A Simple SixGroceries by Bicycle
Yes, we have been shopping for our groceries and carrying them home on our bicycles for nearly 10months now, but most of the time I send Brent, or we all go together and divide up the goodies. Sometimes we all go and that means there are groceries and children on the bike (or bike and trailer). Last night, it was just me and my Yuba.
Elliot and London rode along side because they wanted to pick out their sleepover feasting materials, but they carried nothing but the clothes on their backs.
Shown here are nine bags of various sizes, with 100+ pounds of sustenance. Nearly full freeloaders (Peanut Shell legs get in the way of precious bag space), three bags in crate, one bag in the Peanut Shell, one bag in the front seat, one bag wedge between the crate and rear seat. I have learned to load the heaviest items to the bottom and center of the bike. Do you mind if I say this again? I love my cargo-bike.
I traded out my jeans and socks for shorts and flip flops. Good for the heat, not great for pedaling. I just prefer a closed toe and a shoe that doesn’t slip off my foot, but I don’t own any that are also able to keep my feet cooler. The other trouble I had was with my shorts riding up. It’s not comfortable, or easy to keep adjusting your clothing as you ride. Advice? It could be the clothing, could be the seat, could be me.
This trip finished out my day with 15 miles. I took Family Ride’s advice and went slow the whole day through, even when it was flat and I had the energy to ride faster. It helped a lot to pace my day.
| Miles Walked: 0 | Biked: 46.3 | Bused: 0 | Drove: 0 | Carpool: 1.7 | This week |
| 134.6 | 2164.5 | 1176.6 | 3691.8 | 287.2 | Since August 14, 2011 |
Towing Bikes with Bikes
One of the challenges of having your children ride independently (for recreation or transport) is the growth. This time last year Elliot (now 8yo) was on a 16in. By fall he took on London’s 20in, because she moved up to my old 26in mtb when the Yuba arrived. I see a lot of children riding bicycles that are too small for them, but bikes are not inexpensive. Neither are good shoes, if they walk, run and play. Nor medical bills if they are inactive and succumb to diseases linked with lifestyle choices.
Today we picked up a 24in bike with 18speeds from a friend who had an extra in her garage. We are forever grateful for the kindness of friends. We are going to let Elliot tool around on it after school and see if it’s a good fit. We set out for the bike with the intention of towing it and then picking up some groceries. The heat (83F and sunny) was getting to me. It was heading closer to nap time. Brent had taken time out of his work day just to keep me company. We headed home without groceries.
“That worked better than I thought it would. I am impressed.” ~Brent Patterson
Brent has never seen me tow a bike. He was a skeptic, now he’s a believer. As I finished strapping the bike in I looked up to see a Subaru with the hatch up and two lawn mowers inside. I immediately thought, I could haul that! It’s a symptom of having a cargo bike. You think you can do anything.
| Miles Walked: 0 | Biked: 36.3 | Bused: 0 | Drove: 0 | Carpool: 1.7 | This week |
| 134.6 | 2154.5 | 1176.6 | 3691.8 | 287.2 | Since August 14, 2011 |
Average School Bike Commute
At the end of last week I rode the children up to the school in the morning, leaving the littles at home. Brent’s been doing this commute most mornings, but I wanted to do a little since I wasn’t going to be picking them up (sore hand). The morning ride is much easier than the afternoon one. It’s cooler. There are fewer children to haul. We are not tired from our day, rather, just well rested, well fed and ready.
We have been getting up about 20 minutes earlier to accommodate a 10 minute earlier departure, with an extra 10 minutes to check bikes and gear. The children go downstairs about 7:20AM, leave by 7:30 and we haven’t been late yet. Brent usually gets them there with 10 minutes to spare. I ride slower, and let them have drink breaks, so we have an extra five. This means we get to lock up our bikes together, breath in the morning fog and say hello to our school family.
When we started biking again this year, the children reported there were two other bikes at the school. Sure enough, two sisters have started riding to school. Who knows, there may be a bike rack there next year.
It’s a very pleasant way to begin our day. Knowing the sun is up keeps us motivated. Those dark winter mornings were rough to build a desire to get out of bed.
Now that my hand is feeling better, I have taken on the school pick up and Brent has been covering the morning commute. I may need to see if I can reverse the schedule with an excuse other than an injury. Those 10 minutes alone on the way back from school were so peaceful.
| Miles Walked: 0 | Biked: 31 | Bused: 0 | Drove: 0 | Carpool: 1.7 | This week |
| 134.6 | 2149.2 | 1176.6 | 3691.8 | 287.2 | Since August 14, 2011 |
Trip Meter: May 12
| Miles Walked: .5 | Biked: 54.5 | Bused: 0 | Drove: 0 | Carpool: 0 | This week |
| 134.6 | 2123.2 | 1176.6 | 3691.8 | 287.2 | Since August 14, 2011 |
I was on track to reaching nealy 75 family bike miles this week, but after Wednesday’s fall, things slowed down. Brent did pick up, which only adds a couple extra miles to his commute. I did drop off, so a few miles there, but didn’t go out much afterward, preferring to garden and bake in the kitchen.
Not much gets done around the house when you spend so much time around town during the day. Having a busy first half of the week left me hungry for some home time and wary of how other families can be “on the go” all of the time. Our children are not involved in any extracurriculars right now. They are members of scout troops but London has elected not to participate. Elliot’s meetings have been held at the camp location, too far away to consider for a school night, even if we drove. Running around after school doesn’t give us time for a family meal, free play or preparing for the next day, things we need to do in order to have balance. We may do it occasionally, but to do it night after night, is exhausting. We simply choose not to participate in many community activities.
If we have had an especially busy week, we find we don’t do anything on Saturday either, and sometimes Sunday. Yesterday Brent took the four children and the neighbor’s son downtown for a cash mobbing of our new fro-yo establishment. They were gone 55 minutes. I know b/c I thought I was going to have a few hours to myself. Nope.
Today we have a Cyclo Femme ride scheduled for 4:30. We won’t go anywhere or do much else. We often have the neighbor children over, putter about the house, dig in the dirt out back or dream big. The children spend a lot of time in imaginative play or reading, and we do have considerable electronic media time. I took a few hours yesterday and called my aunt and dad. Neither of whom I had spoken to in many months (dad) or years (aunt).
How do you spent your unstructured time?
| Miles Walked: 0 | Biked: 48.5 | Bused: 0 | Drove: 0 | Carpool: 17 | This week |
| 134.1 | 2073.7 | 1176.6 | 3691.8 | 287.2 | Since August 14, 2011 |
Cycle Social-Cyclo Femme Ride (everyone)
About Cyclo Femme (from cyclofemme.com):
Cyclo Femme is presented by Girl Bike Love. Our mission is to create a unified voice for women in cycling, encouraging and empowering more riders. By highlighting the health and environmental benefits, community building and positive social impact that cycling can have on our world, we hope to engage more female riders.
“Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. It gives women a feeling of freedom and self-reliance. I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a wheel…the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood.”
-Susan B. Anthony
Language Dept. is a NYC-based multi-disciplinary design firm driven by stories and how they are delivered. We create visual languages — across platforms — from the real world to the digital. An office of four women with different backgrounds, we are all city commuters who love the freedom that bikes bring to life in the city.
Huntington’s Cycle Femme ride will span the bridges. Beginning from Harris Riverfront Park, riding west to the Chesapeake bridge, crossing over and heading east on Route 7 in Ohio to the Proctorville bridge, returning to the park. The route is 10 miles and we climb the bridges slowly, and no one will be left behind. The views will be spectacular. An approximate route is on the map above.
Everyone is welcome to ride, so ladies, bring your friends and families! Gentlemen join us and tell the ladies. We plan to picnic at the park after the ride, so if you care to join us, bring a dish or two (or swing by any number of great downtown hotspots on our way back). We are undecided on whether the whole family will be riding, but those who are not, will stay at the park and play, waiting on our return.
Share, share, share this fb event link or this post! I know it’s last minute, but we can have a great ride with your help. Let’s show Huntington (and all the little towns we travel through) that we recognize women who bicycle too. I know you are out there, join us! And gentleman, support us, please ride along.
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