My son rode a bicycle w/o training wheels at 2yrs and 9 months. We got him a honda crf50 when he turned 5. It has 3 gears so in the begining we just left it in first gear. When he got used to it I would leave it in second. The bike has enough grunt to start even in second. I would suggest not cheaping out because in 2 yrs he will need something bigger and the Yam/ Hondas hold value well. We bought it new for 1000.00 and I sold it to my best friend for his kid 2 yrs later for $650. He now has the crf 70 (he is 8). Next christmas we will probably get something with a clutch. I even rode the 50 myself. Its first gear is low enough to pull stumps out. Top end was 30mph even with me. I kinda miss that bike you could almost as easily carry it as you could ride it.