Middle School Bike Skills

Get ready to roll in 2023! Summer 2023 MSBS classes have been scheduled. 

Middle School Bike Skills will help your child gain valuable skills and confidence to safely bicycle to school, the park, the mall, and beyond. Classes are open to children entering 6th – 8th in the fall and are held on a Saturday or Sunday morning. The course begins with an in-person interactive review of biking basics, then moves to smaller groups for on-bike training & practice: bike/helmet checks, skills practice on a protected black-top area, then a bike ride around the neighborhood to put those newly learned skills to practice.

The half day class covers:

  • basic traffic laws
  • busy intersections
  • the most common types of bike crashes and how to avoid them
  • how to position yourself on the road
  • how to let drivers know your intentions
  • proper hand signals for cyclists
  • basic bike & helmet fitting

Did you know that almost 50% of Palo Alto middle school students bike to school? Our bicycle-friendly community, flat terrain and near-perfect climate are just a few reasons Palo Alto offers wonderful riding opportunities to cyclists of all ages and abilities. To ensure students acquire the bike handling skills needed to safely navigate the roadways, Wheel Kids Bicycle Club, Inc. has teamed up with the City of Palo Alto’s Safe Routes to School Program to offer a Middle School Bike Skills Class.

Although this is not a ‘learn how to ride bike class’, this course WILL help you gain valuable skills and confidence to safely ride your bike to school and beyond. The course is taught by League of American Bicyclists League Cycling Instructors (LCI). Participants rider skill level should be Skill Level 4/5 or higher to participate in this class – meaning they should already know how to start independently & safely stop using their brakes, ride in a straight line for at least 50 feet, and ride one handed for a short distance. Each student must have one parent/guardian attend to observe and participate in the entire class. Everyone (student AND parent/guardian) must bring a Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)-compliant HELMET and a WELL OPERATING BIKE that is safe to ride.

Day of class:
8:15 – 8:30  Check-in. Class starts promptly at 8:30.
8:30 – 9:30  In-person interactive classroom portion
9:30 – 9:40  Break
9:40 – 10:30  ABC quick check, blacktop skills (hand signals, power starts, how to stop) – in separate groups
10:30 – 12:20 Around neighborhood on street ride (practicing recently learned skills) – in separate groups
12:20 – 12:30  Wrap-up

2023 Summer Schedule:
Sat: June 10
Sat: July 15
Sun: July 23
Sat: Aug 5

Cost*: $165/student (accompanying parent included)
Eligibility: rising 6th – 8th graders
Location:  Meet at Mitchell Park Community Center, (Adobe Room) 3700 Middlefield Rd, Palo Alto, CA 94303

Equipment

Both parent and student MUST bring the following items with them to class:

  • Each student and corresponding parent/guardian MUST have a fully functioning bike and properly fitting CPSC-compliant HELMET to participate in this class – we are all going to ride!
    (Note: a fully functioning bike means: properly inflated tires [recently checked], working brakes, lubed chain, functioning gears)
  • A healthy snack for child and parent – we will have 1/2 snack breaks to refuel!
  • A full water bottle – you get thirsty riding around in the sun
  • Sunscreen applied prior to arrival at class
  • Sunglasses and cycling gloves, if you would like

Transfers

Changing to a class after you’ve registered is possible if space is available. Changing to a class that’s full will result in your name being placed on the waitlist in the order it was received – if space does not open in this case, no refund or credit will be provided.

Refunds

Written request (via email is acceptable) must be received fourteen or more days prior to the registered session for a refund, less a 20% administrative fee. If written request is received less than 14 days prior to the registered session, no refund will be made. Refunds will not be granted for absences, dismissal, or voluntary withdrawal from the class.

In case of weather-related or insufficient enrollment cancellation by Wheel Kids, a full refund will be provided.

If for some reason you need to cancel, please email: msbs@wheelkids.com and include the following information:

  • Date and location of class
  • Name of student registered for class

Questions

Have questions about Middle School Bike Skills?
Contact: Wheel Kids at: msbs@wheelkids.com or Palo Alto Safe Routes to School staff at: saferoutes@cityofpaloalto.org

REGISTRATION

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Register Now!

 

COVID 19 Updates

Wheel Kids follows all County Guidelines for the Middle School Bike Skills class. We have modified the structure of the class to maintain social distancing and to help maintain the safety of the participants and instructors. The new structure will be as follows:

  • We are doing an in person classroom portion – this will be done at Mitchell Park Community Center from approx. 8:30 – 9:30 am – both student and parent are expected to participate.
  • The on-bike portion of the class will be split into 2 groups of 6 rider pairs (student/parent), and will move to Ramos park for the bike skills portion, then each group will do their own on bike riding route with two instructors. Parents will be expected to help maintain social distance between households.
  • Each small group will depart at slightly different times for the neighborhood ride to maintain proper spacing.

Additional considerations may also be put in place such as:

  • Participants may wear masks if they so choose, according to CDC/state/county guidelines they are not required for outdoor activities where 6′ distance can be maintained.
  • We will conduct our post-class survey online to avoid paper/pencil distribution