polystyrene in its own strong cardboard box with instructions and guarantee. Assembly took about 5 minutes. The scooter was folded in two. My husband just released the folding lock and that's all there was too it.

~~~~Basic Description~~~~~

This is the pink version: a two wheeled scooter made from a medium weight steel like material. The scooter isn't too heavy for my granddaughter to lift on her own. It has a fold and lock system to enable the scooter to be folded up and stored away. This system is too difficult for a child under 5 to activate. In fact I struggled and had to get my husband to do it. The wheels are made from polyurethane and have a good flowing action. The steering has ABEC bearings (Annular Bearing Engineers' Committee) which gives it its easy action and feels safe when turning corners. The height of the steering angle can be adjusted to three different heights. I have adjusted my granddaughter's scooter to the first level as she is tall and the level of the steering on arrival was too low. There is a rear brake which works and comes with a spare parts warranty.

~~~~~Fancy Bits~~~~~~~~

Now for the fun part of the design and the main reason I chose this particular scooter. On the steering column and the footplate are graphics emblazoned in purple, pink and dazzling yellow. Basically, it just says LIGHTNING STRIKE with images of lightning. Around the edges of the footplate are light rods which when a child steps on the footplate it lights up and flashes bright pink. This is a really cool design and makes the scooter look quite trendy. Only problem with this function it takes 4 x AA batteries which didn't come with the scooter and could work out costly if you have to keep replacing the batteries. The scooter still looks cool without the flashing lights I might add. Finally the hand grips are made from soft black sponge with a pink circular plastic edging. This certainly makes gripping on to the handlebars more comfortable for small children and Grandmas.

Please note there is also a blue version of this scooter which is exactly the same design except the lights on the footplate are blue.

~~~~~Like and use~~~~~~~~

When we first showed our granddaughter the scooter she said, 'Whhhhhhoooooow' and had a big smile on her face. Her grandfather asked her if she would like to ride on it and she said, 'NO!' so we didn't push her to play with her new toy - we just left it standing upright in the hallway. She kept going into the hall to admire it and eventually brought it into the living room and stood on it. At this stage I wheeled her round the room with both her feet on the footplate and her hands gripping the handlebars. At first she didn't have the confidence to scoot on her own even though she knew how to do it.

That same afternoon we took the scooter outside and chauffeured my granddaughter around the flat block. She thought this was a lot of fun and didn't really want to take one foot of the plate and try it on her own. Obviously she didn't have the balance so I guess she was too young for the scooter. This is why the manufacturer states 3 years and over.

Now she is two years and 5 months old and is much more confident on the scooter and uses it on her own Of course, I am always next to her just in case she loses her balance. She enjoys riding it and loves going down hill - this is where the action is really smooth and the scooter seems to run really well.

~~~~Summing up~~~~~

I'm glad I purchased this Lightning Strike Scooter from Amazon. It looks attractive especially with the flashing lights, is strong and well made and the steering column is safe. The locking and folding away system is a good idea as you don't always want a scooter standing in your hallway or living room. I also like the fact that the steering column can be adjusted to the child's height. I paid £17.99 for my scooter with free postage due to an additional item being added to the order making the total up to £25. This is a good price for a scooter that will last for at least another 4 or 5 years. I feel I made the right choice even if it the scooter was a little too sophisticated for my granddaughter in the beginning. She soon got the hang of it.