Fifty Plus (50+) - Can the 50+ Forum Make a Difference in the Lives of Young People?

Can the 50+ Forum Make a Difference in the Lives of Young People?

There is a concurrent discussion on lifestyle in another thread. I quote bobkat




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The problem of unhealthy lifestyle with morbid obesity and zero exercise with all its health problems is a terrible public health problem and will only continue to get worse and more expensive!

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The scary thing is the dramatic increase in young people with overweight/underexercise problems.

OK, if we all agree on this, then what is just one little tiny step that the 50+ Bike Forums -as a group - might take?

For example, drafting a "standard" letter that we all might forward on to our newspapers in this regard would be one step.

Or, developing a brochure or flier inviting a group of kids on a regular neighborhood bike ride, and leading a regular neighborhood bike ride, would be another.

We COULD make a difference, even if a very tiny difference.

We might even, given the brains on this forum, make a larger difference. We could incorporate as a national non-profit, and make a rather large splash, relatively speaking, for one instance.

We could associate with the LAB, for another.

OK, brainy folks, let's put our money where our mouth is.

I like the idea of drafting a letter or developing a brochure. But not the incorporation stuff. Better, imho, to spend your time, work and dollars on local efforts. Get involved in cycling and healthy lifestyle advocacy in your own community. There was no cycling club in my town, so I started one. We encourage members to bring their families out to rides and we reach out to local schools to educate the kids about cycling and encourage them to participate. We have become affiliated with LAB and other advocacy organizations where we see benefits in doing so.
I am also a member of a local group promoting active lifestyles through various activities including cycling, walking and running. We also push for infrastructure and facilities to make these activities safer and more inviting.

This forum can be a good resource for sharing opinions, information and links, but let's not reinvent the wheel. Keep it local. Be the change!

If you are out on your trail and setting a good example you are contribuitng a great deal. Be friendly, be prepared to offer assistance to the young families with $95 cycles. Offer the newbies information about the sights along the trail. Some of them may be back. Most of them are young compared to us.

Well, it certainly makes a difference to this young feller...:rolleyes:

It's pretty hard to influence your own kids, let alone the general public. People don't wise up to health issues intil there is a crisis, or a close call. I was in the grocery store the other day and the guy in front of me was buying lunch. He had; a coke, a large cadbury chocolate bar, 3 pack of 'oreo' klondike ice cream bars, and some other box of candy. Overweight and on his way to diabetes. I did hold my tongue, though.

It's pretty hard to influence your own kids, let alone the general public. People don't wise up to health issues intil there is a crisis, or a close call. I was in the grocery store the other day and the guy in front of me was buying lunch. He had; a coke, a large cadbury chocolate bar, 3 pack of 'oreo' klondike ice cream bars, and some other box of candy. Overweight and on his way to diabetes. I did hold my tongue, though.

Wait...there's something wrong with these choices??? :D Did he get some smokes as well?

Here in the UK we have a cycling Proficiency scheme to get the 10 and 11 year olds riding safely. I used to be involved with my local primary school and it is great to get 25 kids riding safely with the 6 weeks of the course. It still does not get them riding and part of my Instruction was to get the parents and the kids out on a 10 mile ride up our local cycle trails. In fact- this was carried on by the school with the kids having a bike day every month- and part of that bike day was to get the bikes checked for safety and do a bit of training. Those that had passed the cycling proficiency test were given the special treat of being taken out by the teachers up that same local cycle path.

If the schools can get behind cycling, then I think it has a chance of nurturing the interest at a young age. Takes a lot of effort though- but it can be done.

My parents, unknowingly, or perhaps with much more wisdom than I thought, would not let me get a driver's license until I could pay cash for a year's worth of insurance. In addition, I was not allowed to drive their car unless it was to run an errand for the family's benefit. Hence, I did not get a license until two years after most everyone else around me did. I walked and rode my bike to get where I wanted to go. And, I had to get a part time job to earn the money I needed. The one little thing forced me to be physically active in ways many kids are not today. I think the real success will come when parents are educated to not make things too easy for their kids.

It was a 50-year-old fellow cyclist who convinced me to train for, attempt, and complete a Double Century as a fresh college graduate. I was definitely "into" bicycling at the time, but not THAT far into it. :)

One of our most memorial training rides took us up Mt. Wilson, where we encountered a group of boy scouts breaking camp as we took a rest stop. The scout leader said, "I am glad I am not with you guys. Where did you start, Glendora?" "No," Ollie replied, "Santa Monica." [For non-Angelinos, that made this a century-plus with a 4000-ft. climb, instead of a mere 25-miler.] "I am REALLY glad I am not with you!"

My message is that I continue to reap the mental, emotional, and physical benefits of 100k cumulative miles in the saddle, plus 35 to 40k cumulative miles in my running shoes; it's payback time, and I am enjoying every minute of it!

Can the 50+ Forum Make a Difference in the Lives of Young People?

OK, if we all agree on this, then what is just one little tiny step that the 50+ Bike Forums -as a group - might take?.

At a local level we can get involved in programs that promote healthy lifestyles. I'm involved with the local metroparks and participate in a Saturday morning program called "Bike for the Health of It". We hold rides aimed toward the beginner and families.

This year they're adding some days of riding to the annual "Bike-to-work" event. We'll be leading rides for people who want to get into commuting.
http://www.metroparks.org/_fiveRiversOutdoors/BiketoWork.aspx

I've been in this program for 4 years and have enjoyed every minute of it. We have one gentleman who has been riding with us for the past two years. He's lost around 50 pounds and now brings his grandkids to ride with him.

[B]

OK, if we all agree on this, then what is just one little tiny step that the 50+ Bike Forums -as a group - might take?

Last Saturday I invited one of my 6 year old grandsons to do a bicycle repair project with me. He loves mechanical things and he loves to focus on how things are put together. It was great!
Tomorrow another grandson (they're tripletts) and I are going for a bike ride which will probably involve ice cream but not pie.
Saturday I plan to take the third grandson and teach him to ride. He's close, but not quite there yet so I'm thinking we'll be successful.

The opportunity to focus on each one's unique ability level is a priceless gift for a grandad. If a little bit of what I consider to be my strengths rubs off on them, so much the better.

I prefer to just lead by example.

One of the more disturbing consequences of being an old fart is that young people don't liisten to you anymore. Right when we are starting to make real progress on figuring it out. It's a waste of breath. bk

I prefer to just lead by example.
While I prefer to lead by following...

Tomorrow another grandson (they're tripletts) and I are going for a bike ride which will probably involve ice cream but not pie.

He definitely rode his age. We rode approximately 8 miles on the KATY trail. I didn't want to go any farther because I wanted to be sure that we ran out of miles before we ran out of fun. He was clipping along at about 90 - 100rpm on his 16" coaster brake bike. We made some stops to look at the river and the cliffs. We made more stops on the way back and I thought he was running out of gas. WRONG! When we got back to my condo he still wanted to ride around the block a few times.

It was great fun, but it's going to cost me. Now I have to come up with bigger bikes for all three of them.

I vote for make a difference where you are and talk to those around you. Then listen to what they say in return. One co-worker's excuse was that his arthritis was keeping him sedentary, so I turned him on to Glucosamine/Chondroiton. Bye-bye arthritis, hello activity. He started taking it just to placate me and was giddy when it actually worked.

I have a lot of experience with high school aged kids. Their activity level has really trailed off in the past decade. It starts with their parents and the fact that they are driven to school and kept in the house to be safe. When I was a kid we spent pretty well every day light hour outside running, riding, and playing. And this was not in some isolated rural area but in the largest city in Canada. Drive down any city side street and what do you see thats right nothing, no kids or the ones that are there just hang around.

What to do. What worked well with our kids (we live in a rural area) was that any form of recreational transportation did not have a motor. No dirt bikes ATV, Jet Ski, or what have you. If you wanted to move you provided the power. It was not easy when all of their friends had motor somethings. But are kids are grown and all still ride (a little) and are in fairly good shape.

With regards to the general youth public. I think it is important that we make it clear that (in our case) riding is not a race, in fact it is not really very hard. Be an example, I'm a fat old guy who is considered somewhat of a local legend/nutcase because I ride the 50 kilometres (round trip) to work, most days in the good wheather. I think that many kids are turned off because sport/ activity has become too organized and competitive for many.

This is a very useful discussion.

While I prefer to lead by following...Just saying that I think individuals in this sub-forum can have a much greater impact just by being out on the road and riding. My contribution is leading the weekly Saturday ride for our racing club. We have riders ranging from Juniors to people in their 60's. YMMV.