Originally Posted by
memnoch_proxy
I have three, 8, 5 , and 1. We sold our second car last year. I just upgraded my 8yo from his 20 to a 24. When we go on rides, I often have him lead the way, so as I can keep an eye on just where he is, but I just as much want building up his sense of geography.
Bike picnics have been a good way to get his friends out on rides. We've gone on some 8mi rides with plenty of stops at parks, playgrounds, water breaks. I'm typically on my Xtra with the food and wee propane grill.
We have also gone on some group rides, most recently was a 25 mile (32 counting ride to start line). I showed him a route for next month's group ride and he's again up for another 25 miler. Inviting his buddies has been a helpful method of keeping the bike in the realm of a social tool.
We used to routinely do 15-20 mile family rides. The youngest ALWAYS set the pace. We would plan routes with multiple bail out points. I think the longest we ever did was 32 miles. There were typically 2 adults and 4 children ranging in age from around 7 to 12. Everybody had multi geared bikes, even the youngest. IIRC he rode a BMX style bike but it had a 5 speed freewheel in the rear. That little guy would crank along at 8-10mph all day long. It was the adults that needed the break.
Aaron
