at Witter Ranch. Deanna and Gina needed a bit of help when 18 fifth-graders signed up for session one.
Only four will be invited back for session two. Many just needed to refresh their skills.
After school coaching
Tag Archives: Jibe
Adult Learn to Ride
Tuesday, class #1. A bit of rain at the beginning of class. A team of volunteers – Kathy, Lennore, Paul, Elaine – removed pedals and labeled each pair, pumped up tires and adjusted seat heights. In addition to our volunteers, there were 4 students and 3 instructors: me, Deanna and Anya. There were a variety of bikes to choose from. For adult beginners, there are 3 basic stages to being a independent bicycle rider. 1-Balance. Using this very gradual slope helped gain the necessary speed which improved balance. 2-Brakes. Use brakes like a dimmer switch to slow down and stop.
3-Add one pedal and practice. Add the second pedal and .. ta da! Congratulations Polly, the first to be successful.
Within 1 1/2 hours, three of four had become independent bike riders. The 4th person needs just needs a bit more practice. LCI Deanna explaining what happens with 2 pedals.
Big thanks for our volunteers, Paul and Kathy, and Lennore:
MiBM Kickoff
May is Bike Month is here! Ten of us met Pierson at the bike/ped bridge near Peregrine Park at 10:30 am. Yes, there were 10 of us: Agueda is in the background calling out to Minerva to hurry up.
SABA and Breathe California had a kickoff event at River Park in West Sacramento .. which is directly across the river from Old Sacramento. The brown lumps at the end of the dock are two local sea lions.
Stowing our bikes at Bike Valet:
Gina, today a vendor – Gadget Girl Goods – was the instructor for Jibe’s Earn-a-Bike which is how BarbaraL met her.
Kids Bike Party
A big Jibe event. Mellissa Meng, Executive Director at Jibe, and Missy Alfranji from City Councilmember Lisa Kaplan’s office:
From Mayor Steinberg’s office:
A blender bike being assembled:
My station with co-workers, Terri and Cathy, was Ready to Ride mostly for ages 2-7.
Strider bikes with no pedals or smaller bikes with pedals. We taught one girl how to ride for sure, another girl was 7/8 successful until the final spill with scraped hands. She worked for over an hour and definitely gets an A for perseverance.
Special thanks to Rachel, Lillie and Brenda who rode along on the 4-mile family ride. Coletha and Diana monitored an intersection.
Project Ride Smart
at Regency Park Elementary. On Friday morning, I had so much fun riding with the first Red group. They improved so quickly, we were able to leave the park trail and practice signaling and right turns on the street.
On Monday morning, I got to ride with two Yellow groups. Great kids and it’s clear they learned a lot. Special thanks to the parent who rode sweep for us. She was so good, I soon had her monitoring an intersection while I coached from the opposite side of the intersection.
Bike Swap – day 3
Sunday morning – time to sell. The early crew arrived at 6:30 to begin defining the space. Then over 200 bikes were wheeled out from the ballroom and grouped according to type.
So many kids bikes, most in very good condition and priced from $20-$50.
Ms Steele, the Bike Tech teacher at Inderkum High School took a picture of her students who volunteered:
Jibe staff manned the cashier station:
Volunteers from Arlete’s BIG: Jim, Cheryl, me. Jim designed the flow of the event and sorted bikes into types. Cheryl, who rides more miles/month than anyone else, worked in the “bike pit” assisting buyers in choosing the right bike. I worked near the test ride area, making sure under-16s had a helmet fitted properly. I also taught one young girl how to ride, despite her doubtful parent.
Twenty minutes before opening, early shoppers arrived:
Kids bikes, a very popular section and most of them sold within two hours.
Bike Swap – days 1 & 2
Friday afternoon was the first opportunity to donate or consign a bike for sale. All Jibe staff work this event. Anya:
Bike Doc mechanics were available to repair bikes that were donated. In the background, students from the Bike Tech program at Inderkum HS cleaning bikes before repair.
Mike (right) is a knowledgeable bike price estimator and extremely helpful at an event like this to advise sellers on a reasonable asking price.
Bikes flooded in over a 3-hour period:
Saturday morning, more bikes in a slow steady stream from 9 to noon plus visits from Tracy and Brenda who were out for a ride.
By noon, there were over 200 bikes inside the ballroom at the Aquatic Center ready for tomorrow’s sale.
Lots of kids bikes, so many in great condition, and frequently priced at $20.
Project Ride Smart
at H Allen Hight. The first thing students do after they get their bike is the ABCQuick Check.
I had the red group for street rides. One class out of five:
Huge thanks for Rachel, Maria, and Paul who volunteered as sweeps for street rides:
When a student needs to go back to campus, one LCI goes along while two groups are temporarily merged. A “bicycle sandwich” – useful for teaching purposes:
Friday was the final day with three fun bicycle activities. I did the slow race but also tried out a running race where the student only holds onto the saddle.
I worked every day this past week teaching PRS at H Allen Hight School – 38 hours. The fifth grade classes are on the second floor at HAH – 26 steps. Admittedly, I haven’t worked this hard in a long time.
Project Ride Smart
at H Allen Hight Elementary School. Five 5th grade classes with just 5 minutes between classes. Wednesday a day of indoor teaching because of rainstorms. I worked with Deanna:
Thursday and Friday: blacktop drills plus one hour after school to coach beginning riders. Long day of physical work. Before school we take 40 bicycles out of a shipping container plus set out about 100 cones for the course. At the end of the day the bikes are repacked and we get the kids in the final class to pick up the cones. The one hour after-school coaching sessions were quite rewarding.
There were probably 15 kids each day. Some just needed riding time to refresh their skills. Others needed to learn from scratch. Our final success story on Friday: Vincent. We talked about a strong power pedal, eyes on the horizon. I ran alongside, barely holding him upright. After a few passes I told him, “I haven’t been holding you up. You’re actually riding on your own.” Vincent: “I am?” That was all he needed to know. Everyone who came to coaching is now riding a bike. LCIs Gina and Pierson were also there to coach and encourage.
And I’m one tired person. Three days of physical labor.
Retirement
This afternoon was a celebration for Becky Heieck, who has retired after 16 years of leadership for North Natomas Jibe. A separated area at Track 7 Brewing.
Friends from several biking or community organizations (except for the first person at left, I don’t know who she is): Deb Banks/SABA, Jennifer Donlon Wyant/Active Transportation Program Manager, City of Sacramento, Michelle Reynolds/Jibe, Jonathan Burke/N Natomas Community Coalition and neighbor:
You will not see a picture of me in this post. I worked Project Ride Smart from 7:15 – 3:15 and had no time to become presentable by 4 pm. What a great venue and event! Becky will be missed but Jibe will continue its mission with Mellissa Meng as Executive Director.
arletelouise 