Can Kids Bike in Flip Flops? (9 Reasons It’s a Bad Idea)

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I mean, we’ve all done it, right? Ridden your bike all your life in flip flops? When the topic of footwear for bike riding comes up, you’ll hear all sorts of opinions. Some people swear that there is no big deal and have always ridden their bike without any concern over what shoes to wear. Many still regularly ride barefoot.

On the flip side, there are people who will only ride their bike with proper tennis shoes. Many have horror stories about foot injuries that honestly give me the heebie jeebies. Let’s be honest, at some point in our lives we’ve done things that many consider to be unsafe. Some of us did stuff in our childhood we look back on now and it makes us cringe.

So what should we tell our children? Is it okay for them to ride with flip flops? It’s one thing for an experienced, older rider to do it, but is it okay for a child? Are the parents that lean toward safety going too far or are they justified in their concern?

As a rule, it is not safe for children to ride a bike in flip flops, open-toe shoes, or barefoot. Flip flops and open-toe shoes expose feet to harm from moving parts on the bike. Sandals tend to have less grip and are more prone to slipping off the pedal, increasing the chance of injury.

Let’s look at this more closely to see why it’s a bad idea for children to wear flip flops when riding a bike.

9 Reasons It’s a Bad Idea for a Child to Ride a Bike in Flip Flops

1. Poor Protection From the Ground

The problem with flip flops is that you have poor protection on not only the top of your foot, but potentially the bottom. Without straps to hold them to the back of your foot, flip flops can come off easily, even when riding at a moderate speed. It doesn’t take much to have a little accident and end up skinning your toes.

photo of a kid riding a bike in flip flops

The reality is there is little to protect you if you have to put down a foot to make a quick correction. Even if you’re riding on grass, you don’t know what’s in the grass. It’s been three years since we put on a new roof and I’m still finding roofing nails around the house. Not to mention fire ants.

2. Poor Protection From the Bike

Between the chain and the spokes, there are some fast moving parts on a bike. Add to that the jagged edges of a pedal. Not only are your feet exposed to these parts, but the back part of your flip flops can easily get caught. Unfortunately there are too many stories of people whose feet have bad encounters with these moving parts.

3. Poor Grip on the Pedal

Pedals are designed to grip into the bottom of your shoes. The textured surface of most tennis shoes are great for gripping into pedals. The smooth surface of flip flops (and most sandals) are a recipe for pedal slips. My shins are tingling just writing this…

4. Even Worse Grip if They’re Wet

Flip flops already have poor grip. If you get caught in the rain or get wet in a puddle, whatever grip you have is going to get worse. Please think about those shins!

5. They Fall Off Easily

If you’ve ever worn flip flops, at some point you’ve had them randomly fall off (something that doesn’t normally happen to shoes with laces). Not only does that mean you need to stop and pick up your shoe in the street, but you also need to ride your bike barefoot (also not a good idea).

6. They’re Made of Soft Material

I know a lot of people love the comfort of flip flops. But the truth is the bottoms are usually made of a soft material (which is what a lot of people love about them). When you’re pedaling, you’re focusing pressure on the point of contact between a small part of your foot and the pedal. Eventually your feet will get progressively more sore from continued pressure on one spot.

7. Poor Stability

Because they’re not strapped to your feet, you now have a moving contact point between the bottom of your foot and the pedal. This weakens your stability and increases the chance of a crash. Even if you swear by riding in flip flops, you have to admit there is much greater security in riding with strapped or laced shoes.

8. Bad Idea for Anything Off Road

While correcting balance on pavement has its own potential issues, the reality is that a simple readjust when offroading can mean disaster.

9. Uncomfortable for a Long Length of Time

It’s one thing to ride with flip flops to go a couple houses down the street. It’s another story altogether if you go on a longer bike ride. What is normally really comfortable very quickly gets irritating.

Is It Safe to Ride a Bike in Sandals?

While not as bad as flip flops, sandals are still less than ideal compared to closed-toe tennis shoes. Sandals are a big improvement because they are strapped onto the whole foot, not just the balls of your feet.

One problem is that the tops of your feet are still exposed to the elements. While that might sound like it’s not a big deal, if your child falls onto their side, they’re likely to scrape up the top of their foot and/or damage toenails. The skin on the top of your feet is much more tender and takes longer to heal. Not to mention, your child’s feet are still exposed to the moving parts of the bike.

The other problem is that most sandals have smooth soles. This gives very little grip with the pedals and there is a greater chance of pedal slips. (For the last time, think of your shins!)

Is It Safe to Ride a Bike in Crocs?

Crocs have a couple advantages over flip flops and sandals. The biggest advantages are that your toes are covered and the strap on the back to keeps them onto your feet. The main problem is that there is usually some foot movement in crocs. And let’s be honest, how often do you put up the strap on the back?.

If I have to compare crocs to sandals and flip flops, I would definitely rank them as the safest of the three. But it’s still not as good compared to the stability and safety you can get from tennis shoes.