Simple Pleasures

A $200 saddle vs a $60 = very comfy ride!!! 

What a difference! 

To add to my bliss.....picking it up for $70!!

Prospera Valley MedioFondo 2014

Today Les biked solo in the Prospera Valley MedioFondo (88km bike ride) but we were there to cheer him across the finish line (even if we did just about miss him)!!  He did awesome blowing his time out of the water from last year.  We're so proud of his accomplishment and example of hard work and dedication. Way to go Les/Dad!!

just crossed the finish line

check out the finishing time!

2013 Prospera Valley 88 km MedioFondo

Biking the Golden Ears Bridge +

So summer holidays have officially started for us with school having ended just a couple days ago.  It's time to get out and enjoy the fresh air AND our bikes!!  After doing the Sylvan FamilyFondo we've been inspired to get on our bikes more often so the kids and I aimed high!

Last year Adrianna REALLY wanted to bike the Golden Ears Bridge as a family but we ran out of time and she dislocated her knee so that ended that activity.  First on the list this summer - our attempt to bike the bridge with no idea if we'd be able to do the whole thing or not but we decided we'd give it our best effort and see where that got us.

Heading towards the Golden Ears Bridge

The 1/2 way mark and needing a drink break

Guess we had the stamina to do it!  That first part was UPHILL but downhill of course was a piece of cake.  We were so full of energy that we decided to push ourselves a little further and bike through Walnut Grove to the Kenyon's home (in hopes that they'd actually be home).

Thankfully they were home!!  There's more uphill to their place then one would have expected.  After a quick one hour visit to rest up and fill up on more water we headed back.  EASY downhill all the way to the bridge but.......we knew uphill was coming.

Getting ready to head back to 'our side' of the bridge

Eli 

Adrianna

At the car hot and sweaty but we did it!!!  

We did it, we did it WAHOOOOO!!!!  Not sure how soon the kids will want to do that again?  I was trying to convince them that if we did that every week we'd be pros at it in no time!

Sylvan FamilyFondo

The Prospera Valley GrandFondo arrived or more specific the Sylvan FamilyFondo for the Haddad family!!  Packed up and headed to Fort Langley just after 7 in the morning to participate in the 3 km Sylvan FamilyFondo.  Distance wise easy as we're use to much longer distances as a family but we wanted the kids to experience what a mass-start felt like.  Heck Les and I wanted to experience it too!!

In the waiting area before getting the okay to move to the start line
Note:  I really dislike bike elements but I get the purpose!!

Ready for the mass-start!!

Kids received their finishers medal

Face painting - one of the many activities to take part in

A well organized event filled with goodie bags, police escorted route, kid friendly aid station, finishers award, Panago pizza, cycling themed activities AND free entrance into the Fort Langley Museum (we didn't go to the museum).  By the way this event cost our family a whole $10 to participate and it was well worth it!

Another exciting part of this event was that not long after we finished our ride and started in on some of the activities the participants in the MedioFondo (80 km) started arriving.  What a thrill to watch all these cyclists cross the finish line, so thrilling its inspired us to want to enter next years race.  More about that later.......

First Bike Ride of the Year

There really hasn't been much sunshine so far this year but today the sunshine was bright and warm so as soon as the kids got home from school we loaded up the bikes and headed for the dyke's!  

I'm not one to normally be affecting too much by the lack of sunshine but this winter I have been and between the need for bright blue skies and family very close by this was the PERFECT afternoon!!

We're looking forward to a fun 2012 biking season!!

2012 Prospera Valley FamilyFondo

Our family has signed up!!!   Check it out http://www.valleygranfondo.com/ 
(largest mass-participation cycling event the Fraser Valley of BC has ever seen).

Les and I would love to do the 80 km but I'm thinking I better not get too ahead of myself and stick with my 2012 goal of 40 km.  

We thought it would be a good experience for the kids to participate so we're signed up as a family.  They can easily do 3 km but the only other rides are the 80 km or 160 km and they are neither old enough or capable of doing that.  At least not yet.  The distance isn't a challenge but it'll be a new experience to ride with a mass group of people. 

Much of the money raised goes to the Special Olympics how fantastic is that?!!

Biking Close to Home

The last of our summer holidays was spent biking. Check out some pictures (click on to enlargen). The first half of the pictures we were biking in Pitt Meadows on the dyke's. Second half of the pictures we were biking at Hayward Lake on an old railway bed.

The truck loaded and ready to go!

Eli had a hard time staying on the trail at first. Good thing the ditch was big and grassy!

What happens to me when I fall off my bike, which happens more than I'd like to admit!

4 Bike Riders & NO Runner

YES, he is riding a bike.....with some help but he's riding!

We've spent hours this past weekend trying to get Eli to ride his bike. He's so close too but he just won't go past the point he's at. I finally asked friends on facebook how to teach an uninterested child to ride their bike and some suggestions were bribery (tried that), have him run while we ride (did it), get a trail-a-ride (have since looked into but from what we can tell he's too heavy), training wheels (tried on his old bike).

So back to the training wheels - he wouldn't ride the previous bike that had training wheels (I think they made the bike feel unstable) but they were the cheap ones that come with the bike AND he always leaned to one side (he can now balance on the bike). After much discussion and Les doing a bit more research we decided to check out training wheels again (heavy duty ones - never seen in stores).

Off to a bike shop in town we've never been to and low and behold they had some heavy duty training wheels WOW! Les tried getting them on the bike and finally after making a call to the said bike shop and another trip to the bike shop (with the bike this time) we found out that training wheels can't be put on a bike with a rear derailer. Back to square one that is until Les figured out that he could take the rear derailer off and make it into a one gear bike instead of a five gear bike (I swear the man can do ANYTHING).

Long story short one hour later Les had the gears removed, training wheels put on and Eli is as happy as a clam riding around and around and around our neighbourhood! We even got to go for a family bike ride tonight and he had the biggest smile. We won't be able to do any off road biking any time soon but at least we can hit the paved trails!

6 Bike Riders & A Boy That Runs

So the story continues and I have seriously begun to question my parenting skills even more........ however no damage seems to be taking place so I think we continue on the path we're going.

Last night we went for our promised nightly bike ride (remember to entice Eli to ride his bike) BUT this time he had a friend and Adrianna had a couple friends with us - thus the 6 bike riders. He happily (which totally still shocks me) ran along red faced panting like a dog that desperately needed a bucket of water.

Is it working you might ask? Actually I think it is! Tuesday afternoon he had Adrianna and her friend teaching him and he made progress - 4 pedals all on his own he was sooooo excited. He's so close we can all taste it including himself!

Three Bike Riders & A Boy That Runs

Recently Adrianna took over my bike so her bike went to Eli and Les's bike went to me. We've been wanting to start bike riding as a family for sometime now but were short one bike, however, that's NOT the only reason. Eli refuses to ride a bike. We've tried pleading, threatening, bribing, etc but to no avail nothing has worked. He has gotten on it and he's sooooo close and knows he is but still isn't all that interested. Well....we've had enough. So we delayed no more and picked up a bike for Les today and went for a bike ride. What did Eli do? He ran and boy did he run!