From the scar on my knee a memory emerges. I was about ten-years old with my family on our annual vacation at Chautauqua Institution. I was biking along on my banana seat Schwinn when I spotted my sister, lifted my left hand from the handlebars to wave to her, and flashed a goofy grin. She waved back. I waved more exuberantly, until my front-wheel hit a bump launching me head-over-heels and grinding my knee into the gravelly road. Twenty-eight years later the scar persists as a reminder of the place where I first experienced the freedom of a bike.
Where I grew up there was no biking to the candy store. But for two weeks every summer my family brought our bikes to Chautauqua and my parents let us ride everywhere whenever we wanted. We biked to Bestor Plaza to get candy at the bookstore, to the lake to swim, to art class, and to Boys and Girls Club. Best of all, we biked across Thunder Bridge, named for the sound made by bikes crossing it. This 135 year old community is so safe and bike-friendly that mom and dad comfortably let us go wherever we wanted, as did all other parents. And it continues today. As I write looking over Chautauqua Lake, Chautauquans of all ages cruise by on bike and foot. Mom and dad now save themselves the walk and catch the bus that passes in front of the house. Lecture and concert-goers crowd their bikes around the Amphitheater.
I look forward to the year when Theo and Henry and their cousins are roaming freely on their bikes with the Chautauqua breeze in their hair. As the roads are much improved, with any luck their knees will fare better than mine.
Where I grew up there was no biking to the candy store. But for two weeks every summer my family brought our bikes to Chautauqua and my parents let us ride everywhere whenever we wanted. We biked to Bestor Plaza to get candy at the bookstore, to the lake to swim, to art class, and to Boys and Girls Club. Best of all, we biked across Thunder Bridge, named for the sound made by bikes crossing it. This 135 year old community is so safe and bike-friendly that mom and dad comfortably let us go wherever we wanted, as did all other parents. And it continues today. As I write looking over Chautauqua Lake, Chautauquans of all ages cruise by on bike and foot. Mom and dad now save themselves the walk and catch the bus that passes in front of the house. Lecture and concert-goers crowd their bikes around the Amphitheater.
I look forward to the year when Theo and Henry and their cousins are roaming freely on their bikes with the Chautauqua breeze in their hair. As the roads are much improved, with any luck their knees will fare better than mine.
P.S. To find out more about the photo I used for this post, check it out here.
Looks like fun... well, kinda like fun. I mean if you're into riding your bike all over the place, having tumbles and scraping knees kinda fun, then good for you.
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