Over the years I've read the warnings to parents about ADHD kids' safety or lack thereof. Seems many of them, or maybe the majority of these kids are reckless to say the least. None of that reading prepared me for my first journey into the world of bike-riding with my highly-impulsive 10 year old! We live outside city limits where homes have pastures between them and few cars drive by. Bobby has experienced bike-riding only in this setting....up until last week.
Ready for a new family hobby, the guys fixed up used bikes & I bought a new one. We dug out the helmets & bought our first bike rack for the back of the car. Off to town we headed, to ride bikes in seemingly quiet neighborhoods. I was pretty excited about this new venture, thinking the exercise and fresh air would be great for us all. Bobby would need a little guidance to get started but I really didn't think that would involve more than, "Stay on the right" and "Watch for cars." Wrong! I spent the first mile yelling into the wind, "GET YOUR FEET OFF THE HANDLEBARS!" Once he began using the pedals correctly, it was a myriad of unforseen issues such as riding in circles around me, swerving into me when passing me on the right & failing to come to complete stop at the signs. Where was his father? His back tire needed more air so we started without him. What could go wrong? After "we" improved our skills in a fairly quiet neighborhood, I decided to take him just a few more miles. Everything was going well when I turned left onto a side street and Bobby missed my cue. He was gone. We had no "game plan" for if we got separated so he chose to find his way back to the car on his own, crossing a busy street in the process. Sure, he made it ok, but we've put a back-up plan in place for next time we get separated.
Enjoying the family bike time. Rode 20 miles yesterday along a beautiful country bike path. No cars or dogs! ADHD kids DO need strong guidance in the safety arena but with that all in place....they burn piles of wild-child energy & enjoy valuable time with Dad & Mom! Ok, Bobby, where are we headed next?
1 comment:
THANKFULLY, Dylan is not terribly reckless. He is easily distracted, which can get him in trouble on a bike. And he has a hard time learning that he has to negotiate with other bikers and pedestrians - he does sort of think he owns the road. But thankfully, he's not reckless! Good luck in future biking adventures.
Post a Comment