Today was Big Brother's first day of Transitional Kindergarten. I can't believe how lucky we got when we found his school. It's a Spanish immersion program charter school that is less than a mile away from our house. The kindergarten lottery kept getting larger and larger, without increasing their enrollment. We found out they were starting a transitional kindergarten for 4-5 year olds and since Big Brother wasn't ready for kindergarten yet, I jumped at the chance. He was automatically accepted into the school and, therefore, is set for the next 9 years (so is Little Brother, too!). I am thrilled. 

In perfect Bustamante fashion, we loaded up our bikes this morning: myself on the BionX, Jose and Little Brother on the Bullitt, and Big Brother on his Fire Bike (a Specialized Hot Rod, 16" bike I got at a garage sale for $10--score!!). 

Before I get into how awesome Big Brother's school is and how much he learned today (in the 3.5 hours he was there), I'm going to rant about kids' bike options. 

You may recall that Big Brother had been rocking the Cupcake Bike previously. That was a 12" Performance bike that we were borrowing from a friend because the Fire Bike was too big for him. It was the perfect bike for him to learn on because it was small enough for him to control. It was awesome to see him move from the Strider to a pedal bike so quickly. Now that he's been growing a bit and getting more comfortable with riding, we wanted to test him out on the Fire Bike. Big Brother was a bit nervous at first because he could only put the tips of his toes on the ground but after a few rides, he was fine with it and very excited to be on his "big boy bike." 

However, now that I've been watching him ride, I'm noticing that this bike doesn't fit him any better. In fact, I think the Cupcake Bike might still be a better fit (even though it's about 15 lbs heavier and smaller). The Fire Bike may have bigger wheels but the frame geometry is ridiculous. The handlebars come up really high so they're either pinned against his chest or they're like ape-hangers. There is no way to adjust the handlebars so that he has secure control of his bike. The other big issue is that the crankarms for his Fire Bike are the exact same as the Cupcake Bike. This means that even though he is on tiptoe when he's stopped, he still can't get a full leg extension when he's riding. His knees are just as cramped as ever. 

Of course, none of this bothers Big Brother. He just cares that his bike is awesome and he's riding it like Mark Cavendish. I know that he's going to grow through bikes like crazy and it's a toss-up between getting something that's functional and not breaking the bank every year or two. I would be happy to invest in a light, easy to control kids' bike that he'll feel comfortable riding. Looking into Isla Bikes just might be the perfect answer. They have a wide array of sizes and some great looking bikes. Even their balance bike has a hand brake! I think I'm in love. 

As per Isla Bikes website:

Definitely something I'm going to be looking into. Look at these faces, how could I not want the best for them? Also, I hear that Isla Bikes also has a trade-up program. These guys know their market--us--serious biking families who can see quality as value! 

After dropping the big guy off at school, I rode to Practical Cycle for work while the remaining boy stayed home with Jose because he had a cough. I was so glad to have had the BionX today as riding home in this hot, muggy weather was no fun. Although, coming home to hear Big Brother recite Oso, Oso, Que Ves Ahi was the best ending to the day. He's been really hesitant about embracing Spanish and after one half-day at school, he's beaming and showing off his new language skills! (BTW, did you know that kids who walk or ride to school perform better?) 

It's hot! The first week of unbearable heat is always the hardest. It's when people hide in their air conditioned boxes (whatever they may be) and try not to exert too much energy. Believe me, I want to do the same! However, we don't have a/c at home and no car to duck into and drive to the coast. I had actually forgotten what air conditioning felt like until I popped into a Target yesterday. Then there's the random parking garage with it's obscenely cold air cooling the street around. I hate to admit it but I love it (although I also hate it and believe that maybe it'd be a good thing to stop doing for energy conservation, expenses, and global climate change...). We also like to make detours to ride through sprinklers for a little on-the-go pick-me-up. 

We do leave the house as little as possible on these kinds of days. The air quality is always especially grimy, too. If we don't have to leave, we don't. If we can, we do our errands in the early morning or once the Delta breezes pick up. 

When we do have to leave, it's nice to have the cargo bikes so the boys aren't working, they're just getting the cool air. Biking is never too hot when you're moving, it's when you stop that it becomes suffocating. I try to stop in the shade, finding a tiny patch at stoplights. 

I've been enjoying wearing skirts with shorts under while I pedal. A light top is helpful to minimize the sweating (which tends to pick up about 5 minutes after I stop riding so watch out!). 

Some of my thoughts on riding in summer (and please add your own in the comments below!): 

• Wear summer-appropriate clothes. For me, that's skirts (you men could rock an awesome Utili-kilt!), light tops-usually wicking material or quick drying something. I like shorts under my skirts (there are many great sites dedicated to finding the right skirt and how to wear one on a bike). 
• If you need to bring an extra set of clothes, allow extra time to change so you cool down. Baby wipes or a wet towel can help speed that up. 
• Make sure to cover your exposed skin with sunblock. I like having the kids under the weather-protectors, although I'm still working on putting that together on my bikes. 
• Lots and lots and lots of water. And ice cream. I have about a 4:1 water to ice cream ratio. Our ice cream budget is through the roof. It's worth it. Good thing we're not paying a car payment. 
• Choose when to ride, avoiding the worst of the heat. 
• Remember that driving isn't fun either. It's easy to talk yourself out of riding if you have a car beckoning. Keep in mind that getting into a sizzling car is terrible. What if your a/c cuts out? What if you get stuck in traffic? What if you have to park a mile away and still have to walk to the store? Remember that driving is bad for the Earth and adding extra pollution to an already-highly polluted day is worse (driving in polluted air is just as bad as biking in it). 
• If you do need to drive, do it. I choose the BionX Breezer for hot days when I can. It's great not to work very hard to ride somewhere but it's better than driving around in 2,000 extra pounds, spouting emissions everywhere. It's a great supplemental vehicle for those trips that we would resort to driving to. 
• More ice cream. 
  

Now, what do you have to add to the list? 

What's your cut-off point for biking in Summer? 

Yesterday, we got the chance to ride our Bullitt with the shade canopy. It wasn't great, truthfully. The mirror hits the pole and makes it difficult to maneuver the bike. It's fine while riding but I'm back to doing 10-point-turns when trying to turn around in tight places. I also have to take it off when riding in the dark because it blocks my headlamp. It wasn't very useful in the morning since there's no side support. However, riding home at noon, it was a great help. There's more tinkering to be done but it's better than it was. 

After the zoo, we rode home and refused to take any naps so we were all grumpy. We didn't have the option of driving to swim class so we didn't have any excuses. Melissa had pointed us in a better direction than Google suggested. It was about 2 miles longer, 9.5 miles total and we had already ridden 8 ish. I wasn't really excited about the ride but it started along the American River Parkway so I knew it couldn't be too bad. As turned out, it wasn't bad at all! Thanks, Melissa! I feel like a whole new part of Sacramento has opened up to us. After the ARP, we rode through an industrial area with very low traffic.

They had told me that there was a bike rack but when I got there, the bike rack already had been occupied by a giant plant. 

When I went inside to complain (actually, I just asked nicely to see if the plant could be moved). I was told that it wouldn't be moved since no one EVER, EVER, EVER parked there. He let me pull the bike inside and unload. Not a great way to make biking seem viable but it really, really, really is! Again, thanks, Melissa! She made the impossible possible! 

And it's a good thing 'Nama's house is on the way home because we, of course, stopped for popsicles. 

'Nama invited us out to dinner and we accepted! Little Brother insisted on sitting on the deck with Big Brother. We lasted about 5 blocks before I realized I couldn't handle the stress every time he took his hands off the bars to ring the bell, hug me, or tickle his big brother. He's certainly not ready for the deck. I'm considering getting the Monkey Bars from Yuba but am not sure yet if it's even needed. Maybe a set of ape hanger handlebars would be more affordable and just as effective. 

Today, we had a ton of fun! We began the day by meeting up with a few other cargo bikers and talked to the Good Day Sacramento news crew. They were great sports, getting rides and great footage of our different bikes. The segments only lasted a couple minutes and they mainly focused on the saving money part but it was still great to get out to make cargo biking mainstream. There's so much more that I wanted to say but it was a start. You can see our live segment and the edited version on their website. The kids were so patient considering how long it took to film. The funniest part for me was when I took the camera guy for a spin in the Bullitt's box. He was close to double my size and the bike bowed and flexed under his weight. AFter a cople pedals, I had the bike under control, almost. We made it around a little path circle and only came close to falling when he leaned over to set his campera down. We nearly crushed his camera but I caught the bike in time. 

I felt so incognito riding the BionX Breezer this evening for a home visit. It was a beautiful 15 mile evening ride but I was so normal...

We did make it home from the Ryde in one piece, thankfully! The trip home was pretty similar to the way there. It was slightly less terrible though, probably because there was slightly less traffic than Saturday and we had just had a lovely night's sleep without having been woken up by children at 6am. Still, it wasn't much fun. We had a strong headwind and the same speedy drivers. I didn't get honked at until we got closer to town, though. That was nice. I always wonder why drivers have enough time to lay out on their horns but not so much thought given to tapping their brakes. It takes about the same amount of energy. 

Still, even a bad bike ride is still a bike ride. The experience might not have been what I had expected but it was an adventure and some great time together with my hubby. I look forward to trying out some of the alternate routes that have been suggested to avoid the 160 traffic and maybe trying it again on a weekday when the roads aren't full of wine-soaked drivers. 

It has been nonstop action since we got back, too. I managed to make it to work at Practical Cycle (which was perfect timing because our BionX Breezer's front wheel had gone wonky and needed attention) after our trip and squeeze in some more biking classes through the Safe Routes To School programs in both Natomas and Citrus Heights. I'm pretty brain-fried at the moment. 

Some exciting news--Jose's mastered the Bullitt! He had to lower the seat to make himself more comfortable but he felt good enough to take the kids to daycare for the first time! And, he didn't crash! 

It was really cool to see the kids in the Bullitt from another angle other than behind them. They are just too flippin' cute! 

Today was a great example of why we need two kid-toting bikes. Jose took Big Brother to a Giant's game by riding the Mundo to the train and I dropped the little monster off with my mom so I could drive to the biking class in Citrus Heights with Dan Allison. The irony isn't lost on me that I drive to a class to teach kids to use bikes as transportation. It's kind of like flying around the world in jets to warn about the dangers of global climate change. 

However, I did get to put some of my new bike mechanic skills to the test--adjusting derailleurs and brakes, tightening stuff, and just looking cool while playing with the program's new Bike Friday student bikes. These aren't the typical Bike Friday folders but are incredibly adjustable to fit a huge range of people--from third graders up to real adult-like people. They were sent over without much quality control and have too many variations and a few problems. We weren't able to fix everything but that's what a real mechanic and warranty service is for. 

The most ridiculous comment of the day came from a teacher who walked over to see what we were doing. "Teaching biking? Really? Isn't that what parents are supposed to do? First it was tooth-brushing, now it's biking! Are we going to be forced to pay for bikes for kids, now?" As if there are better things for our taxes than buying kids bikes. Dan pointed out (to me, not to her, sadly) that one single freeway onramp could pay for a new bike for every single child in the district. 

It's always pretty horrible driving around in a car but it's even worse driving around in the suburbs! There are so many lanes of traffic, confusing signs, nonexistent speed limits, and really depressing pedestrian/bike infrastructure. It's easy to see why people who live in these areas "need" a car. The less I drive, the less I take driving for granted. Today, I watched a man tie his necktie with both hands while driving past a school in the morning. Ben Marans said on Twitter this morning: "It pains me to see so many ppl behind the wheel who treat driving as a secondary activity to eating, make-up, texting, reading, etc."

So to make up for it, here is a photo of how awesomely cute you could be while waiting for public transportation:

And then, because you're not exhausted from driving, you'll look like this: 

Doesn't that look like more fun? 

Our dear friend Bekah showed up early this morning for an extremely quick visit before she had to hop back on a plane. We had to get to my mom's house to get the car and drive to the airport so of course, we went by bike. She had come straight from work and had all her crew gear, not her usual light-packing job. Thank goodness for that awesome rear rack! The perfect way to start a day--Bekah and bikes! 

Next, my mom and I rode over the Freemont Park for the May Is Bike Month Kick-Off! Cassidy was there showing folks how to replace their car with a bike. I left the Bullitt hanging out there to show how easy it is to replace the family minivan. Our friend Jarrod showed up with his crew on his decked-out Mundo. Big and Little Brothers found the fountain and thoroughly enjoyed it. The Big guy was hand-selected by the Mayor-of-Davis to choose the raffle winners. He also got to throw out a few pairs of socks (although not to me) and to an aspiring Buster Posey, this was heaven! The best part was when he threw raffle ticket and then also threw the prize. What an arm! 

It was a long, busy morning. I knew that Little Brother was going to fall asleep on the way home but didn't realize just HOW cozy he'd be. I ended up leaving him in a shady corner in our backyard for about an hour so he could get a full nap. 

Big Brother told me that he couldn't sleep so I said that he could take a book and rest. A minute later I found him like this: 

My final trip this evening was another 4 miles on the BionX Breezer for a meeting. 11.7 miles total today. I have a ways to go to reach my pledge of 500 but it'll be a fun adventure to get there! 

The Bullitt just became even more practical! Tim found a rack that had come off one of the Breezer bikes after they had done a BionX conversion and was able to finagle it onto the Bullitt. He had to use some spacers to get it far enough away from the disc brakes and I installed a set collar with rack mounts as the bike didn't come with any. After some brute force, I now have a wonderful and sturdy rear rack to offset the load of kids I frequently have in the box. I gussied the rack up with my mom's old set of Nashbar panniers because they didn't fit the rack on her new Breezer Greenway.

I ran into the fantastic folks behind Carsick Designs yesterday. Monica was riding her locally built Cycle Truck and Brian had his Xtracycle. Both bikes were decked out in their own bags and filled to the brim! They also had E-zee electric assists and zoomed past at the next intersection.

Good thoughts go out to our bikey-friend, Dorie, of Hum Of The City who was rear-ended by a car while riding her Mamachari with her son. Thankfully, her son is okay but shaken up. She, however, is in for her second leg surgery. Please send her lots of healing and kind thoughts for a speedy recovery.

So, as April comes to an end, so does the 30 Days Of Biking. It was easy this year and I didn't even need to give the challenge a second thought. I just rode every day because I had somewhere to go and biking is how we get around. I was in a car about three times this month which is almost as much as I've been in a car all year.

May Is Bike Month starts tomorrow with the Kick-Off event and the mile logging starts! A huge thank you to all our Tiny Helmets teammates! We're going to be contenders this year!

We did it! After a couple months of planning, we gathered up our group of cargo campers yesterday and embarked on our first-ever group camping trip! It was a pretty ambitious attempt to schedule a camping trip with kids in the middle of March, but somehow, a group of 24 of us on 14 bikes ventured out to ride 30 miles up to the Negro Bar group campsite in Folsom. We were a motley crew, some local, one family came from Oregon, and another from the Bay Area. As luck would have it, these guys were all incredible! 

Jose and I fought over the Cycle Truck since it was our new toy (borrowed for the week), and a quieter load since it was all cargo, no kid. I kept the Mundo pretty light (relative since it was going to carry two kids anyway). I won the Cycle Truck for this trip!  You can imagine the number of thumbs-up I got from the box of beer in front. I had a bit of a panic attack the night before and imagined riding the Cycle Truck up hills and tipping backwards. I hadn't really even had much of a chance to ride the bike yet but I was still going to give it a shot. 

This was the perfect route, 99% along the American River Parkway, and the most beautiful weather. 

I loved seeing everyone's unique packing techniques. We were in charge of s'mores and firewood and left everyone else to pack their own gear and food. 

We had a few stops along the way and a nice long lunch break at Hagan park so the kids could run out their yayas.

I was amazed at the lack of fussing until our own Big Brother threw a huge fit when we tried to move him to our friend's trailer. Their daughter is a bit too big for their trailer so she wanted to stretch out and loves being on the Mundo deck. I wanted to give Big Brother a break from the Mundo so he could nap but he was not having it. The rest of the group continued on while we attempted to calm him down. Little Brother caused just as much of a scene so we finally relented and put them all on the Mundo. 

Now, he was getting all the attention and cruising at quick clip--12 mph. We eventually caught up with the back of the group and met up with my folks and Kao who were lounging at Karen's Bakery. 

I got a call from Abbie who had made it to the campsite with the rest of the group only to be turned away by some Boy Scouts who claimed they had reserved the entire area. They straightened out the debacle just as I pulled up our reservation on my phone and had to clear some scouts out of our site. Turns out the ranger had told them they could spread out if no one showed up. However, we were unstoppable! 

A couple of our wonderful friends showed up to hang out with us since they hadn't been able to ride with us (luckily they had the great excuse of being a doctor who had to deliver babies on Sunday). They brought their wonderful boys to play and picked up the 8 pizzas we ordered, sponsored by the amazing folks at Practical Cycle! As much as we wanted to pick the pizzas up by bike, their offer was too difficult to pass up (sorry, Tim...). Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

More play time, some s'mores time, a warm campfire, it was fantastic! 

The actual nighttime part got kind of mixed reviews. Camping with kids usually means waking up in the middle of the night multiple times. Multiple kids means more crying. I only heard other babies when I was already awake but we had one of the fussier kiddos (*Little Brother*). Our problems included an air mattress that didn't survive the boys jumping on it and too few sleeping bags--I had thought that we could share just two. It's time for us to invest a little in our camping gear. Our site was also really close to Folsom Blvd. and the traffic noise was pretty intense. We're pretty sure that there was a motorcycle race in the middle of the night. On the other hand, the coyotes were out as well and one was yipping close by. That was really awesome. 

We woke up to a clear, crisp morning. Jon got a fire going and everyone moved slowly. Breakfasts included leftover pizza, oatmeal, polenta, and fried Spam (although not necessarily all together).  

Kristi and her family packed up early to make it to their near-by church. Most of the rest of us headed out about 10 am, leaving just Abbie and Michael to enjoy packing up in peace and meandering home via Fair Oaks. 

The final group split once again about midway through and there was a bit of a mix-up with our lunch spot so we didn't end up catching the speed demons. Sami and her family had to rush back up to Oregon and the kids in that group were younger and less demanding. Our slower group stopped at Hagan Park again to play on the playground. Big Brother was very happy with his special spot in the Cycle Truck so fussing was at a bare minimum. 

The Cycle Truck was amazing! I can see this being the perfect supplement to our fleet. There are a few things that I would absolutely need to change for it to be tailored for our needs but even though it was our first "real" ride, it preformed perfectly. The gears shifted smoothly and it took the hills with ease. The seat was a bit of a pain in the butt, however, and there were more sounds and wobbles to get used to. Other than having to remind Big Brother to keep his feet inside (which I had to do just once), we both loved it. Jose said it was heavier than the Mundo but I didn't really notice. 

We had such a blast and I hope that every one else did, too! An enormous thank you to everyone who came along and made this trip so amazing. You guys all made it seem so easy to pack everything onto a bike and ride 30 miles to sleep on the hard ground and then do it all over the next day. I am so impressed! It was many people's first bike camping trip, or first with children, and the longest trip Kristi had ever ridden! You were all so organized and prepared! 

It was fun to leave from our doorstep and be able to meet up with friends all along the way (Thank you Jen and Lucas, Rebecca, Pablo and sweet boys, Jennifer and Jim!). Especially with this being our first try, I think we did pretty well. I could not have asked for a better group, better weather, or a better route. There are things that I would try differently, almost all related to gear and food, but most importantly, I just can't wait to do it again!

It was, thankfully, a pretty quiet weekend. This week had been exhausting! After my two days at Practical Cycle, I was looking forward to starting my new adventure of working with the Safe Routes To School program in Natomas. This is going to help me finish my LCI training and also get me started putting this training to good use--teaching these youngsters to love bikes and learn how to drive them properly. I am always surprised that people don't always think the way I do when it comes to biking. I watched a family on bikes ride down the wrong side of the road while the kids rode on the sidewalk next to the adults in the street. These were huge, quiet, fully-bike-laned neighborhood streets. I could barely keep myself from catching up to them and telling them that they were teaching their kids improper and DANGEROUS bike use. 

The school that we are working with already has a great base of kiddy bike riders. I was shocked the first time I rode up to see 20+ bikes and scooters locked up in their own dedicated bike parking (I'll have to get a photo when I can get it and not look like i'm taking pictures of the children) AND that was a rainy day where most kids melt if they get caught in a sprinkle. The NNTMA has been working with this school for the past 3 years and helps implement "Walking Wednesdays" for kids to get prizes for walking to school. 

I love watching these kids absorb this bikey knowledge and am amazed at some of the poignant questions they ask. They are open minds and ready to find the freedom of biking. I love to imagine these little people riding bikes and growing up to be more conscientious drivers of both bicycles and cars, making the streets safer for everyone. 

The only difficulty with this new venture is that this school is exactly one BionX battery's worth of miles. It is a 24 mile round-trip, often in windy condition and I'm usually crunched for time (because that's just how I roll--late). I rode on level 3 this week, each direction, for Wednesday and Thursday. I was really excited for Friday but the boys finally got too sick to go to daycare and my sore back went out completely. I had to decide that going another 24 miles that day, BionX or not, was probably not the best idea. I took Friday off, went to the Chiropractor, and nursed my back and two little boys. I was pretty happy to have a quiet weekend after that. I even took a couple of days off riding, just because I had no reason to go anywhere. It was pretty awesome. 

Next week, a few more days at the grind (actually, Practical Cycle is my respite from my crazy home) and then an awesome BONUS day there because Elly Blue is coming to town on Wednesday! I am so excited for the evening of Dinner and Bikes and to finally meet one of my favorite Bikey Heroes! It's not too late to RSVP and join us! 

I'm going to make it to another couple of classes at the school, next week, too. I need to practice my teaching skills, especially before we get out onto the bikes! I think I might even try bringing my charger with me so I can top up during class and zip home on level 4...

Last night I sent my mom a text: "Can I have the car? I have a home visit in The Pocket." That was going to be my plan as I was tired, still feeling sick, the BionX wasn't charged enough, and it would be a 15+ mile trip into an area I'm not really used to riding in. 

However, by morning, I realized those were all pretty pathetic excuses. If I was really going to reach my goals of not driving and getting more exercise, I had to make an effort and push myself. Luckily, the boys got me out of bed at 7 am, giving me enough time to get the bike out and plug it in for a few hours to top off the battery. I tried to give myself extra time to account for my inevitably getting lost but I just couldn't get out the door that easily. 

The route was pretty simple, riding along the Riverside bike lane. Once I got into the Pocket area, it was more complicated trying to follow a twisted maze of paths through a park. Luckily, I had my iPhone handy and was able to save myself from too much backtracking. 

I showed up to my appointment about 10 minutes late but not sweaty or stressed (I had averaged about 14-16 mph the whole way but did get lost quite a few times). The best part was arriving in such a great mood. 

Going home was much easier because I was more confident in the route. The park was much easier to navigate and it led me right up to the Sacramento River Parkway. Sadly, the Sacramento River Parkway is frequently blocked from private residences' illegal fences. South Sacramento is missing out on what could be an amazing biking resource like the American River Parkway. Hopefully, with all the work that the Sacramento River Parkway Coalition is doing and the recent positive political actions, this could be up and running in the next few years. 

Got home and immediately loaded up the kids onto the Mundo to meet family in midtown for lunch. I was so happy to have been able to do a long bike ride quickly but not end up exhausted and be able to function for the rest of the day. Even though I used an electric bike, I was able to eat an awesome grilled cheese with lots of bacon and still have plenty of calories left over to have a full dinner. Some people might say that having an electric bike is cheating. I say that driving is cheating. If I hadn't had the BionX, I would have driven today. I am so happy that I didn't! 

I love the rain and the colder weather! I especially love biking in the chilly mornings and even more after dark. My mom always says "make sure you're lit up like a Christmas tree!" I take things very literally. 

This week has been so much fun. Although it was quiet at the shop, the bosses were of holding their title of one of the elite top Pedego dealers. I had the store to myself. 

(That was actually my lunch break. I was working really hard, promise, Tim!). The weather finally started clearing up today and the streets dried out again. 

This week, I also tried my hand at a little crafty project I saw online. I'd never used a chain-breaker but now I'm a total pro. It was pretty awesome to get my hands dirty and have these little guys turn out so cool. 

I think I've mentioned it once or twice but I really love biking. This week, most of our mornings looked like this: 

I would then leave the trailer at the boys' daycare provider and Jose would later jog over with the dog and run them back home (the jogging attachment was stored in the back pocket). Jose loves jogging so it's win-win! 

I can't wait for our exciting Christmas tree adventures this weekend but until then, this day-to-day stuff is keeping me blissfully happy.