By: Derrick Chen

I learned to ride a bike when I was 6 years old. Every day I would go outside on my bike with training wheels on the sides. My mom would follow me out and I would ride to the end of the road and back. The road I lived on at the time was a circle with two roads going out of it, ne of which led to a dead end if you rode to the end. I rode to the end and back multiple times a day.

Later, I took off the training wheels and added a long handle to the back so my guardian, who was either my mom or grandpa, could hold onto the back of the bicycle so that I wouldn’t fall off. My mom would run along all the time while my grandpa was more chil, running a bit slower with a steady pace. I rode to the end of the road and back and forth, back and forth. I noticed a narrow opening in the fence separating the road I was on and another road that I could walk through. One day, I would ride my bicycle through that opening, but not now. Sometimes I tried to go faster, my mom had to run to keep up. Sometimes I would try to go slower, I nearly fell off the bike. Soon, I was ready to ride on my own.

We took off the handle and I was officially on my own. I quickly learned to keep balance and easily rode to the end of the road. I rode quickly, slowly, and in between. I was able to ride on my own. My grandpa just had to watch me and follow me. One day, I decided to go through the opening in the fence. I rode through and down the sidewalk. I usually walk this way to the park I like to go to. It would have been easier if the hole behind a friend’s house down the road leading to the park hadn’t been patched. I made a left and rode down Sussex road. One of the kids at school lives here, I thought. After a few minutes, I arrived at the park. I rode my bike around the tennis court for a few minutes before stopping to take a break. Then, I pushed around the thing that cleans clay off the lines of the court, I always liked pushing it around. I stayed there for a few minutes and decided to go home after playing in the playground. I had always thought about biking to this park and what it would be like. It felt cooler, like I had accomplished something. I rode my bike faster and more confidently after that day. I rode all the way to the park. That park is a small, but influential park.

At home, I thought about how I had gone from not knowing how to ride a bike to riding a bike easily. It was certainly a great experience throughout the days.