[blindkid] bike riding

Marie empwrn at bellsouth.net
Wed Mar 30 01:11:52 UTC 2011


Wonder if it's because children with limited or no vision are concentrating a bit more on where they are going? Maybe the vision is a distraction?


Marie (mother of Jack, born May 2005)
Check out our blog at http://www.allaccesspasstojack.blogspot.com for glimpses into our busy life with a boy who is busy growing and developing in his own way in his own time

-----Original Message-----
From: "Sally Thomas" <seacknit at gmail.com>
Sender: blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org
Date: Tue, 29 Mar 2011 20:01:31 
To: NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List,\(for parents of blind children\)<blindkid at nfbnet.org>
Reply-To: "NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List,
	\(for parents of blind children\)" <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [blindkid] bike riding

That's so funny Brandy!  When my kids were learning to ride bikes it was my 
sighted daughter who ran into the back of a parked car--not my blind son.

Sally Thomas
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Brandy W" <branlw at sbcglobal.net>
To: "'NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List,(for parents of blind children)'" 
<blindkid at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, March 29, 2011 7:47 PM
Subject: Re: [blindkid] bike riding


> We rode tandem when I was a kid, but just to spite my mom my dad bought me
> my own bike. I was in heaven having wanted one my whole life. I had just
> enough vision to stay on the sidewalk and avoid most obstacles. I'm not
> really sure how I did it now, but I had just a tiny bit more vision and
> courage then. Then my mom remarried, and my new step dad was afraid to 
> have
> me riding a bike so he took me and my sister out often. Well on the first
> trip I road right around a parked car, and my 7 year old sighted sister 
> road
> right into the back of it and on the second trip I stopped at a curb and 
> my
> sister road right off of it and flattened herself in the road, so my dad
> than began to worry about my distracted sister instead of me.
>
> Bran.
>
> Bran
>
>
>
> "Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most
> accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers."
> ~Charles W. Eliot,
>
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> (512) 689-5045
> www.playtoachieve.com
> Follow me on Face Book at
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>
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>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Aaron Cannon
> Sent: Tuesday, March 29, 2011 7:38 PM
> To: empwrn at bellsouth.net; NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List, (for parents of
> blind children)
> Subject: Re: [blindkid] bike riding
>
> Hi Marie.
>
> Your guy is luckier than I was.  My Mother didn't ride, and my Father was
> long gone by this time, so I rode independently.  I am not totally sure 
> how
> I didn't get creamed.  Nevertheless, I stuck to riding up and down my 
> street
> on the sidewalk.  I had some light perception, so I could sometimes (and
> sometimes not) kinda' sorta' tell where the sidewalk ended and the grass
> began, and if I got it wrong, I only crashed in the grass, so it wasn't a
> big deal.  I just had to be cautious the first time, in case there was a
> vehicle sticking out past the end of a driveway, or another kids bike that
> was left out on the sidewalk.
>
> When I was about 13 or so, my Mom bought a tandem bike, and I was of 
> course
> then able to broaden my bike riding horizons a lot.  There was usually
> someone sighted willing to act as captain, so I was pretty fortunate in 
> that
> regard.
>
> Hope this helps.  I think you're doing the right thing by letting him 
> figure
> out what works.
>
> Good luck.
>
> Aaron
>
> On 3/27/11, Marie <empwrn at bellsouth.net> wrote:
>> Thanks for the feedback Aaron! Do you mind if I pick your brain?  How
>> did you learn to find curbs, dips, or other obstacles while riding? It
>> kind of seemed to me that Jack may have been trying his hand at a
>> little echolation the other day. He has some vision and I was calling
>> out "curb" then he started making sounds until he got closer and
>> closer and stopped just before the curb. I thought it was cool to
>> watch especially since we never attempted to teach it. Kids have such
>> sharp minds and Jack is definitely an out of the box thinker.
>>
>> Aaron I would love to hear more about your riding. Did you go off
>> road, stick to your home street, what areas did you find most
>> enjoyable? How could your parents have helped if they'd had the
>> benefit of grown you to give them ideas?
>>
>>
>> Marie (mother of Jack, born May 2005)
>> Check out our blog at http://www.allaccesspasstojack.blogspot.com for
>> glimpses into our busy life with a boy who is busy growing and
>> developing in his own way in his own time
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Aaron Cannon <cannona at fireantproductions.com>
>> Sender: blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org
>> Date: Sun, 27 Mar 2011 13:43:18
>> To: NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List,(for parents of blind
>> children)<blindkid at nfbnet.org>
>> Reply-To: "NFBnet Blind Kid Mailing List,
>> \(for parents of blind children\)" <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
>> Subject: Re: [blindkid] bike riding
>>
>> Hi Marie.
>>
>> I'm glad you are teaching him to ride.  I've been blind since birth,
>> and riding a bike was one of my favorite activities growing up.  As
>> for your question, until you find a more permanent option, perhaps you
>> could sing a song while riding.  That way, he gets the constant queue
>> of your voice, but it's not as awkward as having to constantly call
>> out.
>>
>> Just a thought.
>>
>> Enjoy your time out there.
>>
>> Aaron
>>
>> On 3/25/11, Marie <empwrn at bellsouth.net> wrote:
>>> Hello all, life has been crazy busy here so it's been quite a while
>>> since I've posted. One thing we've been up to is bike riding. Jack is
>>> currently riding a standard bike with the pedals removed so it
>>> functions as a balance bike. He can ride with the pedals but lacks
>>> the confidence to do it without us having a hand on his back so we
>>> thought going pedal-less a bit longer would help him grown in
>>> confidence. We are having a great time doing this as a family and our
>>> current system involves us calling out to Jack to follow us or we
>>> ride behind him. I have heard that you can get some kind of clicker
>>> to make a noise that Jack could learn to listen for on our bikes. Can
>>> someone tell me what this thing is actually called and I would love
>>> any other bike riding tips/hints you'd like to provide. Jack is
>>> visually impaired with vision of 20/320 or so in his right eye and
>>> light perception in his left eye. He travels with a cane when he
>>> walks and runs and is still adapting to his lack of depth perception
>>> so any hints you can give on off road riding would be great too. As
>>> of right now, I yell out big bump or KABOOM to let him know an
>>> obstacle or drop off is coming up while riding.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Marie (mother of Jack, born May 2005)
>>>
>>> Check out our blog at http://www.allaccesspasstojack.blogspot.com for
>>> glimpses into our busy life with a boy who is busy growing and
>>> developing in his own way in his own time
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
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>
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