By Elaine Bothe and Ryland Shipley
Friends were made and fun was had at the NWTA Kids’ Ride at Cascade Locks easyCLIMB Trail System on a warm Sunday afternoon in July! We had five kids join us for a lap of beautiful views out across the Columbia River, endless and fun corners, a lovely snack break in the shade and trails in great condition. Thanks to the NWTA trail volunteers for brushing the entire system!
The only thing in our way was a few spider webs, which the morning Beginner Adult ride did a good job of mostly clearing out for us. And perhaps a tricky climb or two. We finished the day with a spray bottle water fight which helped cool everyone down.
Participant Ryland Shipley had this to say about the event:
“I really enjoyed the Kids Ride at Cascade Locks. Something that is challenging for me is riding up hill. I think it is going to take a lot of practice. My favorite part of the ride was after making it up hill I got to go downhill. I LOVE riding downhill and I especially loved riding with coach Elaine.”
Ryland has attended one of our kids camps this year and last. He shared that shortly after our ride at easyCLIMB, his family vacationed near McKenzie Bridge, Oregon. He practiced standing up while riding the pump track at Horse Creek Lodge and that he rode a lower portion of the McKenzie River Trail. He is looking forward to the next Kids Ride and is making great progress. Keep it up, Ryland!
And we are looking forward to having Ryland along on the ride, too! We’d like to thank Ryland’s dad Allen Shipley for signing up as a volunteer and helping us with this ride. We welcome parents along for these rides (if the kids want ; ) Check out the schedule on the Events page and hope to see you at our next adventure!
Additional thanks go to Trek Bicycles, Project^, the trail builders whose handiwork we certainly enjoyed, the city of Cascade Locks, Coach Elaine Bothe and volunteer Allen Shipley. We could not do these classes without you!
Photos by Elaine Bothe and the Shipley family.