A week or so ago, while waiting for the bus,
I watched as a group of teenagers practiced a trick
with their small bikes. In turn, each kid rode
up parallel to an old, steel pipe railing,
then leaped the bike onto the rail.
The intent seemed to be to coast as far as possible
along the rail before losing their balance or bumping
into one of the upright posts. A few took a tumble
or two, but got right back up, dusted off their trousers,
and made another try. Other onlookers and I joked
that the kids at least had the foresight
to pick a practice area right across the street
from a hospital with a Level 1 trauma unit.
In all, there were seven kids in the group,
including one girl, who worked on this skill
for about an hour. At about a quarter 'til
eight, they all peeled off across the campus
as if they'd received some otherwise
unheard signal. I suppose they were headed
towards homes in the downtown area.
Besides, it was a school night.
3 comments:
I see that specially prepared bikes are used for this "sport". These are not the kids who are getting obese at their computers or in front of the TV :-)
I've seen that done here as well... I tend to find it perplexing.
Hi, Pi. I thought the same when I began to see skateboarders in my neighborhood years ago; they all were slim and fit. Nor do these kids communicate solely through e-devices of some sort, but are meeting face-to-face.
Well, William, is it any less perplexing to see some young boy or girl, 8 or so years of age, who happily plunges off a diving platform? Of course, those kids are watched over and carefully coached, but it's the same drive and desire to achieve some goal, I think, just expressed differently.
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