Getting kids started riding on streets

What has to come first is drilling the rules of the road into the kids,
they are easily distracted. For example, I made the mistake of passing
through the local wetland path on my Sunday ride. No less than three
children between the age of 6 and 9 forced me off into the grass. I
ring my bell, slow down, get the family entourage's attention, and
inevitabley, the youngest stares you in the eye and pushes his/her bike
right into your path. Of course the daddy called me an a-hole. Oy.

Younger kids are prone to distraction so the piggy back bike option is
great. Around nine is a good age to have them go solo, but that depends
a lot on the kid, the traffic, and the parent. 3 miles for a kid on a
16" wheel bike is pretty far, btw, so give the little trooper a break.

If you do make 'em wear helmets, have them wear them correctly. The
vast majority of children around these parts have zero road manners,
and unbuckled helmets perched lightly on the back of their heads,
serving as some sort of talisman. Eyebrow level is the proper tilt
folks.

Mark Mitchell said:

What skill level should kids show before introducing them to riding as
traffic?

I have a six and a ten year old. The ten-year-old is fairly confident
in traffic, does well obeying traffic rules, observiing right-of-way
rules, avoids the doorzone, shoulder check before moving left and so
forth. Still, a couple of weeks ago he blew right through a stop sign
in front of car because he wasn't paying attention.

He's been riding as a vehicle in the road since he was out of training
wheels, but riding in heavy traffic has always been under my
supervision, with me following behind him and calling out instruction
as necessary. He's been in traffic enough to know to anticipate Stupid
Motorist Tricks; he'll probably be a much better driver for it when he
receives his drivers' license.

My six-year-old still rides on a trailer bike for any riding in heavier
traffic and longer distances. She knows how to signal, to obey stop
signs, to look left/right/left after a stop. She has a hard time
judging distance to an oncoming car so I have to encourage her to cross
the street.

RFM
http://www.cyclelicio.us/

"Mark Mitchell" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

What skill level should kids show before introducing them to riding as
traffic?

My 9yo is there, I think. She's riding a 24" wheel multi-speed bike,
maintains a resonably straight line, comfortable with braking,
turning, etc... She has a comfortable range of around 5mi.

I'm a bit more concerned about the 6yo. She's still on a 16" bike,
with a lot of front wheel jerking back and forth, she struggles to
apply enough backwards pressure to stop quickly with her coaster
brakes. She starts complaining about being tired at around 3mi.

The 9 year old is likely to be developmentally able to process information
like the speed of cars. The 6 year old won't be in the same shoes. Here, you
have to be at least 9 to be a student crossing guard for that reason.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky