Family Biking On The North Shore After The Training Wheels Come Off
December 15th, 2010 01:53 PM
Except for the Seymour Demonstration Forest, the North Shore offers few leisurely bike rides. Here “leisurely” means up’s, down’s, flats, and a few hairpins. But once you’ve mastered that, you’re ready to explore what the North Shore is known for worldwide. Mountain Biking.
Our kids got into it through my husband. I toyed with it for a few years and even went over my handle bars a few times, but I’m no longer interested in “hardcore” mountain biking. My husband, a long-time enthusiast, would walk us along mountain bike trails and show us the stunts kids were riding. These were extreme trails that I wouldn’t recommend for beginners – walking them was hard enough!
Our oldest, three-and-a-half at the time, was filled with the greatest ideas after these excursions. He would drag a long 2x4 from the side of the shed and place it on the ground in our carport. He’d grab his bike – training wheels and all -- and try to bike over it. Then he began adding bits and pieces: a fire log, a rock, a twig, anything he could ride over. He’d even make something that resembled a teeter totter and he’d go over it again and again.
He did mostly miss that 2x4 and never managed to ride across the teeter totter with his training wheels. But, credit to him, he just kept at it again and again.
Then his training wheels came off and our little one’s went on. As you know, everything goes a little quicker with the second. It started all over again but now higher off the ground, so we moved it into the back yard. They were so content with the concept of building a trail that they probably spent a 75 per cent of their time building and 25 per cent riding.
When we left it up to them they took it slowly, learning at their own pace what their abilities were. They’d spend 20 minutes putting a 2x4 just so, ride over it once and discover that it would be much better if they added another log or put a brick under it to raise it off the ground. Last summer the oldest, then six, got to the point of riding off picnic tables and across garden benches.
Mountain biking includes cross country, downhill, freeride, and trials/street riding. Each has differing levels of safety-consciousness and different types of bikes and gear. All require – and help build – endurance, concentration, bike handling skills and self-reliance. At an early age riders tend to learn to repair their broken bikes or flat tires to avoid being stranded.
You can ride almost anywhere, but most mountain bikers enjoy off-road trails, whether country back roads, fire roads, or singletrack -- narrow trails that wind through forests, mountains, deserts or fields.
Favourite rides
Seymour Demonstration Forest has single track trails running almost parallel with the service road. They’re quite flat and good to learn on.
Inter River Bike Park at the end of Premier Street in North Vancouver has just opened a standard BMX track, a dirt jump and a North Shore skills area with ladders, skinnys, drops and other technical features. Each is designed so riders of all skill levels can enjoy and progress.
Gleneagles Adventure Park in West Vancouver offers a dirt-jumping area and a variety of free riding features. The jumps – all tabletops – are designed for a wide range of abilities and vary in height from three to seven feet, and in length from three to 12 feet. The free riding area includes bridges, ramps, drops, teeters and skinnys. Each feature is rated by difficulty, from green circle to black diamond.
Biking connections
It’s quite easy to connect with groups of all ages and skill levels on the North Shore. For local mountain bike news and updates, check out the North Shore Mountain Bike Association at www.nsmba.bc.ca
Kids can join after-school group rides with Endless Biking www.endlessbiking.com 604-985-2519;or ESC Adventures www.escadventures.com 604-307-2453. Both offer summer camps.
Many local bike shops host evening rides for all levels, sponsor trail maintenance programs and hold kids bike swap programs. All have expert information about trails, gear and safety:
• John Henry, www.johnhenrybikes.com;
• On Top Bikes www.ontopbikeshop.com;
• North Shore Bike Shop www.northshorebikeshop.com;
• Cove Bike Shop www.covebike.com;
• Steed Cycles www.steedcycles.com;
• Different Bikes www.differentbikes.ca;
• Bicycle Sports Pacific www.bspbikes.com.
North Shore realtor and mother Yasmeen van Bylandt has been growing a catalogue of kids’ activities on the North Shore. www.YvB.ca Yasmeen@macrealty.com
Copyright North Shore Magazine Issue Jun - Jul 08
Our kids got into it through my husband. I toyed with it for a few years and even went over my handle bars a few times, but I’m no longer interested in “hardcore” mountain biking. My husband, a long-time enthusiast, would walk us along mountain bike trails and show us the stunts kids were riding. These were extreme trails that I wouldn’t recommend for beginners – walking them was hard enough!
Our oldest, three-and-a-half at the time, was filled with the greatest ideas after these excursions. He would drag a long 2x4 from the side of the shed and place it on the ground in our carport. He’d grab his bike – training wheels and all -- and try to bike over it. Then he began adding bits and pieces: a fire log, a rock, a twig, anything he could ride over. He’d even make something that resembled a teeter totter and he’d go over it again and again.
He did mostly miss that 2x4 and never managed to ride across the teeter totter with his training wheels. But, credit to him, he just kept at it again and again.
Then his training wheels came off and our little one’s went on. As you know, everything goes a little quicker with the second. It started all over again but now higher off the ground, so we moved it into the back yard. They were so content with the concept of building a trail that they probably spent a 75 per cent of their time building and 25 per cent riding.
When we left it up to them they took it slowly, learning at their own pace what their abilities were. They’d spend 20 minutes putting a 2x4 just so, ride over it once and discover that it would be much better if they added another log or put a brick under it to raise it off the ground. Last summer the oldest, then six, got to the point of riding off picnic tables and across garden benches.
Mountain biking includes cross country, downhill, freeride, and trials/street riding. Each has differing levels of safety-consciousness and different types of bikes and gear. All require – and help build – endurance, concentration, bike handling skills and self-reliance. At an early age riders tend to learn to repair their broken bikes or flat tires to avoid being stranded.
You can ride almost anywhere, but most mountain bikers enjoy off-road trails, whether country back roads, fire roads, or singletrack -- narrow trails that wind through forests, mountains, deserts or fields.
Favourite rides
Seymour Demonstration Forest has single track trails running almost parallel with the service road. They’re quite flat and good to learn on.
Inter River Bike Park at the end of Premier Street in North Vancouver has just opened a standard BMX track, a dirt jump and a North Shore skills area with ladders, skinnys, drops and other technical features. Each is designed so riders of all skill levels can enjoy and progress.
Gleneagles Adventure Park in West Vancouver offers a dirt-jumping area and a variety of free riding features. The jumps – all tabletops – are designed for a wide range of abilities and vary in height from three to seven feet, and in length from three to 12 feet. The free riding area includes bridges, ramps, drops, teeters and skinnys. Each feature is rated by difficulty, from green circle to black diamond.
Biking connections
It’s quite easy to connect with groups of all ages and skill levels on the North Shore. For local mountain bike news and updates, check out the North Shore Mountain Bike Association at www.nsmba.bc.ca
Kids can join after-school group rides with Endless Biking www.endlessbiking.com 604-985-2519;or ESC Adventures www.escadventures.com 604-307-2453. Both offer summer camps.
Many local bike shops host evening rides for all levels, sponsor trail maintenance programs and hold kids bike swap programs. All have expert information about trails, gear and safety:
• John Henry, www.johnhenrybikes.com;
• On Top Bikes www.ontopbikeshop.com;
• North Shore Bike Shop www.northshorebikeshop.com;
• Cove Bike Shop www.covebike.com;
• Steed Cycles www.steedcycles.com;
• Different Bikes www.differentbikes.ca;
• Bicycle Sports Pacific www.bspbikes.com.
North Shore realtor and mother Yasmeen van Bylandt has been growing a catalogue of kids’ activities on the North Shore. www.YvB.ca Yasmeen@macrealty.com
Copyright North Shore Magazine Issue Jun - Jul 08
