On the first day of 2023, we went for a family bike ride. Nothing too aggressive descending wise but it was the Clairebarian’s first time pedaling up Fromme’s No Quarter climbing trail all the way to the Baden Powell. We figured with how well she’s been doing on other climbs that we’d give it a shot – positive attitude, no expectations. 

In a throwback to Cumberlandworx, it went much better than I could have imagined. There was a lot of low-low gear and plenty of breaks but the ride went from an exploration of boundaries to a new normal long before we reached the top. The few bits that were walked were not the hardest. 

I couldn’t tell you what we’re going to ride down, maybe Lower Oil Can? But by the summer it’s suddenly believable that on a properly long pack-a-lunch ride, with the right attitudes all around, my kid will be climbing to the full 5KM to the top of the No Quarter climb under her own steam. I ride with my kid regularly and this is still insane to process.

Watching her grind up steep hills – single track or gravel – reminds me of my friend Brygantor, back in the day, on his 51-pound Monster-T equipped freeride bike. It’s one part low-enough gearing, one part leg power and learning to love to suffer, and then that’s blended up with a few parts sheer willpower. Her rider-to-bike ratio weight ratio is lower to boot. 

Claire’s riding goals for 2023 are to get out with more kids and to ride more of Expresso. Riding with groms is interesting. Claire doesn’t ever get bored of doing multiple laps of Bobsled with her buddies but she’s also willing to walk a significant amount of a trail to go and experience something new. 

We’ve also come to the point where she’s fast enough to ride with my most patient friends (thanks Penny & Jac!) which means getting to see other folks ride than just me. I won’t lie, there’s a bit of an ego check involved when your kid learns that you’re really not great at riding bikes relative to your friends.  

The hockey season binds us to local rides after school, but come March it’s going to be interesting to see where we can get up to and also who we can get out with. New year, new zones. Very much excited to see where we climb up to.