It's also chock full of May Is Bike Month swag! I love May Is Bike Month! Two years ago, I won my beautiful Linus at the Bike Fest (and it just happened to be on my birthday, too). Last year, I reached my pledge of 600 miles by the skin of my teeth and won 3rd place for the most Errand Miles!
May is my favorite month! Mother's Day, our anniversary, and my birthday all within a lovely set of 31 days. It's also chock full of May Is Bike Month swag! I love May Is Bike Month! Two years ago, I won my beautiful Linus at the Bike Fest (and it just happened to be on my birthday, too). Last year, I reached my pledge of 600 miles by the skin of my teeth and won 3rd place for the most Errand Miles! This year's going to be even better than the last! They've even started the Energizer Stations already! However, I need some help. Jose's threatening to drop my Tiny Helmets bike team unless we start racking up some real points. That means, I need as many folks out there who are willing to log miles for our team. I don't care if you pledge 10 miles or 1000, just join our team and log your miles! Our goal is to beat 350 Sacramento's team. I think we can do it. Who's in? Go to www.mayisbikemonth.com and sign up. If you've already joined a team, ditch them and ride with us! You can be a part of your Employer's challenge and still be on our team. Sign up your kids! Both Big Brother and Little Brother pledged 500 miles, who's going to challenge them? They're really competitive. I might even have them challenge each other. That would be pretty funny. We're the most fun team, ever! Today, my mini team and I ran off to check out an Energizer Station (although we had the day's location wrong) and then hit up Doughbots for some delicious goodies. Bacon chocolate doughnut and an iced mocha is the best way to start a day (although admittedly probably not the best way to keep a day going). We rode around in the Bullitt together quite a bit, getting used to our new set-up. The boys already love it. They are so happy to jump in the box. I still need to get the seat dialed in and add a rear rack. Similarly to the Mundo, once you add two kids to the bike, there's not a huge amount of room for anything else. Adding the Bread Basket to the Mundo was what made it more functional so I'm looking forward to getting a rear rack and adding panniers/bags to even out the load. The Bullitt rides even better with the boys onboard and it's very entertaining to have them up front. Oh, and we saw a raccoon today. How awesome are we?
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She's here, she's here, she's here!!! They arrived today and Tim was nice enough to get it all put together for me so I could take her home immediately. The Mundo stayed at the shop to get her recall wheel skirts installed. Bullitt and I bulleted home! It is quite an adjustment, especially from the Mundo. I had a hard time doing my usual no-foot stops and had a couple of swerves. Nothing nearly as bad as Jose's initial ride...as seen below. Yes, I was pretty bummed about the bike at first. Jose's doing well, thanks for everyone who was kind enough to worry about him :) He's a bit sore but the good news is that the Bullitt is fine!!! Jose's riding a little better, too. I wish the boys were here to enjoy the bike already but it does still need a couple of adjustments and another screw for the box since one was too short. We also need to figure out how to train our dog to get in. He's too big and wiggly to pick him up and too shy to jump in. Thoughts?
We're already almost halfway through 30 Days Of Biking and we've managed to keep biking every day. It's so funny compared to last year--that was a challenge, congratulating myself with each passing day. It was the beginning to our new life, although I hadn't really noticed it, yet. Back then, it was amazing to be able to count the days that the car had stayed parked. Next, we started realizing that we couldn't keep up with the number of days in a row. Now, we've come to realize that this weekend is going to be the first time since the beginning of the year that we will be borrowing my parents' car and needing to pay for gas! I don't even know what the price of a gallon is anymore. It is surreal to think back on how much our lives have changed just from last year. Just today, we sold the final reminder of our pre-bikecentric fleet: the yellow double Chariot. Amazingly enough, we were able to sell it for just under what we had put into it. Off it goes, like the red single Chariot and the Yepp Mini, to bring biking joys to another family with youngsters. One more family on the road, enjoying the feeling of freedom and independence that only a bike can give. So before our shed gets too comfortable being extra spacious, it's time to officially announce the next addition to our fleet: a Bullitt! We had settled pretty early on a long-john style, mainly because we need to be able to carry our dog and because it's an awfully convenient way to carry kids, groceries, cargo. The Mundo has been great to us. I love how it rides like a tank and plows through everything we ask of it. We already know that we can tour with the Mundo, run errands, and haul our little ones, but ultimately, we decided that it would be better to have a different cargo bike to balance out our needs. It will be fun to start trying out new adventures with the Bullitt! Between the two bikes, Jose and I will be able to do anything! No more bike juggling just to get the kids home! The only thing that made us choose this bike over John's Cycle Truck (an amazing bike!), was the already-designed kid seat with seat belts and rain cover. I would have never been able to come up with such a beautiful set-up and, truthfully, the Bullitt was my first love. Getting a chance to ride on with David of Convoy Cargo Bikes in London, had sold me back then, Practical Cycle's decision to start selling Bullitts, sealed the deal. Check out Hum Of The City's thorough review if you don't believe me (although we aren't getting an assisted one...yet...). Our Bullitt is going to have a custom wooden box with child seats. Since it's not going to rain for another 8 months, we decided to hold off on getting the Blaq Designs rain cover just yet. This is a huge investment for us! Last year, we felt that the Mundo was the biggest step we had ever taken and now, a year later, we are upgrading once again. Although I get some benefits for working at the bike shop, this is over double the cost of the Mundo. Still, when you think about it, it's less then the cost of a terrible car, fewer than 6-months of a car payment, more joy than we could even count, and people pay this much money (and more) for a slick-carbon-5 pound ghost of a road bike. This is not a toy for us. This is a vehicle of change, a tool to facilitate the life we feel is appropriate for our family. The only reason I continue to write--besides the fact because it gives me an excuse to push my limits and try out new adventures--is because I want to share our experience, hopefully showing that this lifestyle change is much easier than you might think. I know that it has even surprises myself to think about how smoothly this transition was. While I am a little bummed at how uneventful this year's 30 Days Of Biking has been, it's impossible to fathom how much this means to us. Luckily, I do have April's bike overnight coming together soon!
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! Last night, Practical Cycle was thrilled to host Elly Blue, Joe Biel, and Joshua Ploeg on their Dinner and Bikes tour. Joshua provided the amazingly tasty vegan gourmet dinner. Joe showed the very first public screening of his documentary, Aftermass. Elly contributed with reports of her recent trip to the National Bike Summet. They brought their traveling bookstore, too. I got one of Joe's cargo bike shirts--"One Less Truck" and Elly was so lovely to give me a copy of her book, Childhood, that has some of my favorite folks contributing their personal stories (Kath and Sarah!). I loved that the group stays true to their principles and tour around the country using multi-modal transportation--Amtrak and bikes, of course. Most people arrived to the event by bike, as well. I even got a chance to play chauffeur and take Joshua home on the back of the Mundo while Elly and Joe rode their Bromptons. It is aways fantastic to meet members of the greater biking community, especially ones who are really getting out to make a change. One of the things that stuck me from Joe's movie was the parallels between how the Dutch got their bike lanes and the struggles that the Critical Mass riders went through before Portland became the true biking city that it is today. Everyone always assumes that the Neatherlands' bikeways were just always a part of their lives. In reality, after WWII, the Neatherlands took a turn towards an auto-centric transportation mode, making it more and more difficult to walk and bike. The number of deaths skyrocketed, especially among children, so people took to the streets in protest. The bike tracks didn't just magically appear for the Dutch, the public realized that the way the cars were taking over was disastrous and deadly so they put a stop to it. You can learn more from this video below. Obviously, even Portland has a long way to go before their bike system can be on par with the Neatherlands but at least they are on their way. It is interesting to me that as the narrator begins to describe the bikeways of yesteryear, he is actually describing Sacramento's current state of bike paths--"narrow, of poor surface, dangerous or even absent at junctions, and not connected." What really resonated with me was the realization that things don't change unless people take to the streets to demand action. As Gandhi said, "be the change you want to see in the world." I do see our tiny little biking family as part of the greater shift towards a more sustainable system. While we may not be as visible as Critical Mass, we are still making our peaceful waves in the community. (Speaking of Critical Mass, join our family-friendly Kidical Mass ride this Saturday: https://www.facebook.com/events/341588125941208/ We're going to be a part of the Saint Paddy's Day Parade in Old Town!). A huge thank you to everyone who came out and stayed up past their bedtimes, to Practical Cycle for donating the space, and to the Dinner And Bikes crew for putting on such a great event! If you find them coming to a location near you, go!
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...
Nicole's Bread Basket liner (take 2) arrived a few days ago and it's even more beautiful and functional than I could have imagined! The bright orangey oranges and gingham sure brighten my mood every time I see it! It is so wonderful to be able to throw anything into the basket, even small things like my phone or keys. There are two handy pockets for organizing little items and a cup holder. The Mundo has become an even better cargo carrier. Thanks, Nicole! You're amazing! We got behind on scheduling a Kidical Mass ride for February but tried to throw together a last-minute ride from one park to another. It turned out to be too last-minute and no one except our friend Jen showed up. It was a terribly windy day so we ended up just staying at the first park and having a great time. We both ran into a bunch of friends while we were there. It was more playtime than ride but I think everyone was pretty happy with that. Jen also loaned us her juicer to try out. I watched "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead," a very compelling documentary about juice cleanses. Although it's not necessarily something I would do completely, adding more veggies into our diet sounds like a great plan. This is day 3 of substituting a few of our processed meals for slimy juice (although the boys are eating their normal food). I've learned that you can't just throw anything into a juicer and expect it to taste good, in fact, my first few attempts were pretty gnarly. It also takes a lot of prep time and clean up. I've gotten better though. We're still eating food, too, but trying to make sure it's simple and healthy. So far, it's been pretty good. Today was rough because I didn't get a chance to make as much juice as I wanted so by the end of the day, I was starving. Queue the rapid binge. This isn't a diet so I'm not worried. I just want to try to clean up our meals and focus on a more plant-based life. Considering I've probably never eaten this many varied veggies and so few sugars and processed grains, I feel we're doing pretty darn well. Finally, don't forget that we have some awesome events coming up! March 3rd is Practical Cycle's third birthday! We're going to have cake and sparkling cider to celebrate at 3pm (of course). Elly Blue and crew are coming to Practical Cycle for Bikes and Dinner on March 13th from 7pm-10pm. A yummy vegan dinner buffet, Aftermass showing, and Elly's radness--all for just $20! Our family camping trip is March 23rd-24th--riding about 30 miles to the group site at Negro Bar for a fun biking overnight ($25 per family). Please contact me if you are interested in any of these fun bikey activities.
I have now had the Bread Basket for a few weeks, having it so thoughtfully given to me by the amazing Kate, another Mundo Mama in the area. It took a few rides to get used to the extended turning radius as the basket bolts onto the frame and doesn't turn with the fork. It also made me a bit dizzy the first few times out, although it didn't take long to get used to it and truly appreciate it's load-carrying ability. The Bread Basket is incredibly indestructible. It's rated to carry 80 pounds and I believe it! The solid construction and strong mounting make it the perfect counterbalance to the Mundo's (or Boda Boda's) giant rear rack carrying capacity. Having Little Brother in the Peanut Shell in the back cuts the cargo load in half, negating the use of the enormous Go-Getter bags. Using the Baguettes is fair option but they can filled pretty quickly with the kid's gear alone. On our trip to Chico, we had the bike fully packed. Camping wouldn't have been an option as there was no room for sleeping bags or a tent. I wanted Big Brother to be able to move freely between the two deck seats as he needed and adding more gear would have prevented that. The Bread Basket would have been the perfect solution. There is one major flaw that I see in the Bread Basket's design and that is the lack of a solid or mostly solid base. I have had many shopping trips lately where I wanted to carry something up front but couldn't because it would have fallen though the huge holes in the bottom. To make it fully functional, many people have come up with a simple base rigged out of anything from mesh to reused campaign signs zip-tied to the Bread Basket frame. It's not a difficult solution but one that I don't think should have to be done after market. So far, I have only been able to really carry things up front when they are in large boxes or a large package. My solution was asking an online Mundo/Boda Boda friend, Nicole, if she could make one of her incredible Bread Basket liners like she had done for her family's bikes and for Stacy's Mundo and their DIY tutorial. We communicated through Twitter, picked out colors, and within a couple of days, she had finished! It was beautiful! Nicole's liner design even had pockets for keys and coffee mugs! The blue and orange scheme matched my bike perfectly. I was so excited! The package arrived yesterday. Empty. Someone had cut open the envelope and stolen my Bread Basket liner. Some horrible, soul-less USPS employee decided that my mail was theirs for the taking. Even worse, they probably realized it wasn't anything of "value" to them and discarded it. So, my Bread Basket is, sadly, without flare and style and, unfortunately, less useful than it should be. It will still work well for our upcoming biking overnight where we will be bringing our sleeping bags to stay warm in our warmshower's hosts' teepee. I just wish it was finally up to it's full potential and gorgeous as it was going to be. Now I have to beg Nicole to make another for us, and this time, we'll pay for shipping insurance.
This weekend we checked out a new restaurant called Bacon and Butter. Seriously, it is as delicious as it's name. From what I hear, you need to get there before 8:30am to get your table and food in a decent amount of time. We had a blast. The boys were amazingly well behaved and my hot chocolate had been infused with bacon and cayenne with the texture of pudding. Jose ran off to watch the Superbowl while the boys and I napped blissfully. We woke up to watch Kipper The Dog because I was lazy. Now we have another fun week ahead of us. A couple of days for me at Practical Cycle, a few days with my boys, and then I have a great weekend of Licensed Cycling Instructor training in Davis. I get to avoid the commuting stresses by riding my bike out there Friday afternoon for class that evening, staying with my grandmother in Davis nearby, then biking home on Sunday after the program. I can always take the train (because I'll have my "normal" sized bike, cargo bikes aren't allowed on Amtrak...) if I'm not up for riding or it gets too late on Sunday but a Redrum milkshake is a pretty awesome excuse to ride my bike home.
I can't believe it's already February 1st! It has been quite an adventure and a beautiful start to this new year. I was shocked at how seamlessly we've moved away from depending on a car, easier than some, of course, because of our mild winters in Sacramento. The only times I even got in a car was to car-pool to a meeting in Roseville, do a couple of errands with my mom, and when our bike got a flat. Getting picked up from our bike trip and then the subsequent trip to Practical Cycle to drop off the bike for its repair were the only two trips this month that were completely for our own needs. Definitely a drop in our previous 1/week car trip average.
I know that it won't always be this easy to be car-free but it's a great start. We have some lovely changes coming up to our schedules and life is going to get busier but we're enjoying it all right now. The brisk, clear weather makes me so happy. The boys and I have had some extra time to play at Art Beast and the Railroad Museum. This week's recovery from Big Brother and my Great Adventure was interesting. Despite a bit of soreness and some extra exhaustion, I felt surprisingly great. I still continue to eat as if I was biking miles and miles and miles a day. I've been trying to catch up on some extra sleep by napping with the boys when I'm home with them. We did get an extra special surprise today when we stopped in to Practical Cycle on our way to the Train Museum and found that our Mundo Mama friend, Kate, had dropped of a Bread Basket she had won during Yuba's holiday contest! She already had a BB so she amazingly shared this new one with us! I am so excited! Cassidy immediately installed it for us and even swapped out our brake cable and housing for a longer one so my brakes wouldn't catch on the basket when we turned. We still need to get a base for the basket to make it useable and, in the long run, figure out a liner or bag-type insert. I know I say it often, but I am so blessed to be a part of this wonderfully caring family-biking community. |
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