Toddler Tourist —by Hillary Handy

Let’s Ride a Bike

As summer turns into fall, I am thankful for all the beautiful weather we enjoyed. Our family was blessed by many adventures and incredible summer days! When I think about the kick-off to summer, it seems to happen in our spirits when you can bust out your bike. I reflect on being a child and wanting to learn to ride a bicycle so badly. I also remember itching to get the bike out of the garage the second the snow disappeared. We ride hard all summer and then once school starts, we tend to forget about our wheels.

Leading into the summer, our family participated in Sustainable Orillia’s Bike Challenge. This was our second year doing this and it was loads of fun. It prompted us to ride our bikes more as a family and individually. No one was more into this challenge than my son. Now, this was shocking to me as he, historically, has not enjoyed riding his bike, nor had any real inclination to learn. We tried to get him on the balance bike as a toddler but no luck. Training wheels were just whatever, and still did not provide him with confidence he was seeking. We had an attachment of a half-bike that could hook up to an adult’s bike. He was able to practice the motion of pedaling, without worrying about the need to control and steer and balance. He was a pretty big fan of that, but soon outgrew this tandem bike.

This spring, we were looking for the next size bike for him, and he noticed an adult tricycle. I had never considered this for him, but this would provide the stability he seemingly was craving. I was a little worried if it would be strange, but at summer camp last year, we were able to give drift trikes a whirl, so we thought that could be pretty cool. So, we got him a trike! This allowed for increased independence in an adaptive way! It has the capacity to be an e-trike, but he prefers it the old fashioned way with classic pedaling.

This guy was now up for the challenge. With a new helmet in tow and the basket full of stuffies, he pedaled hard. He may not have logged a zillion KM, but he was consistent with his efforts several times a week. He rode enough days during the Bike Challenge to earn his Bronze Level award. This was his highlight of summer. He will often reflect, “Can you believe I got a Bronze Badge this summer!?” and beam with pride. He is already dreaming of how many days he needs to ride for next year to earn the Silver Level. To go from nothing to the desire to actually ride his bike is HUGE for him.

Now that the official challenge is over, he is still riding his trike. Our unofficial goal is to keep this up into the fall season. The cooler temperatures are perfect for bike riding. We have so many trails in our region, smooth paths, and awesome destinations all within our reach. 

The Toddler Tourist is encouraging you to keep on biking this fall and delay packing it away for the season. It’s great exercise, a fun outing, a way to engage in nature and in our community and a free activity to do that requires very little preparation, once you have the equipment. Just grab the shoes and the helmet and you’re on your way. Let us know if you are an autumn biker. Where will your wheels take you before the snow arrives?