AustCycle Teacher Inspires Son To Attend Olympics

The son of one of AustCycle’s recently accredited Teachers has won himself, and his mother, a trip to watch the Olympics in London, simply by telling the story of how he learnt to ride.

Anthea Knowles, a 34-year old mother from Mindarie, Western Australia, completed her Level 1 AustCycle Teacher Accreditation Program course through Cycling WA’s ‘Be Active Cycle Instead – Bike Skills Program’ so that she could encourage others in the community to cycle. But the first person she wanted to teach was her 6-year old son Wiremu.

“We had been trying for months to help our son Wiremu ride his bike,” Anthea told AustCycle. “I went and did the AustCycle Teaching course which gave me some specific bike skills to utilise with beginner to intermediate riders”.

“So as we taught him I used some skills that I had learnt in the AustCycle course,” she said. “We started with balancing without pedalling and going down a slight incline. It was a progression of the skills, each one building on the next, and most importantly we made it fun and turned it into games”.

“Before we knew it he was riding on his own and joining in with the family – no stress, just fun. I guess biking isn’t just about pedalling. It is about learning different skills, from balancing to scooting to stopping to turning. And, it’s about having a good time!”

After learning to ride, Wiremu wrote a story about his experience for the McDonalds Champions of Play Competition. He was chosen as one of five lucky winners and won a trip to the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Wiremu said that being able to ride makes him feel proud.

“I am very proud of myself that I can now ride with my family,” he said. “I just kept trying and trying and never gave up”.

Wiremu is excited to see Big Ben, and is looking forward to watching the cycling at the Olympics. He is taking his mum Anthea with him.

Claire South, Cycling WA’s Development Manager, said she is thrilled to have such an inspiring story come out of the 'Be Active Instead - Bike Skills Program'.

“The program has just commenced it’s second year of operation and I feel confident that with the support of our talented and friendly team of AustCycle Teachers that we can help provide quality bike education to school and the community in WA”.

You can watch Wiremu's story on YouTube here.