A night of cycling, camaraderie, fun

By Thomas Ritchie

I glanced over my shoulder to check on my daughter somewhere between heaven and the middle of nowhere.

Our shadow loomed large – our spirits vigorously pedaling in the wind.

Hazel was on the back of a used tandem bicycle I picked up this summer from Albrecht’s Bike Shop for this very purpose – time on two wheels with my kids.

We were about 3 miles into an 18-mile Tuesday night ride affectionately called the taco ride, namely because if starts and ends at Rudy Navarette’s Mexican restaurant. About 25-40 riders take part each week in the open ride.

I’d been accompanied by 6-year-old Hazel and 11-year-old Ruby for about a month now. They love the weekly adventure – the cycling, the people, the messy tacos that follow at Rudy’s. But mostly they love the energy. They soak it up. As do I.

Anyway, the shadow showed, as I presumed that it would, that my daughter wasn’t pedaling – her feet were up on the top bar resting. “I like to do it that way,” she squealed. Other cyclists ride up next to us and tell me she is doing all the work. I smile and agree with them.

What the shadow didn’t show were my legs starting to tire as we rounded a corner and started to climb a small hill a few miles north of Stone State Park. But it was a good feeling, one that had come after weeks of slow riding as the girls got used to a distance ride. They were getting stronger, and were finally putting my legs to the test.

This ride is only one of many that happen each feel in Sioux City. A Thursday ride in Dakota Dunes is frequented by Siouxland Cyclists members, but is open to the public. A Wednesday night jaunt takes off from Morningside, and numerous other weekend rides throughout the summer offer plenty of opportunity for local cyclists to ride, network, and relax with fellow two-wheelers.

So I found myself on this beautiful Tuesday night on the front of my black Schwinn, smiling again and again as my girls relish the little things they see along the ride. There are rock outcroppings shaped like faces, stinky roadkill, and of course, conversations with other riders, most about their appreciation for seeing the country from the seat of a bike.

I’m starting to think this bicycle built for two is the best buy I’ve made in years. I know my kids think so.

Thomas Ritchie owns Team Creative Fire, a digital media group in Siouxland. Find him on Twitter at @CreativeThomasR.