A nice relaxing ride...

or not.

It could have been.

If I was alone I guess.

But really, what fun is that? :- )

SO, we all 6 packed up and headed over to Saguaro East. They have a paved road that bikes can ride on, as well as cars can drive on and pedestrians walk/run on.  We did cause a bit of a stir when we pulled in driving a suburban with a trailer attached with all sorts of bikes in it. Hey, at least we didn't have the white resin chair (or rocking chair) strapped to the top.  But, the weather was a perfect 60-65 degrees and sunny with barely any wind. What could go wrong?

We got everything unloaded and everyone to their appropriate spot.

The goal was to ride to the picnic area and back (about 2 miles or so). Since my sweet husband was the one pulling the twins, I volunteered to be in charge of Agent P. It's hard to say who had the tougher job. Agent P just started learning to ride without training wheels, however this was not the venue to be running beside him grabbing the seat every time he started tilting over. Not in my opinion.

But the ride started off as typical. I had to head back to the truck after we got around the first curve and up the first hill. Agent P had forgotten his knee/elbow pads and riding gloves. Anyone that knows him well, knows it was in my best interest to head back and get them. Safety first!

That's when the real fun began. I think I burned more calories from stress and anxiety than I did from the actual rigorous bike ride.

Now, I'm a mom of 4. You would think I would actually know something by now. Or at least accepted what I know and stop praying it's not reality. But I have 2 dare devil kids. One is Agent P and the other is Mini P. Luckily, she was tucked away in the bike carrier - strapped in by a 5-point harness with a snap down window. She was safe and sound.

Not Agent P.

Agent P was riding his bike with training wheels. His hand me down bike from A-Dog. Assuming it has lasted this long, does not mean it will last until Monkey. Trust me when I say the boy (P) is hard on stuff. Very hard.

Agent P and I brought up the rear. The one-sided conversation during our trek went a little bit like this:

ME: Agent P - you HAVE to watch in front of you!!! STOP watching your shadow!!!

ME: Seriously!!! STOP turning around and watch the road!

ME: Why on EARTH are you stopping in the middle of the road, I almost ran you over!

ME: TURN AROUND!!!

ME: You have to stop slamming on the brakes - you are burning your tire right off!

ME: Stop watching your shadow and watch the road.

ME: WATCH THE ROAD!!!

We rode for 1 mile there and 1 mile back like that. I did throw in some random "you are doing awesome" and a "you can do it" during the hills. But there was very little room for any HOORAY'S because frankly, I was expending all my breath and energy trying to keep him on the road. I swear that I was kicking myself for not bringing any pliers because I just knew at any moment he was going to go careening off the side into a prickly pear cactus. I can say with complete certainty, he needs a new back tire. I think he burned nearly all the rubber of with his awesome brake work.  

But we did make it to the picnic area...

And back...

With no cactus needles.

However, next time, I think we will go on a cloudy day.