It seems like this spring has been crazy busy, but May is now upon us and May is National Bike Month. few weekends ago, I was asked to help out in this year's installment of the Got Bikes?...Ride 'em! program. Our team met at the Dr. James R. Smith Center, with Commissioner Samuel B. Ings, during the Kid's Health Fair & Field Day. There were a few hundred kids there to participate in multiple events and learn about proper exercise and diet. The day included an Easter Egg Hunt, live music, food, "bouncy houses", and our obstacle course and bike training rodeo and bike raffle.
We set up an obstacle course and that let the children take turns making bike signals at stops and intersections, weaving through cones, looking back at signals, and finally riding while avoiding obstacles. After they had completed the course, they were given a raffle ticket for one of the ten bikes and helmets we gave away.
As usual, the children had fun winning the bikes, but today was also cool to see them ride bikes and learn about proper riding techniques. It makes it all worth while when you can see kids retain things that you are telling them, and that a few kids get a brand new bike to ride home. It was also cool to see a few of the kids that won last year, stroll in on the bikes. They had kept their bikes with pride and were happy to come by and ride through the obstacle course too. It is always good to share bike handling skills and to give kids bikes of their own.