Bike Trip with the Kids

 I'm not really a fair weather rider but when fall hits, the combination of early dark mornings and the cold usually gets the best of me and I put off riding until later in the day.  That usually means I don't ride much during the week.  Then I start to dream about next year's adventures.  I actually proposed a family outing for next year doing the 71 mile Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes and the 15 mile Hiawatha Trail in Northern Idaho or going to the South Dakota Black Hills and riding the 109 mile George Mickelson Trail.  This would of course be traveled over several days.  To my surprise, everyone but Tara jumped on the idea.  (Tara doesn't like to do anything we like to do, or eat anything we like to eat, or go anywhere we like to go....)

For those of you that doubt we can do it, I'm going to post on the 17 mile ride that the kids and I did back in July while Sarah was working.  Let it be known that they started on the ride on their own free will and they decided how far to go.  However, they didn't finish on their own free will!  It took lots of bribery, a little coercing, some yelling, and several stops for snacks to finish.

We had made it only about a mile and I could tell Tara just wasn't in it.  She was lolly-gagging and doing anything possible to hold us up.  We put up with it for a few minutes and then I gave up.  She and I had a few discussions about how important it is to stay together and that she needs to keep up with us.  Finally, both of us had had enough.  Sydney wanted to keep going so I told Tara to get off the bike and get into the trailer with Evie.  She did but wasn't enjoying that either.  Finally, she said she wanted to ride the bike and promised to keep up and have a fun time.

Sydney and Tara honing their mountain bike skills

That's all it took.  The girls took a stab at mountain biking.  I was on the road bike so I couldn't follow.  They got into some really sticky mud and had a really hard time but I think they had fun.

We got to a good place to turn around, about 5 miles down the trail, which would make it a 10 mile ride.  Both girls refused to turn around and insisted on going to the end of the trail.

Sydney waiting for Tara at the top of the hill

Tara finally made it to the top but was exhausted

Along the way, we hit some downhill and Tara thought it would be cool to coast down the hill with no hands or feet.  Yeah, I won't even try that.  Her front wheel twisted a 180 and bucked her off the bike.  She landed face first on the pavement with her body flipping over her.  Panic raced through me.  I thought I'd just killed my daughter!  She got up and was pretty roughed up, but otherwise fine.  We walked back to the park to let her recover.  I had her sit on the picnic table for a bit while I patched her up and fixed her bike.  Next thing I know she's running through the sprinklers.

We got back on the bikes and both kids still wanted to go to the end of the trail.  I could believe it after the fall that she went through, that Tara would want to continue, but she did.

Evie and Piggy both asleep in the trailer

We made it to the end of the trail and it happened.  "I don't want to ride anymore!"  I knew that was coming.  Seven miles from the house and I can't leave them alone to get the car.  They had no choice but convincing them was easier said than done.  Luckily, there is a McDonalds with a playland just off the trail about 4 miles from where we were.  If I could bribe them to go to McDonalds, I'd just have to worry about the other 3 miles.  They bought it and we all got ice cream and they got to play for a bit.

Evie running circles at the playland

She's not having any fun!

After McDonald's we worked hard to get home.  The girls were so excited to tell Mom about their big bike ride that they asked if they could take the long way home adding an extra three miles for a total of 17 miles.  What troopers!