The History of Big Wheels

Ray Lohr created the first version of the Big Wheel from tricycle parts that he re-assembled upside down. In the 1960s, designers at Louis Marx & Co. did the same, creating a tricycle that handled more like a racecar than a bike. Low to the ground, the Big Wheel allowed kids to pull skid-outs at high speeds, a perk that made them quite popular. In 1985, Marx went out of business, but Carolina Enterprises, known later as Enterprise Industries, continued to produce Big Wheels for a new generation of kids. Additionally, Coleco, Playskool, Gearbox Toys, General Foam Plastics, and Razor USA all came out with similar toys. But Big Wheel itself still lives on; in fact, it has been revitalized by Alpha International, Inc. of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, allowing yet another generation of kids to reach new speeds and pull cool tricks on the pavement.