It has become rather apparent that we have some major bike issues in this family. We went on a family bike ride the other night. Instead of looking like a sweet, little family enjoying a nice little ride through their community, we looked a little more like a motley crew / freak show.
First of all, Chuck and I received our bicycles as gifts 10 years ago. Read into that what you like. After multiple moves across the metroplex and the country, our bikes are witnesses to the fact that time and moving trucks are our enemies.
Chuck's bike has one wobbly wheel (the back one). He believes this was due to poor handling by the movers. I take the position that he has done maybe one or two too many 'pop-a-wheelies'. Either way, he can't drive in a straight line to save his life.
My bike has brakes that prefer to stay forever in the locked position. Nothing I do seems to loosen the grip my brakes have on my wheel. So I have to pedal very hard on consistently flat tires just to go.
Gavin had a wipe out a few months ago and ruined his gears somehow. Miraculously, Chuck was able to get the gear thingy back together. But the only problem is that now, out of the 18 gear positions Gavin's bike boasts of, he can only use 1 of them. If he tries to change gears, his bike will possibly implode. Plus, since a professional bike fixer didn't fix his bike, it makes a rather loud noise every time he pedals.
Bennett actually has two bikes, Gavin's old one and his own. Both the same size. Both too small for his 'enormous' body. The one he prefers has pedal issues. Both pedals have broken in half. So, he has two half pedals on either side. You can imagine how this improves his balance while bicycling. He is a constant accident waiting to happen. I don't think he believes in brakes. When he feels he's about to fall, he lifts both legs and arms up and just glides with bike to his final wipe out spot. Chuck even had to give him lessons in 'how to fall off a bike like a boy'.
Chloe received her little princess bike when she turned 3. That was 2 1/2 years ago. Since then, she's grown almost 4 inches...all in her legs. She looks ridiculously big for her baby bike. Plus, her tires are 1/8 of the size of ours, so she has to pedal at the speed of light to keep up with the rest of us.
Just another fun, family, bike ride through the hood during a lovely 98 degree evening in Texas.
