Floyd A. O'Reilly Blog: Family biking profile: New(ish) rider Kaylen Boroff and her toddler take to the streets

Kaylen and Casey are ready for the rain!
(Photos: Madi Carlson)

This week we’re going to share a profile of a local family biker.

Kaylen Boroff is relatively new to Portland and has embraced bicycling for transportation with her toddler son in tow.

Our Family Biking column is sponsored by Clever Cycles.

➤ Read past entries here.

➤ Tell me a little about yourself and your family.

Hi! My name is Kaylen and my son Casey and love riding our bike! Casey will be two next month and he loves the adventure and freedom of being on a bike. I’m a social worker at the VA hospital and we use our bike to commute to work and daycare. We moved to Portland from Michigan in April and began riding upon our arrival! We live in inner SE PDX.

Kaylen’s bike is lightweight and sturdy…and she can carry it upstairs to (and fit it in) her apartment.

➤ Tell me about your bike.

We have a Specialized Sirrus we got new from River City this spring. It is an awesome blue color with blue fenders, too. We have a child seat in the back (attached by frame, the Co-Pilot). The bike has a decent weight, but I’m still able to take it up the stairs to our apartment. I love the Co-Pilot seat for the durability, removable seat pad, reflectors, and high sides. It is a safe ride for both of us. We have a basket in front for all of our supplies — diapers, wipes and clothes for school and lunch for work.

Casey has a comfortable ride.

➤ Is there something you wish you had known before you took your first pedal stroke as a family biker that would have made things easier?

I wish I’d of known how intense it can be. As we live in southeast, we see bikers everywhere getting to Clinton Street. It can be overwhelming at times weaving through everyone. I also wish I’d of know about the dreaded freight trains blocking the way home!

➤ Tell me about a typical ride you take in Portland.

Typically we ride four miles a day (to the lower base of the tram and then home) Monday-Friday. We cross the Tilikum, which is always a lot of fun. With the time change Casey has especially loved seeing all the lights and colors. It’s a pretty flat ride, which is a huge plus with everything that is getting hauled. We take the tram up for the rest of our daily commute. Weather pending on weekends, we might ride along the water front for some nice views!

➤ Tell me about an especially memorable ride in Portland.

One day coming home from work we got caught in some pretty heavy, cold rain. We were mildly prepared, but were missing true rain gear at the time. I was nervous about how Casey would react with the rain coming down and no real cover. He ended up laughing the entire way back, which made me enjoy the ride even more! Another interesting time was a morning with fog; that coupled with darkness made going over Tilikum feel like you’re floating.

Kaylen and Casey make it look fun!

➤ If there was one piece of bike infrastructure (street, intersection, bike rack, etc) you use regularly that you could change to improve your life, what would it be?

It would be awesome if there was some sort of pedestrian overpass near division and 11/12th streets for when the trains come during the morning and evening rush. That way traffic could still be moving! It would also save in people trying to go over the tracks when it stops.

➤ Have you biked in other cities and how did it compare?

I had never biked! Interestingly, before coming here and biking at least five to seven days a week, I hadn’t ridden a bike since I was a kid/pre-teen! That kind of bike riding was completely different. I never would have guessed I’d be a biker for my commute.

➤ What about rain/snow/wind/extreme heat? Do you bike in less-than-ideal conditions?

We definitely have! If it looks especially treacherous, we’ll use transit to get to work. As Casey is pretty exposed, I try to limit biking when the temperatures are less than 40 in the morning. If it looks like downpour rain, we’ll also find alternate ways. We’ve bikes in some of the windy days, but haven’t encountered snow (yet)!

➤ What’s your best piece of advice to pass along to BikePortland readers?

If you’ve ever thought about taking your kid out with you — do it! I was really nervous at first, and rightfully so I think. It’s been awesome seeing how much fun he has and it makes me think once he’s old enough to ride on his own it will become a hobby of his. There are so many things to do and see by bike and not to mention great exercise.

➤ Do you have a social media presence you’d like to share?

Sure! I’m on Instagram, kayraeb017.

Thank you for sharing your story Kaylen!

Remember, we’re always looking for people to profile. Get in touch if it sounds like fun to you. I’d especially like to feature families of color so please get in touch or ask friends of color who bike with their kids if they’re interested in sharing their stories. And as always, feel free ask questions in the comments below or email me your story ideas and insights at madidotcom [at] gmail [dot] com.

— Madi Carlson, @familyride on Instagram and Twitter

Browse past Family Biking posts here.

Never miss a story. Sign-up for the daily BP Headlines email.

BikePortland needs your support.