Pirate Skool · Topsfield, MA
1:1 bike lessons in a quiet space. We meet kids who are scared, stuck, or have extra needs and get them rolling without a crowd.
Start here
Pick the path that sounds like your child. Special needs and high fear start with a call before booking. Kids that just need a little “nudge” can book online.
Autism, ADHD, dyspraxia, PANDAS, GAD, and/or motor delays. 1:1. We meet them where they are. Call first.
Read how we adapt →Frozen after a fall. Feeling ashamed. Avoiding the bike. Trust comes before pedals. A quiet lot, and a call so we can hear the story.
How we handle fear →You don't have the back, the time, or the patience left. They need a short, technical jump-start, then they ride.
Book the kids lesson →They can pedal, but you are not confident they can handle a street, a crossing, or a real decision. That is a second chapter.
Street sense & scanning →Proof, not slogans
What a lesson is
We start small and build foundational skills and confidence along the way.
Parents in their own words
I signed my six-year-old daughter Avery up for a bike lesson, and she was nervous and didn’t want to learn from Mom or Dad. Pete the Pirate was amazing—she learned to ride in just 11 minutes! He’s an incredibly talented and patient teacher. Avery loved the lesson, and we couldn’t be happier. Highly recommend Pete and the Pirate School! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Two of my daughters took lessons with Pirate Skool and left being able to ride their bikes! Pete was kind, knowledgeable, and had many tricks up his sleeve! I recommend his bike riding lessons to everyone!
Pete was wonderful with our son (who can get easily frustrated). He made incredible progress in only one lesson! Thanks, Pete
We had a great experience after months of little progress on our own with our 6 year old. What really stood out was that Pete didn’t just teach our child but also worked with us as parents, showing us how to continue building our child’s confidence after the lesson. That guidance was incredibly valuable and gave us the tools to reinforce everything at home.
Great guy, coach. Very patient. Helped my neurodivergent learn how to ride a bike safely!
Pete's a pro! Had my son riding a bike in 30 minutes.. Thanks Pete!
My son was nervous about learning to ride a bike but Pete immediately helped him feel comfortable. By his second lesson he was riding in circles like he had been doing it for weeks! Pete did a great job meeting my son where he was, and helping him gain confidence in his ability to ride. Thank you Pete!
How can I rate him a 10 because that is what he deserves. The patience of a saint, the ability of a superhuman, he taught our daughter to ride in about 15 minutes after 3 years of our unsuccessful attempts. To top it off, he's just a fantastic human. RUN to him.
We had an amazing experience with Pete! He truly loves what he does. He was truly so happy to see my son start riding. The two of them for along great. We were having such a hard time teaching my son to ride his bike. Pete had him riding in 15 minutes! My son went from avoiding his bike all summer to asking us to practice riding everyday after school. I highly recommend Pete if you too are struggling to teach your child to learn to ride.
I was having trouble teaching my kids to ride their bikes, and then we found Pete. He taught both of them to ride within just two sessions! A great experience!
Aces. If you are unsure or unable to teach your kid how to ride a bike….Don’t Hesitate! It’s the Best money I’ve Ever Spent! My 8.5 year old, Tall and fearful, grandson wanted to learn to ride but we did not have the knowledge or resources to teach him. Exactly 22 minutes into his First lesson he was biking independently. His pride & joy was Palpable…so was Mine! He took three lessons. Later Pete sponsored a free group ride. “Reese” was out in front pedaling like the Wind!!! Like he’d been an Expert for Years!! 😎 PS: I am an avid bicyclist myself. I did not know how to Teach Him. There’s a Big Difference.
Beginners course for kids, I can not express what a great experience my son and I had! Within minutes my normally shy 6 yr old was comfortable, engaging, and having fun. I was really easy for me to let my guard down and put trust in Peter, and that came as a much appreciated surprise. He is amazing with communicating as well as reading body language. What had been so difficult and caused so such frustration at home seemed to happen instantly, ( actually I believe it took all of 20 min) and my son was balanced and moving. It really was so much fun, we will definitely be taking some more lessons
100% Recommend My 8.5 year old Tall grandson had not yet learned to ride a bike. He told me weeks ago that his goal for the summer was to learn to ride. He’s a naturally cautious child and his height made him understandably fearful. I decided to “google”bike lessons for kids. I saw this school. I knew nothing about them. I decided to “take a chance”. Reese was pedaling and balancing 22 minutes into his 1st lesson. His pride in himself was palpable. I was Over the Moon. If all he ever had was that one lesson he would be riding but Pete suggested a couple more. 2nd lesson on his own full sized bike. When Reese showed off to his father tonight his father commented on how Reese was very aware of his surroundings & safety. That is ALSO part of his lessons! His third and likely final lesson will take place on the “rail trail”. I am going to go too!! I love to ride and now it’s an activity my grandson & I can do together!! Don’t hesitate. Sign your kid up. You will be happy you did!
Had a terrific experience with Pete! Highly recommend!
Pete is the absolute best bike riding teacher!! He was so patient, kind, understanding, and intuitive to my child’s special learning needs. My son has faced many challenges learning to ride a bike for the past few years. Within less than 10 minutes of Pete’s instruction, my son was pedaling independently. Within 20 more minutes he was riding around the parking lot making turns. It was the proudest moment! I recommend BEIP 150% if your child needs help with learning to ride a bicycle. I cannot express my appreciation and gratitude enough for the confidence that Pete has instilled in my son!! Thank you, Pete, for the difference you make in these kids (and their family’s) lives! ♥️
Pete is amazing! He taught my son in 2 lessons (he really had the just of it after just one lesson, but the second really helped boost his confidence). Pete is patient, kind, auntie takes the time to understand how each individual child learns and is able to teach them that way. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I highly recommend Pete and will be using him in the spring for my younger son!
We had spent years trying to help our 9 year old learn to ride a bike. Within 20 minutes Pete had figured out her learning style and was able to help her correct the few things that were holding her back. Now she's roaming the neighborhood with a pack of kids on bikes, just like she's from the 80s. I recommend Pete without hesitation.
I highly, highly recommend Pete’s Pirate bike school! Both our children, ages 6 and 4, took a lesson from Pete, and the strategies he taught them combined with his clear and confidence-boosting communication style helped them both to get over the final hump of “scared to bike” to “can’t get them off their bikes!”. It was honestly amazing and I’d 100% recommend!
Peter is a fantastic teacher, a real wizard with kids. My grandson was peddling after just 25 minutes and was just delighted to be able to ride without training wheels. We signed up for a second session which I highly recommend to reinforce the new skills and learn how to navigate around real life obstacles
There is nothing more rewarding as a parent than watching your children gain confidence and independence as they learn to ride a bike. My husband and I have had an excellent experience with Pete. He helped both of our daughters build their confidence and develop their bike-riding skills in a patient, encouraging, and supportive environment. Pete is knowledgeable and has a wonderful teaching style that helps children feel safe, supported, and successful. I highly recommend Pete to any parent looking to help their child learn to ride a bike while building confidence, independence, and a lifelong love of cycling.
Pete was the best. He had my enthusiastic but nervous daughter riding in 20 minutes. She is thriving. We are looking forward to booking a follow up with Pete to refine our skills. Best of the best.
We are so happy we found Pete!! This was such a meaningful experience on so many levels and everything was so personalized! We can’t thank you enough!
I don’t have enough words for how incredible an experience this has been for my two kids, ages 8 and 5. We had tried to teach my daughter how to ride a bike for FOUR YEARS. Pete did it in 30 minutes. No exaggeration. She took 1 lesson with him yesterday and the first thing she wanted to do today was ride her bike. The sense of self confidence and achievement was truly awe inspiring. Pete’s approach, methodical, patient, experienced, supportive manner, simply outstanding. Pirate Skool and Peter is without a doubt priceless, run do not walk to sign your kids up.
What a wonderful experience! It was truly magical to see my son learn in less than an hour. Peter is patient, encourage and truly knows his stuff. We'll be back with our younger son!
I am soooo happy to have found the Bike Education Institute for Pirates!!! What a wonderful idea to help folks of every age and ability to learn to ride. One of the best parts of this experience was shortly into the lesson, Peter looked at me and quietly said "He's just about to ride on his own. Get your camera ready!" Within minutes, he let go of the bike and my grandson was off and riding on his own! I must be honest and tell you that I did shed a tear or two. It was such a proud moment for my little man, and I was one proud Mimi! He had been trying for years to get the hang of riding his bike, with help from his parents and myself. He just couldn't master it and was so frustrated. Once Peter took the wheel, it was on! He has been riding like a champ ever since. I cannot recommend the Bike Education Institute enough. It was a complete game changer for my little family! Peter is a gem!!!!
Pete is an awesome bike instructor and thanks to Pete my son loves to ride his bike. Like most children in today’s world, my 8 year old son would rather play on his Ipad than play outside. For the past 2 years my wife and I have tried to teach our son how to ride a bike but he had no interest in learning. All of this changed once our son had his 1st bike lesson with Pete. With in 20 minutes of my son’s 1st bike lesson, he learned the fundamentals of how a bicycle functions and was able to balance without falling. By the end of this 1st lesson, my son peddled and road a bicycle for the 1st time. Thanks to Pete’s teaching abilities, my son now has the confidence to ride his bicycle. He also admitted that he likes riding his bike more than playing on the IPad. I would strongly recommended anyone that his having difficulty teaching their child/children to ride a bicycle to contact Pete.
I am in awe of Pirate Pete. We had been trying to teach our daughter to ride for a long time, but she was easily frustrated and eventually avoidant of our lessons. She was reluctant to go to our first lesson with Pete, but when she had a taste of success, we saw a huge change in her attitude! She left the first lesson determined to practice early the next morning. By the end of the second lesson, she was riding independently! We are thrilled! Pete simplified each step and was incredibly positive yet calm and patient. Not only is he an expert cyclist, but he is a skillful and gifted teacher. Pete works with children and adults of all abilities. It is such a gift to learn to ride, and it is never too late!
Pete is a wizard. He did a great job helping our daughter with the mechanics of getting going on a bike, and strategies for being safe. 100% recommend to anyone. Pete's passion for teaching is amazing.
These lessons helped my family out so much. It was very helpful. If it wasn’t for you. I don’t know how I could have showed them how to ride a bike. He was really nice and very supportive enough to my three kids to the point where they had learned in one lesson. Thanks again!!
Pete was absolutely amazing with my 10 year old son! After attending multiple other "bike schools" and private lessons, I had about given up hope that my son would ever ride a bike. Pete had a great method and built up a good relationship and confidence in my son so quickly. He was riding unassisted within an hour and I was in total disbelief. I can't say enough good things about Pete! He is kind and patient, and most importantly a great teacher. Anyone who has a child with special needs should look no further than Pete for a bike riding coach. He won't give up until he has success for you and your child!
Incredible! One lesson and our son is off with confidence! Highly recommend.
We had such a positive experience with Pete at the Pirate Skool. He had our grandson riding a two wheeler within the first half hour of his lesson! More importantly though, Pete was able to tune in to our grandson’s personality and how to best incorporate the way his mind works into the teaching itself. Clearly, Pete knows his way around kids and our grandson was so proud of his newly acquired ability to ride a bike. It doesn’t get much better than that!! Thank you Pete! Carol and Jim Anderson
Pete is so kind and clearly a natural. Within 2 attempts, my 6 y/o was off and didn’t look back. He understood the personalities of my two kids perfectly and was able to guide them for their lesson on how to overcome their specific challenges. Worth every penny to learn from someone who knows what he’s doing.
Pete was wonderful with teaching my son how to ride his bike! He was both knowledgeable and patient and I highly recommend him for anyone learning to ride!
There is nothing more rewarding as a parent than watching your children gain confidence and independence as they learn to ride a bike. My husband and I have had an excellent experience with Pete. He helped both of our daughters, ages 11 and 8, build their confidence and develop their bike-riding skills in a patient, encouraging, and supportive environment. Pete is knowledgeable and has a wonderful teaching style that helps children feel safe, supported, and successful. I highly recommend Pete to any parent looking to help their child learn to ride a bike while building confidence, independence, and a lifelong love of cycling.
I’m going to start this post by saying that, while I believe in delegating - after all, I own and operate two small businesses and am therefore a Jill of many things but an expert of none - I never thought I would need to outsource bike lessons for my kids. And yet. But then. If only. And yet, so I have. But then they learned. If only they learned hard things easily from me. But they don’t. And if we can do this with swimming, and skating, and skiing, so too then for bike riding. A little background: My 9 YO just competed in his first Special Olympics event held at North Andover High School. He prefers reading over sports and thrifting (ie shopping at Saver’s) over outdoor activities. He’s also impatient when learning new things. We’re still working on his “growth mindset” (the term they use for that tendency in his school’s IEP). I paint this picture because he’s been a reluctant rider and resistant to practicing with mom and dad. Enter “Pirate Pete”. When I first speak to Pete, he tells me he specializes in teaching hesitant riders and guarantees my son will be successfully balancing and pedaling (at the same time!) within three sessions. I’m dubious, but Pete has an affable charm that makes conversation easy and I can hear the passion in his voice. We signed up for our first lesson and met at an elementary school in Topsfield. After Pete equipped Pasal with knee and elbow pads, he told him to saddle up on “Blueberry” (Pete’s nickname for his famous teaching bike) and asked me to take a hike (a walk around the school to give them some space). Topsfield is famous for its big, open spaces so my leisurely walk around the generously sized school took more than a couple minutes. By the time I had returned to the parking lot, Pascal was riding. Not just coasting or taking a few pedals at a time; he was biking off curbs, down hills, and over grass. Dubious no more. Pete’s job to serve what has been an underserved community of kids, many with disabilities, is more than a vocation, it has become his life’s purpose - his “second act” since leaving the corporate world. Bikes for the kids with whom he works open doors of latent confidence that had not previously been there. The bikes give them wings allowing them to move both literally and figuratively more easily through the world. If biking were a religion - and I know it is for some - then Pete would be its god: seeing us (both parent and child), loving us (he has indeed used his community resources to gift my family two free bikes), and making us better people for it. Amen.
Peter is great 100% recommend!
Our son was scared of the bike and avoiding it. We had no idea how to teach him properly and in a way that felt supportive. During our first class, Pete had him riding in the first 20 minutes, and the pride on our son's face was priceless! He's since done two lessons and can ride with the best of the neighborhood kids.
I can't say enough about how awesome Pete was. He had our son up and on a bike in about 15 minutes. Everything about the lesson was awesome and our son didn't stop smiling for a week
I can't recommend Pete highly enough as a biking lesson instructor! He was incredibly patient, kind, and had a wonderful sense of humor that kept my child at ease throughout the entire session. Pete's encouraging and positive approach made all the difference - my child felt motivated and confident and was riding his bike independently by the end of the first lesson! The combination of Pete's expertise and engaging teaching style made this such a memorable and successful experience. If you're looking for someone who truly knows how to work with kids and get results, Pete is your go-to. Highly recommended!
I would highly recommend Pete to any parent (or any adult student) looking to get a jumpstart on their kid’s bike riding journey. My 7 year old took a first class - and did a whole bunch of usual - lot of falling, looking down when biking and difficulty to get both feet on the pedal. However for the second class, within minutes my son started to balance and ride the bike! My son will go back to get “real life” biking lessons soon. I am so thankful to Pete for helping us get over the initial hump!
Pete and his girls were really great to work with. I struggled to get my 6 year old off of training wheels, and after 3 sessions with Pete she was super confident and now loves to ride. The smile on her face once she got it was priceless. I now have my 4 year old enrolled and she's already riding around like a speed demon - now just working on breaking... ;-)
Pete is a wizard. He did a great job helping our daughter with the mechanics of getting going on a bike, and strategies for being safe. 100% recommend to anyone. Pete's passion for teaching is amazing.
Pete is amazing!!! He took my 10 year old grandson, Patrick, from a kid who just couldn't master riding his bike (no matter how hard we tried to teach him) to a kid who not only can ride his bike, but thoroughly enjoys it!!! He was riding a bike within the first 30 minutes of the lesson. His confidence is soaring and there aren't enough hours in the day for him to ride! Pete has the patience, knowledge and kindness of a saint! He truly loves what he does and it shows. He instilled in Patrick the confidence to not only learn to ride, but to want to keep on riding and to keep improving. Patrick considers this "gentle giant" his friend and wants to continue to ride with him (so sweet!) I can't thank you enough, Pete, for what you do and for what you have given to Patrick. His parents and little sister all ride, and all I wanted was for him not to miss out on this. Now they can ride together with Patrick leading the pack!! Bless you, Pete, for what you do! You make wishes come true! What is easy for some isn't so easy for others. Yet you know how to teach people of all ages and abilities to ride in a safe environment that is encouraging, fun and gets wonderful results. I cannot recommend "Pirate Pete" enough!!! A game changer for sure!!! If you're thinking about it, just reach out to Pete. You won't be sorry. I promise you!!! Thanks, Pete! You are the best!!!
Pete taught me to bike commute in the heart of Boston. Going from Brighton to Post Office square, he helped me build the confidence to bike 12 heavily trafficked miles every day for years, snow or shine. If it hadn't been for Pete, I would've had to take the train every day, wasting precious time and compromising my health in the process.
The people
Head Instructor & Founder
Owner & Operations
Director of Operations
First Mate & Chief of Snacks
Where
Lessons run in quiet, flat, controlled lots, the kind of space a scared or sensory-sensitive rider can actually hear themselves think.
Expansion
San Diego is next on the list, and Austin is under consideration. Massachusetts lessons keep rolling as usual.
Quick answers
Yes. About half of our students come with extra needs — autism, ADHD, dyspraxia, PANDAS, motor delay, hearing or sight impairment, and/or GAD. Lessons are 1:1. We meet the child where they are and shape the lesson to them. If you are not sure it is a fit, call first. You do not need to send a diagnosis through a form.
That is a common reason people find us. Trust comes before pedals. Please call so we can understand the specific situation, hear what happened last time, and plan the first session.
Most children start, stop, pedal, and steer in a parking lot within one to three sessions. Some need more. Special needs and high-fear students often need a plan — let's chat before you sign up.
If you have a bike, bring it. We start with our bikes for beginners, often starting smaller than you expect and moving up as balance and confidence show up. Helmets and pads are here if you need them.
Lessons are $150.
Ready when you are
Kids beginner lessons are $150. Special needs and high fear start with a conversation.
