In raising his three children, Harvey Nix wanted to ensure that they would one day be able to stand on their own two feet. And one of the best steps in that direction, he discovered, was to make sure that they could stand on two wheels.

Like a legion of fathers before him, Nix felt both a powerful bond and a twinge of separation when he taught his children how to ride a bicycle.

The bond came with the generational passing of a skill that is a cherished part of many childhoods. The separation came from watching his children pedal away from him, enjoying true independence for the first time in their young lives.

“Riding a bike is a rite of passage,” Nix says. “There are certain life events that change you. Learning to walk is one of those, but most of us don’t remember that. But we remember learning to ride a bike. There’s a feeling of independence. People look at you differently after that.

“You want kids to have confidence in you as a parent that you’re able to communicate effectively with them to learn something that (creates) a pretty powerful internal feeling. Because when you see them ride, that is a huge freedom thing.”

Nix recently decided to help other children and their parents experience the joy of learning how to ride a bike. He wrote a book titled “Learning to Ride with The Bits,” the bits being nicknames he gave his own children: Tyler, Kyle and Rachel. In the book they are referred to as Little Bit, Little Bit Bigger and Tiny Bit.

The book was released in February 2007. Three months later, Nix began a side business teaching bike-riding classes with the help of his children—who now range in age from 14 to 11—and his wife, Becky.

“I wanted to do something I could do with the family, a business that we could do together,” Nix says. “When we filed (for a business license), the kids were involved in that and understanding what it was. They were involved in the whole editing and processing of the book. They had input in advertising, they help with the classes.

“So for me, this is a great enjoyment, to spend time with the family. They’re also learning some pretty valuable skills, so it’s another way for me to teach the kids to do things.”

Nix, who lives in the Inverness area, became a bike-riding instructor by accident. The origins date to a moment 11 years ago when his son Tyler, who was 3 at the time, began playing with an old bicycle that did not have any pedals or training wheels on it.

“He pushed it around the garage for three months and got to where he could balance really well,” Nix recalls. “I thought, ‘He’s ready to ride.’ When I put the pedals on, he rode it the very first time.

“I told that story hundreds of times to friends and family over the years. About five years ago a friend said, ‘That’s such a great story. You should write a book.’ It seemed to be the right time to do it.”

Traditionally, most children have ridden bikes equipped with training wheels before attempting to master the two-wheeled variety. Nix, however, says the key to bike riding is learning how to balance, which cannot be accomplished as long as the training wheels are providing extra support. That is why he named his company No Training Wheels LLC.

“Most kids are physically able to ride at (age) 3,” Nix says. “The training wheels don’t teach you how to ride. The key is the balance. And if they can walk, then they can balance. It’s not as hard as we’d like to make it.”

Nix’s class is divided into four one-hour weekly sessions, and Nix says by the end of the third session more than 70 percent of the children are riding with no difficulty.

“I played football through college, and coaches have always been real important to me,” Nix says. “They play a really special part in development. It seems like there are skills that you learn that a good coach can communicate that make it that much better. It’s a life-long thing.

“That’s what’s led into this, my innate desire and love to coach. But what I love more is the relationship between parents and their kids. If we can teach them how to ride and they feel comfortable that they learned that step, then hopefully they’ll carry that on to other things you can teach them, too.”

For details, visit www.notrainingwheels.net.