letters:
what you can expect your son or daughter to
get out of an SHP bicycle touring trip
Parents expect and our trips provide a summer
activity for their teens that is more than just fun and entertainment -
more than just thrill-seeking and glitzy entertainment activities. Our
trips provide kids with a fun summer, but, as importantly, we also provide
them with the opportunity for growth, independence and maturation in a
safe, responsible way, commensurate with their age and abilities. There
are few other situations so perfectly set up for fostering growth,
confidence, independence and maturation in teens as a travel-camping
experience by bicycle with a group of peers.
SENSE OF ACCOMPLISHMENT As
several thousands of former trippers and their parents will confirm, the
sense of accomplishment for a teenager upon completing a bicycling journey
of hundreds or thousands of miles, completely self-contained, carrying all
their own gear, through all kinds of situations, with people they had
never met before, taking care of all their living needs from cooking,
cleaning and doing their own laundry (all those take-for-granted realities
of daily living that Mom usually does!) - and doing all this by themselves
under their own power - is unbelievable! The whole adventure is a true
accomplishment for any teen, and one that he or she can rightfully be very
proud of.
DAILY STRUCTURE The daily
structure of an SHP trip is geared specifically to the needs of this age
group, We provide the basic framework and each group adjusts to that
framework according to its own needs, desires, and abilities. The SHP
framework consists of a definite itinerary, with reserved overnight stops
(except for our challenging trips) to be met, specific roads that can or
cannot be used, and certain major sights or activities that must be seen
or done. Within that framework, each group has the freedom (as a group) to
make its own plans and decide for itself which acceptable route to take,
and when and what to see and do along the way. Another deliberate part of
the daily structure is giving each group the responsibility for buying and
fixing its own meals, within SHP guidelines of decently healthy fare and
the daily food budget. Consideration of others, cooperation,
responsibility, and thinking ahead are all stressed during the many daily
decision-making opportunities. Accepting the consequences of their actions
and decisions is also an important part of the experience.
The SHP structure also allows parents and each
tripper the security of a social situation where the peer pressures from
cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs are minimal because these substances are
absolutely not permitted. Coupling, whether boy/girl or close friends
forming a clique that excludes other group members, is highly discouraged
in favor of activities and relationships that include the entire group in
positive ways.
ADVANTAGES OF A BICYCLE-TOURING TRIP
We have found that a bike trip is the perfect vehicle (no pun
intended) for teen growth. Biking permits teens to travel through a wide
variety of places - towns, villages, countryside and wilderness - at a
pace that is fast enough to give them the sense of activity and forward
movement that they need, yet slow enough to allow them to absorb what
they're seeing and experiencing. Each travel day provides a definite goal
for the group (getting to the next overnight stop) which must be met
cooperatively.
ADVANTAGES OF A TRAVEL SITUATION FOR
TEENS In addition to the obvious advantages of experiencing different cultures, lifestyles, ways of looking at the world, and areas of different kinds of terrain, climate and natural beauty, travel also exposes teens to a myriad of problem-solving situations. One of the reasons that travel is inherently adventurous is its unpredictability. Although help is always readily available from the leaders and, if necessary, from SHP headquarters and directors, the group members are encouraged to think about and solve the many unexpected "problems" of the trip - a grocery store being closed, bad weather, bike breakdowns, people giving the group wrong directions, train strikes, etc.
ADVANTAGES OF CAMPING Our trips
all include camping because camping offers a host of benefits to a teen
program by fostering a closer group experience and an appreciation of
nature. Camping allows a group and its leaders to be together in a
campsite (with separate tents for males and females), rather than
fragmented throughout many rooms in a hotel. The very nature of camping,
whether it's helping one another set up the tents, cooking over a
campfire, cleaning, dealing with all kinds of weather conditions, etc.,
fosters a wholesome group interaction. Opportunities abound for
cooperation, consideration, and responsible thinking. Without the
distractions of TV, radios, and VCRs, the groups learn to make their own
entertainment, and discover that they have great times interacting with
one another without these artificial distractions.
BUDGETING For many trippers, this
is also the first time in their lives that they are expected to keep track
of their own spending money and budget wisely for a long period of time
while confronted with all sorts of temptations. Many trippers blow this
first experience with budgeting their own money and wind up short of
spending money, but this can be a valuable learning experience - done in a
safe atmosphere since their basic needs are still taken care of through
the funds carried by the leaders. Trippers take turns on the cooking
committee, and each committee must stay with the budget when buying the
group food for that day.
PROVIDING A SOLID BASE FOR INDEPENDENCE
As the two letters from parents indicate, SHP trips help provide teens with a firm base for handling the increasing amounts of independence that will be expected of them as they enter high school or college. An SHP bike trip is an ideal spread-your-wings summer for teens in an atmosphere that stresses responsibility and consideration, and in a framework that keeps them safe while they are experimenting with freedom.
