The Underpass

 
 
 

Vocabulary

stuck	solid (2)	ride/rode/ridden
wide	recede	ride around
notice	take up	back up (3)
worry	tire (2)	tow truck
tow	jam (2)	underpass
load	dislodge	present (3)
solve	peddle	handle (2)
air	tire (2)	try/tried/tried
bridge	back out	spend/spent/spent (2)
push	further	landscape
rear	flat (2)	free time
fix	venture	ride over

 
 
 
 
 

 

A Birthday

It was what he had wanted for his 12th birthday: a new bicycle.

Joey had always liked riding bicycles. And this year his parents gave him a bigger one.

The Ride

One Saturday, Joey went riding around his neighborhood. He then ventured further than he had before. The landscape was all new to him.

It was getting late, and so Joey turned back.

Then suddenly, his bike slowed. He pedaled harder, but it was no use.

Why?

Joey looked down; his rear tire was flat.

And so he got off his bike and pushed it all the way home — some three kilometers.

TV and Internet

For the next few days, Joey just stayed home, watched TV and surfed the internet.

Then his father fixed the tire, and Joey was off riding his bike again.

The Underpass

After coming home from school one afternoon, Joey decided to ride his bike over to his friend’s house.

As Joey approached the underpass of a wide bridge, he noticed that many cars were backed up. Pedaling closer, he could see police cars, police officers, a firetruck and firemen. They had cordoned off the road with yellow barricade tape.

“Oh-oh, it looks like an accident,” thought Joey.

He rode up to the underpass.

Several tow trucks were trying to pull a truck out from under the bridge.

Joey came up to one of the police officers and asked him what was going on.

“Well, that truck is stuck under the bridge,” said the officer.
“Why is it stuck there?” asked Joey.
“The driver tried to drive under the bridge, but he didn’t realize that his truck trailer was a little too high.”
“What are they doing?” asked Joey.
“They’re trying to pull the truck out,” said the officer.

But the mechanics, police and firemen weren’t able to dislodge it; the truck was solidly jammed under the bridge.

More police cars and another tow truck arrived.
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 
 

“I know how to solve this problem!” said Joey to the policeman.
“Don’t worry about it, son. We’ll take care of it. We can handle this. Why don’t you just go around the truck and continue your ride?” said the policeman.
“No, seriously,” said Joey. “I know the solution. Please listen: just let the air out of the tires!”

The policeman said nothing. He just continued watching the firemen, policemen and mechanics trying to figure out how to get the truck out from under the bridge.

Then slowly, he looked at Joey on his bicycle.

The policeman looked back at the trucks and all the grown men. Without saying a word, he walked over and spoke to them. They then all turned and looked at Joey.

The men then went to the truck tires, and let the air out of them all. The top of the truckload receded from the top of the underpass. And the truck driver was able to back out.
 

*     *     *     *     *     *     *

 

  Questions

1. The main character of this story is a police officer. True or false?

2. In the story, did Joey receive a new smartphone for Christmas?

3. What happened one day? Did he stop riding his bicycle as a result?

4. One day Joey saw an accident or problem on the road. Is this right or wrong? Describe the accident.

5. Were there any men there? Who were they? What were they doing?

6. Joey just rode his bike past the truck and men, and continued his journey. Is this correct or incorrect?

7. “They all turned and looked at Joey.” What does this mean? What happened in the end? Did Joey’s idea come to him completely out of the blue?
 
 
A. “The scientist focused so much on the trees, that he could not see the forest.” What does this mean?

B. I know some people who have good intuition and creativity. They come up with smart answers and solutions. Yes or no?

C. Do you know any managers, directors, university educated people or “experts” who think they know everything and only their ideas or solutions are correct?

D. Only adults, the authorities, officials and experts know everything. Children and neophytes do not know anything. Do you agree or disagree or it depends?

E. What should people do?

F. What might happen in the future?