Wheel Around Day!

When you can’t ride your bike to or from school, why not ride bikes at school? The SVBC Santa Clara Safe Routes to School Program teamed up with the YMCA after-school program at Bowers Elementary School to host the first Wheel Around Day on Friday, February 15th. The team was able to come and set up a course during the YMCA’s designated activity time to get the children to learn by doing.

With a little direction the students quickly learned the skills needed to fit their helmet and complete the course. They were able to navigate down a chalked street and deliver newspapers to houses while using turn signals to change directions. The students were also able to practice their balancing skills by riding down different size planks of wood, weaving in and out of tennis balls, and seeing how slow they could go in a slow bike race. Each month, the Wheel Around Day will focus on a different safety aspect of riding on the “street” and a different bike handling or maintenance skill to help build rider confidence. At the end of the day the students left with big smiles and new skills!