Cyclist

Over the 4th of July weekend, Roan started riding his pedal bike without training wheels (!!!)  He'd refused to ride the pedal bike since I took off the training wheels a month or two earlier (at his request).  Grandma and Grandpa Lyons were in town, and maybe he wanted to show off for them.  He started out riding in our backyard, and then we walked up 22nd Street to ride the flat blocks of 7th Ave.

I was so excited.  Ro learned to ride on a little 12 inch bike that a neighbor gave us, but I knew he'd be happier on a 16 or 20 inch frame, something that didn't weigh so much either, since we'd be riding up some steep hills.  And we'd definitely need to find a way to install a water bottle holder.

I tried to not to freak everyone out with my ridiculous exuberance, but two days after Ro started riding the 12 incher, I took him to Mr. C's bike shop and we picked out a 16 inch Specialized Hotrock.  At first I think Ro was a little put off by the larger frame, and the 12 incher is probably better for negotiating the tight curves of our small yard, but when we took the Hotrock on our first ride through Prospect Park together, he loved it.

He goes faster now.  I'm no longer puttering around on our rides, I'm moving at a regular, sometimes fairly quick pace.  On the hills he stands up in the saddle.  He starts on his own, and even got some experience slamming on his brakes and skidding to avoid the dogs who sometimes stray onto the path.

So far, our most frequent bike ride destination is Dog Beach, a pond in the middle of Prospect Park where dogs can go swimming.  Lani Lou loves to watch the dogs, so we'll stop and let him look for a while before riding around the pond.

Riding around the pond

Standing up in the saddle

Dog watching at Dog Beach

Roan's new bike, and new ability to go faster and further means our world just got that much bigger.

I was so amped up about our family bike ride possibilities that I bought three roof racks for the car, so we can bring our bikes on vacation.  We can also cart the bikes around Brooklyn, to bike paths that are several miles away, and not yet within easy biking distance for Ro.  This weekend we mounted and tested the racks, and drove to a path along the Belt Parkway for our first test ride.