JENNY'S LOVE FOR CYLCING

Jenny and Dylan enjoy a bike fair in Oakland's Jack London Square

Jenny inspired her family to bike and it's an influence of hers that continues to live on. Her three men log more than 2500 combined miles annually. She led by example. She biked to work, to meet friends, to the library, to the grocery store and, prior to meeting me, even biked through Switzerland and Italy. I didn't own a bike when we met. So, after we got married and moved to Santa Clara, she found one for me. Through her persistence, she generated a passion for biking that prompted me to get two more bikes and inspired her family to learn how to adjust and repair bicycles.

If you look at Jenny's biking by purpose, she cycled the most miles by commuting to work. This was done over a stretch of more than ten years, six miles each way. Interested in commuting? Jenny would advise:

1) Always wear a helmet

2) Be visible by wearing bright colors

3) Ride in daylight, if possible. But, always have a front light (white) and a rear light (red). USB-charged lights are eco-friendly. However, unlike USB's, battery-powered lights can be revived in the field by carrying replacement batteries.

4) Use a flat-bar hybrid for commuting. (Such as today's Trek FX series.) This let her have an upright position to be visible and to easily see what was ahead. The downside was a lack of hand positions (which was OK since her commute was less than ten miles) and difficulty in assuming an aero position when biking (also OK since much of her commute was on a mixed-purpose trail with pedestrians).

Jenny and the boys strap up after picking up their bikes at a shop in Vancouver, August 2019

Jenny also used biking as a way for our family to connect with each other. She would always make and effort on Father's Day and family birthdays to get out and ride. This usually meant a roughly 2.5-mile trip to either downtown Los Altos or downtown Mountain View.

Jenny and Tyler arrive in downtown Mountain View, July 4, 2018

But, Jenny's favorite use of the bicycle was to explore cities during family vacations. Together we toured by bike through Bruges, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Austin, Santa Cruz and Vancouver.

Jenny touches the belly of a Yokozuna sumo wrestler's statue in Tokyo, December 2017

I highly recommend touring a city with a tour guide, as they know the safest routes, have an eye for traffic patterns and, of course, they can share their knowledge of their city.. Still, we biked around Amsterdam and Vancouver without one and still had lovely rides.

Jenny and Tyler on the outskirts of Amsterdam in 2014