More important than masters racing
June 16, 2017 § 41 Comments
I got this email from a friend:
“My nephew started having a lot of problems three years ago. He has a tremendous amount of energy and anxiety, is continually in motion and was expressing extreme frustration with no outlet.
“He tried soccer, swimming, horseback riding, skiing, dance, but nothing seemed to be able to channel or exhaust his boundless energy. Last year I gave him a mountain bike that my son could no longer ride. My brother-in-law took him out on the MTB; he liked it but he didn’t like all the climbing. So they took to riding the safe streets in his suburb where the kids all stayed indoors, or sometimes you’d see kids riding around on electric scooters or Razors.
“My nephew was so nervous at first but my brother-in-law kept it up every Saturday, and then bought him a new bike for his birthday, a bike with a bell and a boom box, and the kid fell in love with it. Pretty soon all the kids on his block were dusting off their bikes and following my nephew, who is nine. These were kids of all ages, 7,19,11, even 15!
“More incredibly, his teacher even lets him sit on the bike in class to read, because she recognized that on the bike he could focus so much better. He now has a way to keep his brain engaged at top speed with fewer outbursts, no frustration, and no more pent-up anger.
“His parents finally have a tired kid who sleeps the whole night through; before he was up two or three times a night. He looks and feels awesome. My brother-in-law now takes him to local garage sales, where they buy bikes and fix them up; some cheap as five bucks.
“Any time you visit their house, even if you’re an adult, my nephew will throw you on one of his bikes and take you out to show you how strong he is. His life has been changed forever. With a bike.”
END
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Cycling in the South Bay 
Awesome
Thanks!
Great story, but your title kind of freaked me out. 🙂
Hahahahahaha!!!
When he’s a little older, send him a copy of Mat Hoffmann’s autobiography. That kid is going places.
I agree!
Defiantly more important !!! Love ❤️
#winning … for real!
Now that’s a beautiful thing!
Thanks, Brian!
Ahhhh…. some good news!
Like it or not!
Brilliant, love this
Thanks!
How irresponsible of those adults! Why didn’t they take him to a Pediatrician and get him doped up on several of the proper meds these wonderful Pharmaceutical companies have created, and get this kid indoctrinated to popping pills his whole life, like a normal American. <<— heavy sarcasm!
But yeah, A BIKE!! Great share.
Bikes, schmikes!
We all can easily imagine there are parents, that, instead of parenting, get meds. For some of us, no amount of parenting does what those drugs do.
FWIW, the exercise somehow releases enough chemicals to get the irregularity in the send->receive working correctly in the area of the brain that controls impulsivity. Unfortunately, the clarity is very temporary.
Definitely sounds like an ADHD kid. He might get lucky and grow out of it. Definitely worth getting an assessment from a professional. That’s different than going to a Psych. A visit to a development optometrist is a good idea as well.
Intense exercise needs to be a part of the kid’s life going forward.
channel_ZERO –
You must work in the Medical Cartel “Industry.” After all, it’s 25% of the eCONomy these days for a reason……
No, sorry Jeff.
It turns out, the ADHD drugs transformed my life. I went from part-time retail to full-time major-league professional career in 10 years. I can name-drop with the best.
Again, not every parent makes good choices for their kids. Hopefully, you don’t have kids with ADHD.
Glad it helped you, but there were other ways, IMO! But, I’m sure it would be pointless to debate my opinion with you.
Nope, I’ve got no kids at all, thanks! But if I did, I would NOT drug them!
Best news of the day!
Yay!!!
Happy Friday.
You, too, Stu!
Great read! … you shut your dirty mouth when it comes to masters racing.
Yessir!
Great to read about proactive parenting rather than throwing him a screen(iphone/ipad).
Well done.
Agreed and thanks!
Glad they found something that helped! and being outdoors is definitely a positive
Yes!
This oughta be written up in a medical journal for the sake of a lotta other nephews.
And teachers and moms and dads and aunts and uncles and humans. But not pharmacists.
Incredible Sethi…after all…it’s not just about the bike 🚴🏼 📙🤓
Right! Sometimes it’s about the KID!
Phew, Seth! Was starting to worry about you and a lack of positive stories. Thank you. Tell me when all the fast guys 55+ retire so I can race again.
When these negative vortices crop up it takes effort to extract yourself and focus on good things.
What a great story. God, what a great story. Thanks for posting this.
You’re welcome! Thanks for the kind words!
Agree, bikes vs. Meds. Bike racks at schools vs. more medicine cabinets. Go outside, there is a great panoramic screen out there and Apple didn’t build it.
“Apple didn’t build it.” Awesome.
http://www.bicycling.com/culture/people/riding-my-ritalin-how-one-cyclist-gained-control-over-his-adhd