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Children from Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stalling in an obstacle course July 15 outside the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo. Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills. (Photo by Mike Strasser, Fort Drum Garrison Public Affairs)
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Children from Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stalling in an obstacle course July 15 outside the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo. Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills. (Photo by Mike Strasser, Fort Drum Garrison Public Affairs)
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Children from Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stalling in an obstacle course July 15 outside the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo. Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills. (Photo by Mike Strasser, Fort Drum Garrison Public Affairs)
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Children from Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stalling in an obstacle course July 15 outside the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo. Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills. (Photo by Mike Strasser, Fort Drum Garrison Public Affairs)
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Children from Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stalling in an obstacle course July 15 outside the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo. Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills. (Photo by Mike Strasser, Fort Drum Garrison Public Affairs)
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Children from Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stalling in an obstacle course July 15 outside the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo. Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills. (Photo by Mike Strasser, Fort Drum Garrison Public Affairs)
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FORT DRUM, NY (July 15, 2022) — Children at Fort Drum practiced left turns, right turns, braking and stops in an obstacle course July 15 outside from the Magrath Sports Complex during the annual bike rodeo.
Staff from Fort Drum’s Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation hosted the event to reinforce bike safety and help kids practice their skills.
“The Bike Rodeo is an annual FMWR event that teaches kids proper bike safety techniques they can use when riding,” said Michelle Winter, who handed out cold water and treats to the kids.
He said biking is a fun summer activity for many family members who are on post, so it was a good time to host a clinic where he could get hands-on experience.
“We want to make sure kids are safe when they ride their bikes, so we start by checking their helmets and making sure they fit properly,” Winter said. “Then they go through the course where there are stations that teach different cycling techniques.”
The event builds confidence in the children that they can safely navigate the course and each participant received a certificate of completion at the end.
“Safety is a subject that can be a little boring for kids, so we wanted it to be a fun hands-on activity where they don’t even realize they’re learning,” Winter said. “So when they go home and walk with their family, the kids are doing things that they’ve learned here. It’s a great life skill for our young community members that they have forever.”
Members of the Fort Drum Bike Patrol tried out the obstacle course and were on hand to talk bike safety with the kids. While patrolling the neighborhoods, Pfc. Shane Sweeney said they make sure cyclists wear helmets and other protective gear.
“We also want to make sure they stop at stop signs, watch for traffic at intersections and other basic rules,” he said. “The Bike Rodeo is great because it teaches kids how to ride properly, but it’s also a great community event where they can even meet new friends.”
Pvt. David Sanchez said that before the Bike Patrol could hit the road this summer, they saw kids who weren’t wearing protective gear. One of his priorities was to strengthen safety standards.
“We’ve seen that number drop dramatically this month and throughout the month of June,” he said. “So we can say we’ve been helping communities.”
Sweeney said it’s important when kids are riding to pay attention to what’s in front of them, whether it’s another cyclist, a pedestrian or an obstacle on the ground.
“That’s why in this obstacle course there are a lot of turns and cones here, to teach kids to look up and not focus on the pedals or the tires,” he said.
Representatives from the Fort Drum Family Advocacy Program also attended the Bike Rodeo to help promote safety at the installation, which is also the focus of the 101 Days of Summer campaign.
“The Bike Rodeo is all about safety and so is the 101 days of summer,” said Tom Wojcikowski, FAP Educator. “We have a lot of special events going on focused on safety.”
FAP staff will host a Summer Safety Luau from 10am to 1pm on July 26th in the Enrichment Center, Bldg. 10262 in the unit of the 4th Armored Division. There will be safety activities for community members of all ages, car seat checks, games, crafts and music. For more information, call (315) 772-5914.
Also, the annual National Night Out is scheduled from 5-7pm on August 2nd at the Adirondack Creek Community Center. Community members are invited to meet with local police and fire personnel and discuss neighborhood safety. There will be free food, music, bounce houses, face painting and more. For more information, visit www.fortdrummch.com.
