Is My Kid Too Young/Small for Poweriser Kids?

Q. My child is a little younger or under the weight range, but very athletic and energetic. I'm sure he'll grow into it... Should I buy him the Youth stilts?
Poweriser Kids 3050 are listed for ages 8 through 12 (66-110lbs)

In my experience even the small kids have a blast walking on stilts. Young kids usually pick it right up after a few mins, so balance and coordination is not a problem... but the main issue is fitting.

The ages and weight ranges on the Poweriser Kids 3050 is really just an estimate. The minimum size needed for kids to fit into the Poweriser Kids model stilts is mainly determined by the length of their legs. Fitting on the kids stilts requires a minimum of about 13 vertical inches between the bottom of the shoe and the bottom of the kneecap. The age and weight recommendations are less important than this particular dimension for fitting.

Make Adjustments using a Foam Insert
The 13" dimension requirement of kids stilts can be slightly adjusted by adding foam padding underneath the shoe. If you place a foot shaped piece of stiff foam under the shoe it will lift kids up, and this adjustment may be needed if the foot straps don't fit well with the tightest settings.

Adjusting the Cuffs of the Kids Stilts
Most kids will need to have the leg straps unscrewed and placed in the tightest position (smaller hole). Often even with this adjustment smaller kids will need wrap something such as padding or a towel around their calves to make a snug fit into the top two bindings.

Should you buy if the kids are too small?
My suggestion is to ensure that the kids properly fit the stilts. If the stilts don't fit right when they are first opened and adjustments are not made, it will be hard for the kid to use and uncomfortable as they are learning a new skill. Uncomfortable fit also pretty-much guarantees that they will lose interest in the sport. Fitting and comfort is one of the things that I emphasize, because powerbocking is supposed to be enjoyable!

Whatever you decide, the kids will definitely grow into the stilts before you know it.

As a reminder to parents: An adult should hold their hands and "spot" for the first 10 mins while the kids are first learning to balance.

Why do you only sell certain brands of stilts?

This broken hoof is a result of a few hours of normal usage of a pair of the Chinese knock-off brand Powerizer Pro stilts. They may have changed their name to Air-Trekker, Power Strider, Flying Locust, or whatever, but design flaws and low manufacturing quality from this brand is well known and documented by numerous users. You might save a few dollars to buy a pair of these, but you'll get poor quality. Luckily, my customer was able to retrofit a pair of good Poweriser hooves in its place.

As a stilts dealer that represents bockers, I feel that stilts should be made such that they are suitable for regular usage. Because your safety rides on your stilts, only well-tested, quality products should be used.

DC Power Stilts is a small business, independent dealership, and we are able to represent any brands of stilts that we want to. Right now the best quality vs value for most users is going to be a pair of stilts from the Poweriser brand. For advanced users and professional performers, please ask me about the other alternatives. I can steer you away from bad brands and towards the good, proven products.

What are the replaceable parts?

How frequently do they need replacement?
Wear vs Usage really depends on a lot of factors. Note that the Poweriser warranty doesn't cover damages due to normal (or improper) use.

Poweriser Hooves are the most common part in need of replacement. If you are using your stilts on soft surfaces such as dirt or grass, the hooves will last years and years. If you are using them primarily to jump, they will last a while, but running and moving on pavement wears them down more quickly. In my experience, hooves last about one and a half season with occasional usage on pavement. This can be mitigated by the use of "tire socks", a tire or something rubber wrapped around the hooves.

Poweriser Springs are designed not to catastrophically fail, but over time it will wear more and more. The appropriate time to replace the spring is when you find the stilts "bottoming out" during regular usage. Again there's no established range on these because it depends greatly on the weight of the user, the kinds of usage, and any damage. My first pair of stilts have been used a few hours each week, and the spring is still fine after a year and a half... But I'm at the low end of the spring weight range.

The bearings will wear out if they are not occasionally maintained. Because of the bearings, exposure to water sand and grit should be avoided.

The rest of the parts should last for most of the lifetime of the stilts, but may need replacements from heavy usage or incidents that cause specific damage.

How Can You Afford to Offer Free Lessons and Low Prices?

A customer asked this, and another asked me if I planned to stay in business long term or even into the next year. The funny thing is that both questions had the same answer. DC Power Stilts has competitive prices because we buy stilts in bulk. Powerbocking is our business, and DC Power Stilts is invested in the sport... As of mid-Spring, we have nearly a hundred pairs of spring stilts to sell. Our business is growing, and we're committed to serving customers! Our instructors actually have fun teaching people and enjoy giving them a higher perspective on things.

When doing free lessons, we keep the overhead low. As a result, if you are taking a free lesson, It will usually be with just one instructor. He may ask you to help with minor logistics such as moving a box, holding items, opening a door... it allows the lesson to be free and it saves you money.

Of course, things would go much smoother with a lesson helper. Let us know if you would like to volunteer :-)

How long will Shipping take?

I just added this to my FAQ Page. Every customer wants to know how long shipping will take. As each order ships, I always send you the FedEx tracking information. However it's often useful to have the answer before placing the order, for planning purposes.

So whats the answer? It depends where you live :)

Here's the map:

Please note: These estimated shipping times are not a guarantee. Shipping normally starts the business-day-after the order was placed. Packages in transit will move over the weekends, but FedEx pickups and deliveries only occur on weekdays.

Hope this helps!

What is the Warranty?

Poweriser USA provides a general one-year free-from-defects warranty except for springs and hoof rods that come with a six-month warranty.

As for the warranty, the standard warranty is provided by the manufacturer so as a result is the same no matter where you buy them, however I do additionally offer locally managed service for customers which makes it easier in case of an issue.

For more details, see the appropriate page on the DC Power Stilts site.

Can I Buy The Classic Stilts and Upgrade Later?

There were a couple of questions about starting with the classic stilts, and upgrading the hardware later. It's a great idea as the upgrade path will give you the same comfort and support as the advanced stilts for around the same price, but with less cost up front. Since replacement service is performed free for Customers, this upgrade option is close to hassle-free. For upgrade options (and an interesting schematic of the hardware), see our Upgrades Kits.