Finding Something you had All Along

 

Let me take you back to my childhood. Hide and Seek was the game. The Garden City Baptist Church was the location. This church had multiple buildings besides the sanctuary and this made for multiple paths back to the base (usually the front steps of the sanctuary). The seeker would check a list of well-known hiding places: behind the church's sign in front, the playground, and the parking lot in the back, but the most special hiding place was a dead-end at the top of a stairwell. If you hid there and the seeker came up, you were easily caught with no where to run. The risk for the seeker however, was by committing to go up the stairs, most other hiders could easily reach base. Hiders rarely hid there, and seekers rarely checked it, but everyone's strategy was based on what might happen at the top of the stairs.

Childhood visit over. Back to the present. Sort of.

My dream the other night was one of those wonderful dreams where you find a new passage in a familiar place. I found a way to open up the dead-end at the top of the stairs. After this discovery, I became a Hide and Seek magician, if only in my dream.

Before there was much wealth to amass, kings would consult wise men to interpret their dreams. Are our dreams no longer worthy? After all, what is the purpose of a dream except to show you what the world could be like?

It's an incredible feeling to solve a problem that has been hounding you for so long, but I still need to consult the wise men. I don't know what real-life puzzle I may have solved by finding a new way to get to the top of the stairs.

One possible dream-connection may be with my cycling. I frequently have the feeling when I ride a bike that I'm finding something I had all along. It's hard to rationalize, but I try none-the-less:

• The bicycle is how I got to the Baptist Church. Maybe the dream is a return to my childhood.
  
• In the decades before the automobile, the bicycle was hugely popular in this country. It is impressive that bikes are still around given the convenience and ubiquity of the automobile today. It's as if bicycles have to be re-discovered.
  
• The bicycle provides a genteel and human face to transportation. Perhaps the bicycle is reminding us that -- whether intentional or not -- avoiding poor weather and covering long distances ends up removing us from one another.
  

I'm no wise man, but the bicycle certainly seems to be wise.

Commute Summary

Round Trip Distance: 17.6
Number of Cyclists seen: 17 (good for December, but it was warm today)
In-bound Route: Goofin' 9.6
Out-bound Route: Edgewood Kroger via Krog Street
Weather: Shorts the week before the Winter Solstice.

Family Ride on Arabia Mountain Trail

 

No soccer on this Saturday for a change, so we took the bikes over to the Arabia Mountain Trail in east Dekalb County.

Arabia Mountain is the middle mountain of three granite outcroppings, the most famous of which is Stone Mountain. The Arabia Mountain Trail rolls southward from Lithonia (literally Rock City) past Arabia Mountain to the third granite outcropping, Panola Mountain.

We didn't follow the entire length of the trail on this trip, but did see a deer within 30-40 feet of us and got a good workout on the gentle hills.

Atlanta Courteous Mass Oct 2008

 

Nick and Catherine are decorating their bike trailer while Tom and Carli await the start of the ride at Woodruff Park. Carli had a little more time to decorate than others, but many riders took pieces of the fluorescent flagging tape to dress up their bikes.

We got mixed up in lots of events that were going on in Downtown Atlanta.

As we passed between Centennial Park and Phillips Arena, we got re-directed by an officer working the traffic coming into the Atlanta Thrashers season opener.

In Atlantic Station, they were setting up for an outdoor food festival called Taste of Atlanta and were BARRED from cruising through. Actually, we were being courteous since this was Courteous Mass and decided to go around the restricted streets.

Then, we realized what a cruising zone Peachtree Street turns into on a Friday. There were cars everywhere and a big group of bikes stuck in the middle of it all. There was some event at the Fox Theater, but we couldn't tell what because by the time we got down to 5th Street, we decided to ride one block east on Courtland.

 

Courtland at Ralph McGill during Courteous Mass. Blue-domed hotel was tallest in Atlanta when I visited in 1969.

Good route and good company!

GPS Games on a Bike

 

N 33.76220 W 84.36044

When I first learned of geocaching (an outdoor treasure-hunt using GPS co-ordinates), it occurred to me this would be fun on a bike. The distances between caches (treasures) are often walking distance, but a bike is really the ideal vehicle for getting from cache to cache.

A game we like to play to celebrate birthdays is a treasure-hunt with hidden clues. Each clue leads you to the location of the next clue until you finally arrive at a birthday present.

For my wife's birthday, we combined the two. I laid out a bicycle-friendly 12-mile course near the house that passed through or near various landmarks, some obvious and some subtle. I used photographs (like the one shown here) to indicate the destination, and when it wasn't recognized, provided GPS co-ordinates to get us close.

This has been a great way to

• Spend time outdoors on the bike
  
• Engage people in a fun game
  
• With kids, provide practice navigating a bicycle safely
  
• Share good bike routes with others.
  

It takes a while to create the route and take pictures for the clues, but the time spent is well worth it.

Decatur Kid's Ride - Dairy Queen

From the last Kid's Ride Feb. 2, 2008:



We're doing it again Sunday, March 30 from 1:00 to 4:30PM. This is another slower-paced Family Ride but this time we're headed to the Dairy Queen in Decatur.

The route (on bikely.com) is a little more hilly and a bit longer (16 miles) and hits the following spots:

• Start at Aurora Coffee in Virginia-Highland
  
• Proceed to PATH trail at Carter Center (like last time)
  
• Head East to Candler Park
  
• South to the AYSA Soccer fields at Arizona and the short segment of PATH trail next to the fields (tiny bit of off-road riding)
  
• Follow Hosea Williams bike route east through Kirkwood.
  
• Pass north through Oakhurst Village toward Agnes Scott.
  
• Arrive at Dairy Queen
  
• Hit the Square in Decatur
  
• Follow Church Street three blocks to Decatur Cemetery (another tiny bit of off-road)
  
• North up to Medlock Park (baseball fields)
  
• West to Emory's Clairemont Campus
  
• Shortcut to Emory's Main Campus
  
• Return to Virginia-Highland over Mount Stillwood.
  

As before, this is a beginners' level ride. We'll be moving at a speed that accommodates all abilities and any working bike would be appropriate.

This ride is also good for those who do little or no street riding. It's a treat to ride on the streets sharing the road with motor traffic when riding with an experienced group.

Time Machine: a Kid on a Bike

Parents understand that raising kids is an opportunity to re-live your own childhood and last weekend's Kids Ride was another one of those opportunities. I've gone back in time riding the streets of Atlanta on bikes with our kids and caught glimpses of myself at a time I began steering my own course through life.

Rhonda talks about her son Cole's feeling of empowerment. For kids dependent on their parents to take them around in the car, it feels good to go places under your own power. Doing it on your own changes how you see the world.

Although we took an easy pace, Atlanta is still a hilly city and the legs get a good workout. The rewards of that effort however, are immediate. Cresting the hill means you can coast down the other side and catch your breath. I pay attention to hills, but I'd been missing them too. Out of familiarity, I had lost the thrill of the downhill, but was able to find it again.

Tom's daughter Carli is now choosing the bike for short trips. A simple "I can do that" carries a lot of power. It's genuine self-confidence.

We often carry into adulthood activities we enjoyed growing up. Positive experiences like these will propagate for generations.

Riding with the Kids (Rhonda's Ride?)

I think we've got a name for the Kids Fun Ride we rode today.

Because our 14-mile route exceeded what some riders have ridden recently, I told everyone we'd be stopping frequently. Stopping for flats wasn't what I meant.

We have Rhonda to thank for suggesting we do a kid's ride. We also have Rhonda to thank for picking up both of the flats! I move that we name this "Rhonda's Ride" in her honor.



Temps started out cool, but warmed up quickly. Lots of people were out so we got lots of chances to ring our bicycle bells in greeting.

After the ride, I asked a few of the girls their favorite parts of the ride. They said they liked the "mess-ups". Since I didn't capture any of these on camera, they were kind enough to provide a drive-way re-enactment of one of the "mess-ups". Carli's enthusiastic announcement of her intention to stop caused her to fall off her seat and trigger a domino effect.

No actual daughters were harmed during this re-enactment.



People asked when we could do this again, so we'll try to schedule another Rhonda Ride. Hope you'll be able to join us.

Kid's Fun Ride

It was Rhonda's idea.

Rhonda has ridden with us on many Sunday mornings and she recently mentioned her middle-school son is interested in riding. A number of the Aurora Cycling Group have kids in middle-school, so we decided to do a ride for them and invite others along as well. The more the merrier.

We had planned to ride Saturday, Jan. 19, 10AM, but the forecast for snow that day made us reconsider. We now plan to ride Saturday, Feb. 2, 10AM from Aurora Coffee in Virginia-Highland (corner of Virginia and N Highland) and hit (or at least pass) the following spots:
- Carter Center
- MLK Center/Ebenezer Baptist
- Capitol (to dress the statue)
- Old Fulton County Stadium (to run the bases)
- Zoo (with bathroom break)
- Oakland Cemetery
- Cabbagetown
- Krog Street Tunnel
- Inman Park
- Little 5 Points
The planned route is posted on bikely.com.

Bring your camera. We'll be stopping frequently along this 14-mile route.



This is a beginners' level ride. We'll be moving at a speed that
accommodates all abilities and any working bike would be appropriate.

This ride is also good for those who do little or no street riding. It's a treat to ride on the streets sharing the road with motor traffic when riding with an experienced group. We'll have a short talk before we ride to let everyone know what to look for and how to signal for courtesy and safety.

Commute Summary

Round Trip Distance: 17.8
Number of Cyclists seen: 9
In-bound Route: Lullwater/PATH
Out-bound Route: Emory via Clifton
Weather: Below freezing this AM for only the second time this season.

Another Generation's worth of fond Cycling Memories

A few weeks ago I posted about how much fun it is to ride bikes with kids (Fun for the next generation).

• Different things that can be said with a Bicycle Bell ("Here I come!", "Hey, another bike rider!", "Good Morning!")
  
• Brakes that sound like a goose.
  
• Riding with your feet on the top tube.
  
• Finding a bottle of "Old Croak" embalming fluid at the cemetery gift shop.
  

Getting out with the kids and goofing off is just one of the many ways we can encourage the next generation to be better cyclists than we've been.

Yesterday, one of the best programs for getting kids on their bikes made their resources available to a broader public. Whether or not you have kids in school, you'll be interested to know what the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) National Partnership is accomplishing and how they're doing it.

The SRTS National Partnership announced a new website yesterday that helps explain who is involved, where they are involved, what they are accomplishing and how you can help. They're working to reverse a trend that took us from 50% of kids walking or riding a bike to school in 1969 down to less than 15% today.

I think most of us know when school starts back up after the summer by the increase in traffic. SRTS has been responsible in some school districts for reducing the school car trips by 75%.

I grew up walking to school, walked and rode my bike through college, and it has stuck with me. Of course, I did get a car and drive to work soon after college, but I soon found that 1) my waist got bigger and 2) I really missed being on my bike. The fond memories of getting around on a bike helped me get back to cycling. The SRTS is working to create another generation's worth of fond cycling memories.

Fun for the next generation

Growing up, I was always on my bike. I rode to my friend's house. I rode to baseball practice. I rode just to be riding. It was automatic fun.

Now I get to ride with my kids, and just like when I was a kid, I'm having fun. Kids are always trying to ride with their feet up in the air, or with no hands. The squeal of brakes is funny (although Tom's brakes did sound rather like a goose today). And they have bicycle bells.

They used their bells a lot. When passing pedestrians, it was as cheery as an effusive "Good Morning!". When passing motorists at intersections, it was a perky "Here I am!". For other cyclists, it was a socially bonding "Great to see you on your bike!".

I'm going to get me a bell for my bike, just to the increase the fun factor.

With kids, your destinations change. The time devoted to those kid-friendly pursuits changes as well. You pop into the gift shop at the Oakland Cemetery (where else can you find "Old Croak" embalming fluid?). You stop for water at a shady spot on the trail. You chase the sound of the ice cream truck.

And that alludes to the pace. You can really look around when you're traveling half your normal speed.

I've always remarked that having kids is a different mindset. It makes it easier to be more like a kid yourself. (I didn't get a photo, but I tried riding with my feet on the top tube of my road bike. It's easier if there is a kid you're riding with, but try it, tell me what your sensation was, and then I'll tell you what it felt like to me.)