Trailnet's Family Bike Rides

Today's St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a long and interesting article about TrailNet's family bike rides and the Vanderheyden family, who often ride in them:

For the Vanderheyden family, quality family time isn't about the explosive booms and bangs of surround-sound home theater or cacophonic video games.

Most often, it's the whir of thin tires on country asphalt, the rustle of summer wind in their ears and the camaraderie of hundreds of other cyclists enjoying nature. . . .

TrailNet is one of the forces working to make the St. Louis area a better place to bicycle:

Trailnet works with local and Metro East politicians and parks divisions from the city of St. Louis and St. Louis, St. Charles, Jefferson and Metro East counties to add bike lanes, create and expand trails around parks, and post "Share the Road" signs to increase driver awareness of cyclists. The City of St. Louis has 10 miles of dedicated bike lanes, and in the Metro East area, 20 miles of bike lanes are available for riders.

"The city is actually leading the region in paved bike lanes" on roads, said Curtis. In addition, "Madison County has the most incredible system of trails, probably in the country. I think people aren't aware of the incredibly great Madison County trails."