Kids Bike Camp (Video)

Words, photos, and video by Jeanne LePoix

“Kids Bike Camp” tells the story of bringing together 11 cycling families from the four corners of France. In a loop around the town of Nevers, the family consisting of Swanee, Stéphane, and Kim took us to discover the playground where they’ve been riding for years.

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From Swanee‘s workshop, where she builds Pariah bikes, we were a colorful convoy wandering along quiet roads and mini trails. There were bikes of all kinds, trailers, tow ropes, FollowMes, young and old riders, and travel off the beaten track from camp to camp. Everything was natural, sweet, and full of joy.

We did one last fill of our water bottles at the village cemetery before embarking on a tiny trail along the river at sunset. In single file, we headed for our secret bivouac spot. The tents grew like mushrooms between the trees and the high grass. Showering, cooking, everyone was busy before nightfall. The children collected fallen branches and the fire animated our evening.

Going on a bike trip with children is an opportunity to observe their ease of moving around in nature, their way to have fun with nothing and appreciate the small pleasures of life: wading barefoot in the mud, building a hut with big branches, stroking a horse’s head with love, roasting marshmallows on the fire, skipping stones on the water, touching the moss on a tree, marveling at the sight of a ladybug, and blowing on the petals of a dandelion and watching them fly away with euphoria while making a wish.

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There were about 20 adults and almost as many children on this bike trip, and it makes for a super joyful adventure. We had barely 48 hours together but brought back a lot of great memories in our respective bicycle bags. Our group was Swanee, Stéphane, Kim, Pauline, Simon-Pierre, Joséphine, Léopold, Alizée, Jérôme, Ariane, Hermès, Amandine, Tim, Lou, Adeline, Olivier, Julia, Axel, Marion, Virgile, Marguerite, Zadig, Lucie, Thomas, Achille, Mauve, Antoine, Louison, Denis, Élise, Ronan, Camille, Giorgio, Charlie, Raphaëlle, Jeanne, Xavier, and Zoé.

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