Here’s a great story from Boulder, Colorado about mountain bike clinics for kids:
Six-year-old George Williams can throw down some totally sick tricks on his tiny Gary Fisher bike. And he just got his training wheels off this spring.
That’s because when kids go to mountain bike clinics over school breaks at Boulder Indoor Cycling — like George and his twin sister Mia have since this summer — they leave knowing how to ride down steps and roll over a rock, even if it’s on a pedal-less Strider scoot-bike.
“He can pop a wheelie, and he can stand on the frame while it’s rolling,” said George and Mia’s mom, Elizabeth Williams. “He’s passionate about it — it’s just his favorite thing.”
In the holiday camps, for children ages 5 to 10, kids learn skills indoors on the ramps, logs and see-saw obstacles that fill the inside of the velodrome’s track. The obstacles — built by BIC owner Rodrigo Garcia and his father — are arranged in routes, called pump tracks, that are rated green through double black for difficulty, like ski runs.
Aside from learning balance, turning and standing on the bike pedals, coaches also teach safety and even bike mechanics.
Isn’t that neat? Wish that was available when I was a kid — it looks so fun! Here are some more photos:
Learn more at Colorado Daily: Boulder class proves mountain biking not just for pros
This is just adorable : )