Le Tour

I’ve never cycled in the Tour de France.  In fact, of all the major cycling races I can proudly boast an unbroken 100% record for not having competed in them.  Not many men can say that.  Well, maybe the odd one or two.  Anyway, to continue the theme from the previous post of people who think they are having a hard week, I don’t think Le Tour can be as hard as all that.  I’ve ridden a bike and it wasn’t that difficult, and it’s not like any of them are likely to forget how half way around is it? 

Our daughter can’t ride a bike, her main problem is that her feet don’t reach the pedals, and her hands don’t reach the handlebars, and her balance isn’t that great either.  All in all, not a natural cyclist.  She does however have a little pink push-a-long thing that she sits on and rides.  Again, she is not quite up to self propulsion just yet, and so far I’ve been able to convince her that it is not appropriate to fit an internal combustion engine.  I haven’t yet confessed to her that I am not actually competent to fit an engine, nor could I source one at the speed which she demands.

The tricycle can only be operated with with the aid of another person.  It doesn’t matter who you are, if you are in the garden, and the tricycle is out N will ask you to push her, again, and again, and again.  Her favourite rides are the ones where she is almost catapulted off into the raspberry bushes at the end.  Or tipped over as we swoop round a corner while I imagine that I am a character in Wacky Races who’s just worked out that that last sign had been tampered with and we’ve been going in the wrong direction for the last twenty minutes. 

Hee Hee Hee

Come on daddy, they're catching us!

She hasn’t actually fallen off yet, although that’s probably due to the weather which has left our garden with big puddles of standing water all over it.  This has naturally curtailed our wild tricycle races as, unfortunately, as well as my inability to fit an engine, I also haven’t managed to make the vehicle amphibious yet. 

Between us we have quite a nice little course set up, and, though I say so myself, I can get round it pretty quickly, with the added benefit that the faster I can go, the more the little speedster loves it.  So here is a challenge for all of the Tour riders.  Why not pop over one time, we can race at pushing my daughter around the garden on her tricycle.  She’ll love it, I’ll have some help in entertaining her, and I reckon I could give you all a run for your money.  I may even knock together a maillot jaune for the winner.  Though with my seamstress skills you might not actually want to wear it.