tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9438466.post5139924672429239767..comments2023-06-20T06:34:12.073-07:00Comments on <b>MAN-MAKING BLOG</b>: Boys, Bikes, and The PackUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9438466.post-14221631713841255322012-02-12T11:20:13.076-07:002012-02-12T11:20:13.076-07:00Another great blog! I've seen that tree/bike p...Another great blog! I've seen that tree/bike photo before. Interesting the gender assumption that it was a boy (not a girl) who left his (not her) bike by the tree. I did that too. <br /><br />Getting my first bike was probably one of the most significant "milestones" in my boyhood. I got a Schwinn bike for Christmas (with training wheels) and it was snowy (I grew up outside of Detroit), so I shoveled not only our small front sidewalk but down the block so I could ride my new bike a ways down the street. <br /><br />Can't remember if I realized it at the time or not, but that bike opened up a "new world" for me: independence, mobility, even a job (newspaper delivery boy). I don't recall riding with other guys or even thinking of bike riding as exercise or a possible sport but I loved getting on my bike in the morning and riding to elementary/middle school (many miles away from my home), and riding back home in the afternoon after school. My bike was one of those old-fashion fat-tire, single speeds with a carrier/rack on the back to load my newspaper saddlebags on. Thanks for bringing back so many wonderful memories. <br /> <br />To add a political/environmental dimension to this post, there's a movement in the US called "Safe Routes to School" which advocates making it safe for kids to ride their bikes to school (rather than taking a bus or being driven by their parent(s) ). I live near a couple of schools and ride my bike to a recreation area near the schools, and am saddened/angered to see how many parents drive their kids to school, increasing air pollution, burning oil and depriving their kids of exercise and the freedom I experienced as a child.Tim W.noreply@blogger.com