Obsessives in the making

About a week ago, I had the pleasure to help our local club contribute to a bike safety roadeo.  It was a pretty large event conducted in a church parking lot

where local shops had volunteered mechanics to tune up children's bikes, we had volunteered to properly fit each child with a new free helmet which had been donated.   

I personally assembled the helmets, fitting the visor to front of each.  If you have never done it on a massive scale, the exercise is a bit like having a lobotomy.  After the fifth one, I stood, stared, kinda lost track of what I was doing, where and who I was.

I was a little concerned about parking my bike but

one of the local police assured me that it might be alright,

 this time.  

After having their bikes adjusted, tuned up, being outfitted with a shiny new brain bucket

and high visibility t-shirt,

local police reviewed the rules of the road with the kids before setting them loose 

over a sprawling course set up to guide the youngsters through a maze of traffic situations.

Anxious mothers either walked along

or suffered on the sidelines while a hundred or more learned to negotiate a virtual streetscape.

(I was just interrupted by my son, a college senior, who wanted to know if his Brooks wind jacket looked ok with Pearl Izumi gloves.  I told him to add some cologne and assured him he was a chick magnet.  Should I warn the mothers or let the kids drag them into the abyss of  cycling obsession?)

The participants ranged from teens to toddlers and the it was a pretty impressive attempt to educate the youth about safety on the streets.   The city had donated 20 or more police  for the event and local businesses had donated snacks and food for the participants.

 I was impressed that a couple kids tried to politely return the helmets and were thrilled to find out they could keep them.  It was a very productive morning,

hook 'em while they're young!