kristin, October 25th, 2012
How long have you been biking to school?
We started biking to school occasionally about a year and a half ago when both my kids were finally at the same school. My son was in Kindergarten and my daughter was in 2nd grade. Now that they are older, and my younger son’s legs are stronger, we have been biking every day with these exceptions: days that are drizzly/rainy; really dark mornings due to daylight savings time; days where I do not have to bring another kid back to my house after school for a play-date; days where my kid is not going home with another family after-school; and days were I do not have to go into work early.
Why did you start?
When my kids were in separate schools, I felt like I was spending the majority of my time driving all over the city. I was getting really tired of spending so much time in the car looking for parking. Now that we have one drop-off and one pick-up, so close to our home, we were able to become regular bikers. Now that we bike regularly, I realize how much more calm we leave the house each morning and how much more centered my kids are when we return home from school.
What advice would you give to other parents interested in walking/biking to school?
There is no safe bike route on the streets where we live, so we take the sidewalk the entire way. We have found a route with wide sidewalks and the fewest driveways and curb cuts. Because we are on the sidewalk, we have developed our own “biking manners” so that we are mindful of pedestrians. We ride in a line order (with me in the middle), so that we are not weaving, cutting others off and being predictable to the walkers. The leader always says, “Excuse me” and the followers always say, “Thank you” to the pedestrian. We also need to go slow and ride wide around corners so that we don’t scare anyone coming that we cannot see. I need to be extra vigilant with the drivers and make eye contact at every crossing. Hand signals and communication beyond basic biking “left turn, right turn” signals are important at busy intersections.
We are lucky because both our kids go to our neighborhood school. Parents that commute across the city or to two different schools are not as lucky. If you want to increase the number of bikers to school, you need to lobby for neighborhood schools.
Tagged as: biking to school, Family Biking Profile, Grattan Elementary School, sfsrts, srts, youth and family biking
kristin, October 5th, 2012
Judy Chow teaches at Ulloa Elementary School. She’s one of hundreds of San Francisco teachers who bike to school. We caught up with her to find out about how her commute is, what her students think, and how she likes the new Sloat bike lanes.
How long have you been biking to school?
I have been biking to school for 10 -12 years.
Why did you start?
A colleague of mine was biking and I thought I give it a try. So I started biking to and from school and that was it. I was hooked and love how energetic I felt.
What’s one fun story from your bike ride to school?
When I ride I see many Ulloa students walking to school with their parents. Later at school they would say “Ms. Chow I saw you riding your bike!” Then there was the time it was raining, the students would ask, “Are you riding your bike?” I mention getting a little rain or getting wet isn’t too bad. I dry off when Iget home. Many would comment how they ride their bike around where they live. Many students know me as the teacher who rides her bike to school all the time.
How do you see the new bike lane improvement to Sloat Blvd affecting biking in the Sunset?
I glad that the bike lane has been put in. We have so many bike riders who can now ride on Sloat to Lake Merced and out to Skyline. I can’t wait for the bike lane on Skyline. It definitely makes it safer for the people biking. Thank you, we truly appreciate it!
Tagged as: biking teacher, biking to school, Family Biking Profile, sfsrts, Sloat Blvd, srts, Ulloa Elementary School, youth and family biking
kristin, April 25th, 2012
Elsa regularly bikes to school with her kids. She’s part of a growing number of families discovering the joys of biking together. We checked in with her to see her new commute was working out.
How long have you been biking to school?
We started biking to school 2 days per week last year, when my daughter was in first grade, and had enough bicycling skills and confidence to go downhill and ride in traffic. Two other days, we often jog home from school, or I jog and she rides.
Why did you start biking to school?
Because I don’t like driving, and as a working parent with a sedentary job, I am always looking for efficient ways to squeeze some exercise into my day. I would love to do it every day – I grew up in Europe, where biking is not just a sport, but an everyday means of transport for short distances. But, even though the distance is not large, with drop-off in two different locations for my kids and a hilly route, it doesn’t work with my work schedule every day. (Additional motivation to keep doing it is that the Presidio, where we live, eliminated free parking everywhere around where I need to take the bus downtown, to get to work.)
What’s one fun story from your biking to school?
Nothing stands out in particular, but there’s often small things to enjoy, like how I always ask my son to push the (imaginary) ‘ turbo button’ right before we tackle our major uphill. Or we make music with our squeaky brakes on a wet day, or watch a heron on a lawn in the Presidio for a while. Or, when we set a new record time running home.
What advice would you give to other parents interested in finding active ways to get to school?
Be creative. Maybe only a few days a week work, or even a few days one-way, like in our case. That meant we had to get a (vehicle) bike rack to get my daughter’s bike back home from school, but we decided that was worth it. Teaming up with other families might work as well. Also, don’t underestimate your kids’ physical abilities—and love for movement.
Tagged as: biking to school, Family Biking Profile, George Peabody Elementary School, Safe Routes to School, sfsrts, walking to school, youth and family biking
