The Wheel American Family is our new blog about transporting kids in a Dutch style bicycle and enjoying cycling as a family. By Travis Wittwer.

At the grocery store, when I am loading my three sons and groceries into the “box” of my bakfiets I get more than a few puzzled but interested looks. Usually they ask if I like biking everywhere. My reply is that biking have given me enthusiasm and simplicity, all on two wheels.

It is also about a shift in America’s view of the bike. The bike, once seen only as a kids’ toy or transportation for the poor, is now something of beauty and simplicity. Even though the bike is a machine, it has an organic feel and it is being embraced by an ever-growing group of people. And nowhere is this felt more than Portland, Oregon.

When asked why I ride a bike I also answer that I wanted a lifestyle change. Like many, my life has become very hectic and I find that biking is a great way to travel and commute, as well as carve out a little time to relax and to think.

Yes, bikes are slower than cars (except in traffic jams), but going slower is not a negative. For me, the slower pace of bikes is a positive asset.

Let me give you an idea of what this slower pace translates to: Picking my sons up from school is about a 20 minute drive, one way. However, in the bakfiets, it is a 40 minute ride, one way. Rather than viewing this as twice as slow, as if it is a drawback, I see it as twice as much time to be with my sons, talking about their day, playing games, telling riddles, and coming up with really bad puns (trust me, they are “wheely” bad).

Instead of rushing past everything, I enjoy it. Self-propulsion is the way. I see more, hear more, feel more. Today, after a cold morning, the afternoon was crisp and sunny; the leaves were full of color. On the bike, I don’t miss things like the changing graffiti at the corner of northeast Williams and Cook in Portland. A very real bonus of biking is meeting other bicyclists at stops.

If you see a bakfiets with three wiggly boys, it is my sons and me. Give a wave and we’ll wave back.