I scoot to school with my daughter – and it’s fun!

The school run is a really annoying length for us. For a start, one kid goes in one direction, the other in the other. One is over quite a scary roundabout that’s not great for non-car action, the other is walkable, but the morning rush often means it’s all a bit of a scramble.

I’d started seeing parents – particularly dads – walking with a scooter to school and it made me think that maybe I could do the same. Easy to grab out of the garage on a cold winter morning, quicker to complete the journey. And why not actually scoot? It would be quicker and give me and my daughter a fun activity to share.

So I took the plunge and got myself a scooter (I went for the Micro Scooter Rocket) and though a flurry of snow put the kibosh on the initial plan, my daughter and I started scooting to school soon afterwards.

And it’s fantastic. We only have one car, so it means we don’t have to worry about who gets what. It’s greener of course and because the model I have is foldable, it’s easy when I want to go and sit in a café to work afterwards.

I’ll tell you the most important thing for me though – thick wheels. I’ve tried to use my nine-year-old’s scooter and it was, frankly, terrifying. But my adult version has heavy-duty wheels that mean it feels less wobbly and more controllable.

My daughter loves the experience too – it means something she enjoys doing anyway can be shared with her dad.

And for me, it feels like more of a workout. This is completely unscientific obviously, but I build up more of a puff and feel the burn in my leg during the journey. It also helps me mentally – I have to concentrate, which means by the time I open my laptop, my brain has been shaken out of its stupor.

I’ll admit I was a bit anxious about doing it initially. And we’re lucky that we have a decent cycle/footpath that’s actually smooth and fairly bumpless almost the whole way.

But I’m glad I’m doing it. And I’m looking forward to being able to shed the gloves and do it with less layers once spring arrives.

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