On Leaving Training Wheels Behind…

As is often the case, parenting is fraught with the bittersweet. The smiles on my daughters’ faces could not be bigger (nor their pride more apparent) as they stumble, fall, get up, and stumble some more through the opening rounds of truly two-wheeled riding. Their training wheels are gone, as is a sliver of their innocence and sense of invulnerability…and the truth could be said of their dad.

Aside from learning to swim, I can’t recall seeing from them this much determination and desire when it comes to tackling a new challenge. Oddly enough, going training-wheel-free is significantly more dangerous, with a much more harshly obvious indicator of when success hasn’t been achieved, than all the other developmental milestones they’re reaching. Of course, propelling oneself down the road and literally steering an independent course is heady stuff for a five-year-old (or just about anyone, I guess).

The occasions in my adolescent and adult life when I’ve felt a rush of excitement and a sense of accomplishment have been tethered, at least in part, to a not insignificant amount of fear over whether or not I’d end up flying over my handlebars, so to speak. It’s unfortunate, as I take a mental inventory of the few times in my life that are analogous to my girls’ brave risk-taking, that I have not laughed off as many skinned knees and tumbles in my journey as I could have. I hope to help instill a different tack in my children.

Better yet, I should just encourage them in what they’re doing and help them cultivate what is currently growing. I am so proud of who they already are, and–while half of me wishes I could carefully help them with all of their transitions–I need to evolve alongside them in letting the wheels come off when the timing’s right.

Being Interviewed on CBS 13 About Cargo-Biking

Today, I was privileged to be asked by our friend Elle to join a group of cargo-bikers to be interviewed by CBS 13 and CW 31.  Elle and Tim, from Practical Cycle, gave the news crew great anecdotes and information, then I babbled a bit while baby boy was super patient and cute in his little seat.

Feel free to click on the above photo to see the footage, and/or you can read the text of the accompanying article from the CBS 13 website below:

Some Sacramento Residents Trade Cars For Cargo Bikes To Get Around; Save Money

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – Forget carpooling! When it comes to really saving some money, a few Sacramentans have turned to bikes for getting around.

One family has traded in their four-wheeled vehicles for two to get to work, get some exercise and still get all their errands done.

“We were spending a lot of money on our car and I don’t like driving. It makes me stressed,” said Elle Bustamantes.

So to help relieve the stress, the mother of two replaced her car with a cargo bike, saving lots of money.

“AAA says about $9000 a year,” Bustamantes said of the savings.

She can carry up to 400 pounds in the front section alone, but opts to push around her two 40-pound sons instead.

Averaging between 10 to 30 miles a day, the mother uses it for everything from running errands, trips to daycare, exercise and just good old fashioned family fun.

Newbie rider Jarrod Fischer, who joined the two-wheel craze about a year ago, decided this greener, fitness-friendly and less expensive way of travel was the life for him too.

“It’s a bit of a workout,” he said. “I usually have my two daughters in the back and little guy up front.”

Like any car enthusiast, Fischer is a bit of a tinkerer as well. However, he can do much more for less without the expensive power tools, and usually all by himself.

“I put baskets on, I take them off, shades, umbrellas, for whatever the season,” Fischer said.

If you’re looking for a little less pedal and a lot more power, electric cargo bikes are also available.

“For 10 cents of electricity, I can go 30 miles,” cargo biker Tim Castleman said.

The bikes can start as low as $800 and go to upwards of $3,000 to $4,000 for the electric versions, which average about 20 miles per hour.

Currently, there are about 20 cargo bikers in Sacramento.

The craze started overseas about three decades ago.