Thanks for sharing that story. A few years back I was asked to teach am 18-year old to ride a bike. Both her mother and father were confident transportation cyclists, but she had never learned and was self-conscious. She wanted to learn before she headed off to college.
We used the same technique as their will be teaching the kids -- have the person scoot along without pedals first to get the feel of how a bike stays up, steers, etc. Pretty soon she was riding and so excited. It was a great experience. Where she grew up was a big factor in both why she never learned and barrier to us going on practice rides. Her house was in a part of Madison that was surrounded by arterials that were pretty intimidating. Because of topography and other land uses (a big park, major highway, cul-de-sacs, steep hills, lack of connections, strip malls, etc.) there really was no way to get to a part of the city where we could go for a long ride without crossing a very scary road by bike or just doing circles. One day we loaded both her bike and mine into my car and drove over to the SW Path. That opened things up, but we didn't have more than one day like that, so I don't know if she continued to practice or whether she used her bike when she went away to college. She was headed to Univ of Minn, which is super bike-friendly, so I hope so. Robbie Webber
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