Around here, school inexplicably starts in mid August. Even though this has been the case for us for several years now, I still can't help but feel as though the last couple of weeks before Labor Day are wrongly annexed into the school year.
We can't do much about it but enjoy the time we have left. There's no better way than to get acquainted with some newly handed-down bikes. Lil Sis is the new rider of an Electra Hawaii that Big Sis once enjoyed. Big Sis helped me refurbish a cool old 1994 Kona Hahanna slated for school commuting duty.
It's always great to see them learn and master the nuances of new bikes, and incorporate their experiences into a library of skills they'll have forever.
Night riding is fun. Puddles are fun. Night + rain = double fun.
We took a little ride to test out some newly acquired birthday gear. Of note were the new CamelBak, headlamp and riding knickers. She gave grinning approval to all. We opted for bikes with fenders to enjoy the puddles. Big Sis was a bit surprised to realize that her new mountain bike wasn't equipped with them, saying, "I thought all bikes had fenders." Around our place, with few exceptions it's easy to see how she would get that idea.
Though the little 16-inch wheeled Electra Hawaii has been a great bike, she acknowledged that it's time to pass this one down to her little sis. The Electra's coaster brake and lack of gears were also mildly lamented, indicating that she's become accustomed to the multiple gears and hand brakes of her mountain bike.
As we were riding and talking, it was she who brought up the need to find a larger replacement for her cruiser. In a flash of comprehension, I realized that the idea of having just a single bike is foreign to this girl. I shouldn't be surprised, but growing up on and around a barn full of bikes has apparently made an impression.
I've got a few vintage Schwinns in the herd, but a big bike with 26-inch wheels is still a while off from fitting. In the mean time, I suppose she's going to have to really twist my arm to go hunting for a 20" cruiser.
We still have a fair amount of snow on the ground in some places, but the sun has been out and the temperatures have been very spring-like. The latter induces the desire to get out on the trails. We gave our old standby trails in the park a go, and although they were a bit too muddy to make riding really exciting, we still managed to have some fun.
A little mud on the princess bike is going to make her dirt bike jealous.
Over the weekend, my human and canine girls were in the mood to get out and enjoy the sun, despite the wind. We made a big neighborhood loop of a couple of miles. The street was mostly dry, with a few scattered patches of snow and ice. They both enjoy the snow in slightly different ways. While our girl enjoys plowing through little piles of crusty snow, Scout savors snapping up crunchy mouthfuls. The girl human is an old pro on a bike now, and the girl dog is getting accustomed to being around bikes. I have a feeling that both of these girls are going to be ready for some serious off-road adventures this summer.
She enjoyed speeding past me, then skidding and giggling.
They both want to be the leader. Both benefit from learning to take turns.
Proof that I choose a more efficient line than my dog.
The rain let up enough for a little ride. The ladybug boots are there for the puddles.
Today was a big day. It was the last day of school and our girl's first bike-iversary, a term we've decided appropriate for marking the occasion. It was one year ago today that she first rode a pedal bike. In the year that has passed, she's become an ever more accomplished rider. This may be the summer of learning about mountain biking.
Recently I had a question from a reader regarding how we liked the Electra and how it has worked out for her. This prompted me to spend some time reflecting on not only the bike, but the learning to ride process. I thought it deserving of a bit more prominence than to reside in the comments section of an old post, so the following is a brief synopsis of our experience.
We used the balance method of learning to ride, and never used training wheels. It was quick, easy and fun for both parent and kid. We started out with a Scuut balance bike followed by a 12.5 inch wheeled pedal bike, followed by the larger 16 inch wheeled Electra.
For those unfamiliar with the balance method, the gist is to learn to balance a bike first, then introduce pedaling once balancing is mastered. Any bike can work, but smallish bikes are easiest. A cheap second hand 12.5" bike is a good starting point, depending on the kid's size. Just take the pedals off and lower the seat so that the rider can put both feet flat on the ground. The kid pushes herself along with her feet, quickly learning to lift them to coast, and thus learning to balance. The whole process can be mastered in as little as a few hours of practice, but easy, never forced practice spread out over several days or weeks is probably more typical. After balancing feels comfortable, then you can introduce pedals.
She rode her balance bike on and off for a couple of months. I slapped together a balance bike for myself out of an old frame I had, so that we could ride bikes together without her being too inquisitive about the differences between our bikes. One day, on her own volition she asked to try her pedal bike of the same size, and immediately took to it. Within an hour, she was riding reasonably well, starting, stopping and turning with increasing confidence.
It should be noted that during this whole process and for at least a year prior to this experience, she rode on the back of the Big Dummy many, many miles. It's possible that riding on the Dummy helped her internalize balancing skills and assisted her body and mind to absorb what it feels like to be moving on two wheels. If this hypothesis is correct, then a child riding on the bike of a parent before learning to ride on her own could contribute to the learning process. At some point I may investigate this in more detail. At any rate, we continue to enjoy riding together on the Big Dummy as well as on separate bikes, and hopefully she picks up practical skills and an understanding of safety on the road.
Below are a few short movies from a year ago on the first day she rode a pedal bike, taken within an hour of her first attempt. My favorite is the second clip during which she announces excitedly, "I made a heart." Here's to the first year of a long lifetime of riding.
The loss of a second tooth has made corn on the cob more of a challenge.
Even the most casual reader may have noticed that this blog has remained dormant for some time. The lack of activity herewith closely coincides with a recent tenacious string of illnesses that I have endured, culminating in sinusitis and bronchitis, neither of which I can wholeheartedly recommend. However, I am starting to feel better even as I continue to hack phlegm and eject mucus. On that happy vision, I present the following photos to show some of the highlights of this weekend made possible by terrific weather.
Following the first backyard barbeque of the year, the perfect Saturday evening called for an after dinner ride around the neighborhood and a local park. The day had reached in excess of 80F, which seems fairly hot for this time of year.
The air temperature was perfect; the only detraction being intermittent clouds of gnats at eye level. After a brief stop, we decided to venture away from the lake where the gnats seemed to concentrate.
Vamping for the camera.
The view from the reverse features the setting sun over the lake.
For this ride I chose my Surly Cross Check, a bike that has been under-ridden in recent years, mostly because my Big Dummy is usually just too convenient. However, it's worth the effort to grab the Cross Check, because it is a great bike in its current configuration as a very clean and mild-mannered single speed. It being a single speed placed me on the same footing as our girl on her bike, and in my depleted state I struggled to keep up at times.
The blur in the distance is our little hot rod.
This morning, she and I presented Mommy with breakfast in bed. I think it was appreciated. Afterwards, among other things we had a nice ride, although the 85F heat seemed to melt us at times. In all, not a bad way to spend the weekend.
Carrying carefully.
The clock is in fact displaying double digits. Good for us all.
Yesterday started out as a gusty, yet warm ride to the post office. We meandered along a familiar route through a neighborhood where houses within the non-grid oriented streets serve as windbreaks. Eventually, our course took us to East-West streets on which we faced the brunt of the wind.
Battling the wind head-on.
Riding in full on wind can be challenging. Even going downhill, the wind can negate gravitational advantage and necessitate strong pedaling just to get down. After about a mile and a half of pushing against the wind, our girl opted for the SAG wagon. I had anticipated this, and had installed my hacked rack mount on the Big Dummy.
Posing by the Big Dummy with her Electra aboard.
Enjoying a celebratory lollipop on the ride home.
After successfully reaching the post office, we decided to capitalize on the wind with a kite flying session in the park. The wind was almost too strong for the kite, which zoomed up high then down low, tempting catastrophic encounters with the ground. On frequent occasion, impacts were unavoidable, but the kite seemed to take the crashes in stride.
Daring one-handed maneuver.
She found a cozy place to conduct her flying.
The ladybug kite and flight crew.
After a time, we sought the wind-free shelter of home, but not until we had put a fair amount of flight time on the ladybug kite. It has held up well and looks to have a bright future on many more windy days.
Spring starts tomorrow, but there have already been plenty of signs of its arrival. It would have been nearly impossible for anyone who spent time outdoors today not to have noticed. Green tendrils and crocus blossoms are peeking through the soil and a blanket of flowering trees will be bursting in no time.
Bikes are also popping up in more places with the arrival of warm, pleasant days. Denver B-cycle is nearing the end of its first week of operation for the year, and bikes of all types are coming out of storage all over town.
Denver B-cycle number 056 is indeed good.
Sighted downtown: a bakfiets complete with rainshield and child seat installed in the box.
Wash Perk, a neighborhood coffee shop in West Wash Park is leading the way for bicycle-vended commerce in Denver. The Perk Cycle is now in action, and was featured in today's Denver Post. The bike is a very unique and amazing machine, but no more so than its pilot, Teri. Teri's Perk Cycle is the best combination of coffee and wheels in the city. If you'd like to have a look in person, the Perk Cycle will be in Washington Park much of the day tomorrow. Otherwise, look for the Perk Cycle around town, or you can always stop in at Wash Perk at the corner of Ohio and South Emerson to find out more.
The Perk Cycle in action: Teri (left) and Maddie (center) serve a fresh cup of coffee to a happy customer.
The doors of the bike form a sign board.
The Perk Cycle and its supply and equipment support bike, a venerable Xtracycle.
After a visit to a couple of parks and a seeing the Perk Cycle in action, the latter part of the day was topped off with some ice cream and a bit of bike riding, another perfectly complementary pairing. For those of you in the Denver area, tomorrow is the day of the BikeDenver Vernal Equinox ride, which promises to be a lot of fun. Check out the BikeDenver website for details.
Sporting the perpetually stylish ice cream mustache.
"Look Daddy, no fingers," is a natural predecessor to "Look Daddy, no hands."
Yes, those mittens are as fuzzy and warm as they look.
Four years ago Denver was in the midst of a string of blizzards that brought deep snow that stayed on the ground for several months before melting, which is a quite an uncommon phenomenon around here. Today was quite different, with temperatures around 52F and not a speck of snow anywhere. We all had the day off, so we enjoyed a ride through our neighborhood and around the park.
Whenever we ride through the park, it's tradition for us to fit in a couple of rounds on our little stretch of single track. As traditionalists, we did not waver from our duty to lay down some tracks on the dirt. She parked her bike for a bit and hopped on the Big Dummy to do the circuit.
Zooming down our favorite hill.
After our ride, we had a few preparations to tackle before going over to Oma's house for the evening. There would be cousins to play with and a birthday for Uncle Chris. Our girl never shies away from an opportunity to dress up, and Julie had assembled a perfect holiday outfit including a green velvet dress with red and white snowflake stockings.
All gussied up in her holiday dress and topped off with Daddy's Soviet naval officer shopka, in front of the illuminated B-cycle.
A bit later, just before bedtime she and I prepared a snack for Santa. She thought that he would have mostly had enough of cookies by the time he reached our house, so we opted to serve Santa some genoa salami, cheese, crackers and a small cookie. She carefully counted out eight carrots for the reindeer. For a change, it didn't take much coaxing to get her to go to bed tonight, and she was asleep quickly. I'm hoping that we get to sleep in until at least sunrise tomorrow.
The snack, which was accompanied by a question for the ages...
Dear Santa I want to know if there is a real Rudolph?
She reenacted the Linus in the leaf pile scene from It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
Falling leaves are one indicator of the season, but so is the annual return of Veloswap. This was the first time that my cash and I had been in attendance in a few years, so it was with some relief that I returned home with no more bikes than when I left. That's not to say that I wasn't tempted by a brand new Long Haul Trucker in my size, on offer for a mere $700. I'm sure I'll be thinking about that bike for years, even though I'm comfortable with with the result. Does that mean my disease is in remission?
In the end, my expenditures for the day amounted to $15: $8 for admission, $5 for Albatross-ish bars made by Wald, $1 for a 140mm extension threadless stem (to hold a passenger handlebar on Julie's Xtracycle), and one last well-spent buck which netted me a set of 7-speed downtube Shimano 105 shifters and six 3mm threadless headset spacers. The bike-geek atmosphere was distinctly pungent, paying dividends as several hours of cheap entertainment.
Veloswap has changed markedly over the years. I preferred the vibe of the days before Craigslist and bike hipsters, when the event was one of the few venues to relish in old bike junk and prices for many items were a bit more reality-based than at present. I know a lot of things in bike-dom and the world of economics have changed in the past couple of decades, but for me it's difficult to rationalize $2,500 as an astoundingly great deal for anything, even if for a used downhill rig or sleek triathlon bike with an original retail price upwards of $5k.
I've changed a bit too since my last Veloswap. In the past I arrived armed with a comprehensive list of parts objectives, a metric tape measure and keen bargaining skills honed by a tour of duty in the Peace Corps. Curiously, this time around I enjoyed the social aspect of the swap, spending about as much time hanging out and talking with friends as I did searching through parts.
The lower-key approach continued into today. We rode the Big Dummy and the Xtracycle over to participate in a 5K run/walk to benefit the local school district. I opted to walk instead of run as I had planned, and ended up doing the course with her. We ran some and walked some, and I even served as steed to the diminutive princess on my shoulders from time to time. At the finish line, she and I ran across hand-in-hand in 48:14. It was good fun, and she did great in her first 5k. Sadly, I forgot the camera.
Later, we took a ride with friends Maggie and Doug, and had dinner with several bike pals in North Denver. It was a great day to maximize enjoyment of the current and unusually long stretch of pre-frost weather in the region. Overall, not a bad way to spend the weekend.
It was the end of an unseasonably hot day. To enjoy the evening atmosphere, my daughter and I walked Heidi. Well, actually I walked and she rode. Ever since she learned how to ride a pedal bike, this has been a common evening pastime for the three of us. This time of year, it's important to make the most of the nice weather before snow and ice and dismal gray become the standard. I'm not looking forward to the change this year.
It's sometimes difficult to capture a moving target
After walking Heidi, it was starting to get dark. She wasn't quite ready to go in for the night, so she asked me to get out the Big Dummy for a longer ride. Who am I to deny such a request from a little girl?
With her aboard, the Big Dummy is a rolling snack machine
Five miles later we were back home, after riding past the farm, the library, the flower garden, through neighborhoods and a few parks. We also tossed in a short segment off the pavement through a forested area in a park with a short, fast and bumpy downhill; a long-time favorite of hers. She seems to enjoy the dirt so much that maybe I'll put a mountain bike together for her next year.
