So, I am perhaps peculiar in this, I certainly am in my vicinity. I like to ride my bike. Since I've moved to Cali I haven't done much of it what with all the baby making and raising. But the babies are big enough! A year ago, I was taking Thing 2 to preschool in a Burley trailer, which was great and made me feel really free again. Well, there was the whining that I wasn't going fast enough, which I am frankly not interested in hearing (only on the uphills, go figure). But now Thing 2 is old enough to get pulled behind me on a contraption that has him pedalling his own bike. Ha! Oh for crying out loud, he brakes for everything interesting. Ergh.
Anyway, Thing 1, having mastered balancing on two wheels just prior to the Burley year, accompanied us as far as the elementary school, where I would shepherd him carefully into his first grade class before heading off with his brother. This Fall, we're going to be riding to school every day this year—we had to skip a year because kindergarten starts at 8:10, and I'm not willing to herd everyone to their cycles that early. 8:30 though, now you're talkin!
So we've been practicing riding this last couple of weeks en route to tormenting the computers in my lab. While Thing 2 has distiguished himself in his ability to unbalance us through vigorous gesticulating at god knows what but its very important I see it RIGHT NOW, Thing 1 is an absolute dream of cycling intuition: Stay to the right, but not so far you get trapped there. Keep an eye out for people inside parked cars popping their doors open. A car ahead means shout "car up!". A car behind means shout "car back!". Obey traffic signs. Wave traffic on at the intersection if your mom hasn't caught up because your brother keeps hitting his brakes. Try to keep a really straight line.
If you see a 7 year old on his shiny new 7 speed bike waving you to pass, wave back! I'm so proud of him I could burst! He is totally ready for peloton riding. I can't wait till he's 17 so I can draft off him shamelessly!!!
Anyway, Thing 1, having mastered balancing on two wheels just prior to the Burley year, accompanied us as far as the elementary school, where I would shepherd him carefully into his first grade class before heading off with his brother. This Fall, we're going to be riding to school every day this year—we had to skip a year because kindergarten starts at 8:10, and I'm not willing to herd everyone to their cycles that early. 8:30 though, now you're talkin!
So we've been practicing riding this last couple of weeks en route to tormenting the computers in my lab. While Thing 2 has distiguished himself in his ability to unbalance us through vigorous gesticulating at god knows what but its very important I see it RIGHT NOW, Thing 1 is an absolute dream of cycling intuition: Stay to the right, but not so far you get trapped there. Keep an eye out for people inside parked cars popping their doors open. A car ahead means shout "car up!". A car behind means shout "car back!". Obey traffic signs. Wave traffic on at the intersection if your mom hasn't caught up because your brother keeps hitting his brakes. Try to keep a really straight line.
If you see a 7 year old on his shiny new 7 speed bike waving you to pass, wave back! I'm so proud of him I could burst! He is totally ready for peloton riding. I can't wait till he's 17 so I can draft off him shamelessly!!!
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