The Virginia Creeper

Over fall break we biked the Virginia Creeper. This wonderfully scenic 17 mile bike trail is great for the whole family. The entire trail is actually 34 miles long and was once used as a railway and before that was traveled by Daniel Boone. We were excited to go as a family but didn't know exactly how Tanner, Connor and Sydney would do on a 17 mile bike ride. We decided to have 2 "tag-a-longs" on the back of mine and David's bikes and let the three of them rotate between riding their own bike and riding behind us so we could smother any whining of being tired before it even began. Our thought was Sydney would start out on her own bike with the boys riding behind our bikes. When we got to the bike rental place and took a test drive, Tanner did NOT like the wobbly bike hooked onto the back of David's bike that he had no control over. Sydney, after testing out her bike decided that it was not at all like her bike at home and didn't feel comfortable riding it. Smooth start. We all got on the shuttle and 30 minutes later, and thankfully as we began our journey, everyone was happy. Tanner took off on his own bike with me and Connor behind him and then David and Sydney. Tanner did great but was very cautious. He was so slow that our hands started to hurt from grasping the hand brakes so often. Connor and I decided to go at our own pace and then stop every once and a while to let them catch up with us. This worked great because it gave us a chance to stop and enjoy the gorgeous scenery and check out the many cool bridges. Connor and I bonded. We sang, and he talked about how we must be out in front because no one else was around. (actually everyone else in our group except David, Sydney and Tanner were way in front of us.) About 11 miles down the trail there is a great cafe that we all met up at and ate lunch. The teenagers bragged about how long they had been waiting there. (oh yeah, well if I was on a bike by myself I could keep up!) The last 6 miles something kicked in with Tanner and he stayed with group without any trouble. It was a lot more smooth and level, rather than bumpy and downhill. He even got the hang of passing people, saying "passing on your left" as he'd whiz by. When we finally finished the trail Connor got off and said "wow, my bottom hurts!" You got that right, Connor! It was a great family experience, one we will definetely do again.