Fifty Plus (50+) - Bicycle club advisor...

Any of you currently or ever been an advisor to a bicycle club for kids? I've been thinking that it would be a great way to combine my love of cycling with giving something to the larger community. Am I out of my mind for thinking this way? I thought maybe I'd approach a LBS and a school in my area. Not really sure how to even begin planning something like this in a responsible way.

Any of you currently or ever been an advisor to a bicycle club for kids? I've been thinking that it would be a great way to combine my love of cycling with giving something to the larger community. Am I out of my mind for thinking this way? I thought maybe I'd approach a LBS and a school in my area. Not really sure how to even begin planning something like this in a responsible way.

In the UK we have a cycling profiency scheme that works for kids around 10- 11 years old. Teaches them the basics of safe riding, and is something worthwhile to get involved with. I used to run our local schools training and I can tell you it is hard work. I had plenty of helpers but trying to get 25 kids to go back to school for 2 hours on saturday was hard work. Mind you- we also arranged "Bike Rides" for them on sundays where we would take them out for 10 mile rides on cycle trails and finally quiet country roads. Luckily- I never had any failures on the test- but did have several dropouts beause they could not be bothered. Warn you now- Kids are hard work so make certain you get plenty of helpers.

Just as an aside to this- My cycling mates all had kids about the same age, and we used to devote one sunday a month to family rides. On roads or partly offroad and we had one parent to each kid- just about. Now I am fit- I ride offroad and I know how to handle and use a bike. Tell me why someone of my experience used to struggle up against some of these 10 year old kids on these rides. Even offroad. Got my own back on one little s$d aged 12 though. Wet sticky day and we took him up one of our usual offroad hills. 15% for 1 mile and I was on a sorted mountain bike and he was on a 20" mountain type bike. He was the one we could never contain and had to chase him on every ride. Not this one as we put him in his lowest gear and finally powered away from him. He got his own back though because with his low centre of gravity, when we went downhill he still flew.

Do a google search. There are some schools with cycling clubs in the US.

Currently there is a push for safe Routes to School byway of SAFETEA-LU, $612 million over next 5 years. There more info at www.bikeleague.org