Last Day of Kindergarten

Wow, what a year this has been for Linnaeus. The little boy who wasn't entirely sure about this whole kindergarten thing has changed into an almost-six-year-old with new friends, interests, and already amazing French skills. I'm so happy we were able to get into French immersion. The year hasn't been without its challenges, but a wonderful teacher and a supportive school have really helped Linny blossom.

Though I'm still slightly conflicted about over programming his summer, we've decided to enroll L in summer school. This means he'll have the regular routine of going (mornings only) to school & doing class work for three weeks in July. The course is specifically for French immersion kindergarteners making the transition to grade one, so I hope it'll be worthwhile for him.

The real proof that his teacher & school have started him off on the right foot was when I asked him if he'd be interested in going to summer school: he responded enthusiastically, yes!

Now to enjoy a week of sleeping in before summer school gets going...

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5 Tips for Family Biking Route Planning

Taking a slight detour to visit the "Chicken Channel", our neighbourhood coop

In the ABCs of Family Biking workshops, there is just so much to talk about that we can't possibly cover every single topic in detail. So I've decided to do a series of blog posts delving into the nitty gritty of these family biking topics.

At the first of our workshops, something that many parents brought up was that they were worried about the safety of riding in traffic with their babies & toddlers. Though we have quite a few kilometres of fully separated bike lanes & paths like the seawall in Vancouver, you will encounter car traffic when you're riding in Vancouver. But mapping out your route can really make a big difference.

I have been biking with my children for more than five years now, but I still usually plan out my route when I'm going somewhere new. An example of when I didn't: I recently decided at the last minute to ride from kindergarten dropoff to Staples on Broadway at Birch. I decided to just wing it & ended up crossing Oak at an intersection with no lights, which required some assertive vehicular cycling. Then I had to zigzag through some streets after nearly getting sucked into the black hole of navigation that is Shaughnessy. It all worked out fine, but it just wasn't the usual smooth, relaxing ride.

For families who are new to biking with their tots, this little bit of preparation is even more important. Knowing where you're going & how exactly you're going to get there under your own steam can go a long way to making it a better experience.

So here are my top five tips for planning our your family ride:

1. Google Maps Bike directions. I use this quite a lot when I'm planning my route to a new place. Both the mobile & the desktop version will give you suggested routes with estimated time it will take, plus details like the elevation gain of the route, so you can pick the least hilly path when you're hauling that extra 20, 30, or more pounds of children on your bike. A caveat: Google Maps isn't perfect so sometimes it's worth zooming in on the satellite images to double check if there are lights at any major arterial roads you'll be crossing.
2. Let Google navigate. Mobile Google Maps has the GPS navigator option. Just turn on your location settings & input your start & end points & then click on the blue arrow to have Google tell you when & where you need to turn. Works best if you have a handlebar mount for your phone, but you can still listen if the phone is in your purse or pocket.
3. Grab a map. The City of Vancouver's bike maps, as well as the Translink cycling maps for the municipalities of Metro Vancouver are handy too. You can download the PDFs & zoom in on your phone if you want access to a map without using data. The paper versions are very portable, folding up to business card sized--great if you don't use a smart phone.
4. Follow the Bikeways. Plan your route to include traffic calmed bikeways, along roads with lower speed limits (like those around parks & schools), seeking out separated lanes where you can, &crossing arterial roads at intersections with bike buttons. Though your route might not be as direct as taking main road, it makes for a less stressful ride, generally, when you take, say, 10th Avenue rather than Broadway.
5. Stop & smell the roses. Being able to pull up onto the sidewalk & take a look at something for a minute is one of the big benefits of cycling. If you have time, try to plan your route to allow for a quick stop for the kids. It could be to peruse the books at a little library in your neighbourhood, or to watch the goings on at a construction site along the way, or maybe past one of the spots where you know there will be interesting mushrooms or flowers growing. One of our favourites is to visit the chicken coop when we take an alternate route home from school.

Some day, there will be a lot more cycling infrastructure in this city & we'll be able to just jump on bikes & not really plan so much. But until we catch up to Holland (trust me, I'm working on it!), taking a few minutes to figure out the most comfortable route will make your rides more fun.

Have you got any other tips you'd like to share? I'd love to hear them in the comments below.

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CycleHack Talk: Barriers to Family Cycling

Friday I had the pleasure of speaking at CycleHack Vancouver. I was invited to talk about the barriers that biking families face. The goal of the event is to bring makers & idea people together to address some of the barriers that stop people from biking.

I thought I'd share a written version of what I talked about here.



When it comes to family cycling--especially with kids under six--barrier is all the stuff they require. They need enormous amounts of stuff to leave the house: diapers, wipes, extra clothing, snacks, drinks, toys, blankets, even a potty, sometimes. So deciding to bike to your destination, rather than driving seems like a crazy idea.

I've learned that biking is often faster than driving & it's totally possible to live car free with a family. But it's still tough for families to get started--figuring out gear--front seat? Rear seat? Trailer? Cargo Bike?--feels like information overload.

 try to help people overcome these barriers in a few different ways. First is my blog: I write reviews of gear, tips & hacks, upcoming events & recaps of rides, all about how we make transportation cycling & carsharing work with two little kids, & how cycling is awesome.

Second, I organize Vancouver Family Biking group rides. I think that recreational cycling is the "gateway drug" to transportation cycling. I hope by coming on our rides & chatting with other people, families new to cycling will be inspired to get groceries or go to their next appointment by bike.

Third is listening, providing advice, & connecting people when I can't answer a question. Much of this is in the Vancouver Family Biking Facebook group. This group is a great little forum where parents ask questions & share information on things like rain gear, taking transit with bikes & little ones, cargo bikes, and so on.

Fourth, my friend Tonya & I organized the Mount Pleasant Family Biking Festival last year to celebrate family cycling & showcase real family biking setups. We had over 25 families in the show & shine, talking about their seats, trailers, & cargo bikes, as well as offering test rides. We're doing it again this year Stanley Park, bigger & better, on September 24th--stay tuned for more details!

Fifth is education: Tonya & I are providing five workshops on the ABCs of Family Biking this summer, funded by the Vancouver Foundation's Greenest City Neighbourhood Small Grant & supported by prize donations from bike shops & Modo.

There are still a lot of other barriers that I come across that I'd love to see some solutions to this weekend. Here's my list:

Obviously I talk to a lot of families with all the work that I do & the number one barrier I hear people talking about is fear. Riding in & around vehicle traffic with your baby on your bike doesn't feel safe. & when your kindergartener starts riding on their own like mine did a couple of months ago, it's a whole other level.

Another safety issue comes up when using front or rear child seats on a bike. According to my research there's a very very small chance of being injured riding in a seat on parent's bike. It's getting on & off--that's where injuries happen. When it's just one parent balancing a regular bike with one or two children on it mounting can be really difficult.

I've solved this by getting two cargo bikes that have bombproof wide double kickstands. But not everybody has the budget or the space to get a cargo bike.

Front seats don't impede rear panniers, but weight limits are lower, so around three or four years old, you'll need to move your child to a rear seat. Rear seats are often on the rear rack, not usually compatible with panniers. With the weight of groceries, or whatever else you're carrying, plus a kid on the bike, you get the balance problem I mentioned before.

This bike has some cool seats that work great for a four year old & a seven year old. But kids at top of the percentiles for weight & height don't fit seats that will hold them securely. A toddler who still falls asleep on the bike needs to be strapped in but could be past the weight limits of a baby seat. Then there are special needs kids who are older but still need more physical support or restraints--there are few options for these kids & none that are affordable.

Just like anyone who bikes, security is a big issue with family biking, Where it differs though is when you have a cargo bike with a front basket or a child seat on the front. These bikes don't fit well into many of the bike racks around the city. Then there's the issue once all the kids are riding on their own bikes. Locking up one bike not too hard, but locking up four to six bikes means that one parent might be carrying their weight in locks.

The last barrier I'll talk about is storage. When you're going from one store to another or running errands, you can't really leave stuff on the bike, like your tool kit, water bottle, coffee mug, kleenex, diaper bag, grocery bags, or purchases, so you have to drag it all inside when you lock up. My bakfiets has an accessory I can order to create a lockable trunk under the child bench, but that's not really an option on longtail cargo bike or 'normal' bikes.

That's my list! Keep in touch on social media, visit my blog for information on the family biking festival, links to the Vancouver Family Biking Facebook group, & the workshops. Thank you for listening & I look forward to hearing about the Cyclehacks inspired by tonight's talks!

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Summer Vacation is Here! Join #YVRFamilyBiking for the Pyjama Ride

The last day of school for Vancouver is Wednesday, June 29. My kindergartener has been counting down the days--how about you? Since Thursday is officially the first day of freedom for all the school kids, I thought why not celebrate with a ride? But it's the first day of summer vacation, so why get dressed? Let's all meet up for a ride IN OUR PYJAMAS!

Meet at 10am, Thursday, June 30, in front of Science World, sporting your best jammies, frilly granny nightie, sleeper, butt-flap longjohns, or flannel PJs.

We'll hang out for a half hour (this is a great time to chat about bikes & ask for test rides of seats, trailers, or cargo bikes you've been eyeing!) & ride at 10:30am. Our route will be along the North False Creek seawall to Stanley Park & end up at Ceperley Meadow.

As always, the ride will be a relaxed pace with at least one five-year-old riding his own bike. It's fairly flat & about 6km each way a longish ride but good for novices. There will be a few cargo bikes on the ride, so if any small riders need a lift & a tow, we've got it covered!

Ceperley Meadow has two playgrounds, public washrooms, a pool, a concession, a beach, & lots of shade. Bring the usual sunblock, snacks or lunch, lots of water, & whatever toys you like for the kids.

RSVP here so we know to expect you! See you soon!

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Biketopia Music Festival at the VAG July 2

The "Pleasant Revolution" musical bike collective is coming to Vancouver as part of their West Coast concert tour powered by bicycles.

They'll be at the Vancouver Art Gallery (720 Hornby Street) 3-7 PM Saturday, July 2. It's a free event & after the show, everyone is invited for a ride to the beach for a sunset with Pleasant Revolution.

More info on the tour:

This summer, a group of musicians, artists and cyclists known as the Pleasant Revolution will embark on a tour through the Pacific Northwest, with a mission to produce exhilarating and inspiring concerts completely off­ the ­grid. Why is this important? As global warming effects more and more communities across the planet with droughts, melting glaciers, and other drastic ecological shifts, there is a need for educational empowerment and a growing demand for cooperative self-­sufficiency that this tour aspires to address.

The events on this tour are called Biketopia Music Festivals; all of the sound amplification is powered by stationary bicycles. The Pleasant Revolution collective works with local musicians, bike enthusiasts and environmental groups to co-­create these grassroots, community empowered festivals.

The Pleasant Revolution is currently scheduled to land in Vancouver, Salt Spring Island, Victoria, Seattle, Bellingham, Olympia, Astoria, Portland, Eureka, Arcata, Santa Rosa, Petaluma and a grand Bay Area return. They will also be putting on impromptu concerts in unexpected locations along the way. The music on the tour will be performed by Latin circus funk band Bicicletas por la paz (Bicycles for Peace), neo­folk­soul artist Heather Normandale and various other artists both on the tour and from the towns they will be visiting.

The mission of the Pleasant Revolution is to inspire cooperative community effort through music and through the collective effort of the audience producing the show’s electricity on bikes! This tour will be hauling all of their gear on bike, no “sag wagon” required. The impact of this project is not just about showcasing good music and sustainable technology; it is to inspire and empower creative minds to think outside the box and realize the power that exists in community.

The Pleasant Revolution has recently launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo to help raise funds needed to launch this traveling musical and theatrical extravaganza. The funds raised will helped pay for the pedal­-powered sound system, cargo­bikes, crew food and maintenance.

The Pleasant Revolution is a concept invented by Kipchoge Spencer who first took his band, Ginger Ninjas on bike tour in 2005, and has since toured through the states, Europe, and Mexico over the past 10 years putting on self­-produced bicycle music festivals. This year, two bands who both have a history participating in musical bike tours will pick up the torch and continue the project’s mission.
 
Carolyn Herlehy of  Bicicletas Por La Paz and one of the main organizers of the tour said, “The first time I saw a pedal­powered show, I was floored, I just couldn’t believe it.” Herlehy continues, “Bicicletas Por La Paz has toured for multiple years inspired by this idea”. We never had a pedal­-powered sound system and we’re ready to take it to the next level.”

Heather Normandale who toured and performed with the Pleasant Revolution commented, “ We really have so much to learn from our natural environment, bike touring allows me to be closer to what inspires me as an artist, and pedal­-powered music is a fun way to involve audience members in the show.”

Paul Freedman, owner of Rock the Bike and designer of the pedal powered technology for this summer’s tour said, “People­powered shows allow the audience to connect with the musicians and allows a space for the audience to believe in their human potential.”


MORE INFO:
Pleasant Revolution

BANDS:
Bicicletas por la paz (Bicycles for Peace) 
Heather Normandale 

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