Youth not allowed to Jump Bikes in Public Park

I was reading the article in the Sept. 10, 2008 edition of the Voice of Pelham regarding the bike jumps in the park. I must say that the entire issue is really quite disturbing to me. As a resident, mother, business person, and taxpayer, I am concerned about this issue in many ways. The article describes how the Town of Pelham, located about 25 min. south west of Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada has decided to flatten out several bike jumps that were built by local youth in the treed area of a rural, public park. The town claims that concerns regarding safety and liability are the reason for the decision. 

Initially, I was amazed that our municipal workers, councilors & staff members have so much time on their hands to deal with what appears to be a minor and insignificant matter. After speaking with a few others about the issue, I realized that this was simply another example of how certain people are making decisions to control the actions of others.  

 To illustrate the point, it reminds me of the 1984 movie “Footloose”. In the film, the town decided that dance was to be outlawed as it was dangerous to the development of the youth. I remember watching the movie and thinking about how ridiculous the idea was. The concept that one can prevent harm to another by outlawing a common activity such as dance was absurd. Now I see that the idea was not that far from reality. Here we see how the adult leadership in our town have taken it upon themselves to decide which activities are safe and which are not.

There has been no evidence that the riding performed by the youth in this case is any safer or more dangerous than any other sport. We promote to our youth that they should strap blades to their feet and learn how to travel on ice while pushing a rubber puck about with a hooked stick. Is this to assume that it is more dangerous to learn how to maneuver a 2 wheeled bike on sandy soil over bumps, than playing hockey? With biking, the riders start with small moguls which evolve to larger ones as skill is developed to the point where the rider can lift the bike off the ground for a moment. Is this less safe than joining a large group of other hockey players in a confined space, each with a stick, on skates racing around in order to become in control of a puck at which point they hit it with all of their strength in the direction of the other teams net? I guess you could compare the two but in hockey, when the puck is shot, it is aimed not only at a net but at another individual who has the glorious task of attempting to stop the projectile with whatever means they have even if the only option is to block its course with their own body.

How many hockey injuries have our youth endured and from what age? Even when they are learning to skate, they are at risk of falling and hurting themselves. Do we sue the arena because the ice was too slippery? Do we tell skaters that they can use the facility but they cannot do dangerous movements like spins or jumps? Of course not, because each fall, bump and bruise teaches the individual how to become better at the activity. We encourage others to learn new skills. It doesn’t matter whether the individual is 6 years old and learning to skate, or 20 years old and learning to swim. When we learn to ride a bike, we often fall. As we get better, we go a bit faster and then often will fall. Which each new skill, comes challenges. We must train ourselves in order to excel at anything. Riding a bike through moguls, turns and trees is a skill building exercise that will only benefit the youth of this town. They learn to challenge themselves using their own creativity and initiative. They develop their reaction time, logical thought process and strategic problem solving abilities.

I ask the question of the Town of Pelham, The Mayor, the staff, workers and above all, the residents of this community, what would you rather have our youth do, other than biking, that would create an equal benefit to their development? If you think that you can build a “bike park” with engineered ramps and jumps to serve the purpose, you have completely missed the point of the sport entirely. The challenge is just as much about learning the concepts of velocity, force, speed, spatial recognition & judgment while applying the theories to practical applications that inspire group participation, encouragement, teamwork and support as it is about physical recreation and entertainment. I suggest that the officials check their job descriptions and start doing what they have been paid and elected to do which is manage the affairs of the municipality. That includes attracting new business, promoting tourism, maintaining infrastructure and public facilities, creating opportunities for the community to learn new skills and become physically fit and most importantly, setting an example  for our youth about how to excel in today’s world by teaching, inspiring and leading them to realize their full potential.

In the movie “Footloose” the community leadership thought that they were protecting their children by preventing them from taking part in activities. In time, after being challenged by a single young man, the town realized that they could not prevent harm by restricting activities. They could only prepare the youth to protect themselves by providing them with opportunities to learn and grow. By empowering someone to explore their abilities, we create an environment for them to improve their skills.

Taking away the jumps built by Ryan bath and his friends is far more destructive to our youth than a scrape or bruise from a fall could ever be.

What are the safety & liability concerns? Where are the reports from the insurance provider explaining why kids riding bikes over piles of sand that they created themselves would be an issue for the town? Where is the reference to the law that states that the Town would be liable for any event related to bikes in a park jumping over sand piles? If these documents truly do exist, then isn’t it the duty of our law makers to correct the regulations so that we are not limiting the freedom and development of our youth? If the law isn’t the issue but rather an insurance policy problem, then shouldn’t the officials at the Town of Pelham take action at once to insure that the appropriate alteration and premium adjustments are completed? After all, isn’t the duty of our town office to facilitate adequate arrangements in order to allow the residents of this area the opportunity to explore common recreational practices?

To these questions, I anxiously await a response.