Obama seeks respite in bike rides

BAR HARBOR, Maine, July 16 AFP - US President Barack Obama escaped the heat political and meteorological of Washington on Friday for a family weekend in Acadia National Park in the northeastern state of Maine.

Obama, his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha left the White House for a weekend in the park, known for its forest trails and coastal vistas.After a brutal few weeks in Washington’s political hothouse, Obama got a brace of good news late this week with the passage of his sweeping Wall Street reform law and BP’s success in capping the Gulf of Mexico oil leak.

But with mid-term congressional elections looming in November in which Democrats fear heavy losses Obama will grab any chance he can get for recreation.

After flying up to Maine in Gulf Stream jets with a small entourage, including the First Dog, Bo, the president and his family immediately set off on a bike ride up Cadillac Mountain.

Later, the presidential motorcade swept past tourists, a golf course and kids around a pool, into downtown Bar Harbor for a trip to the Mount Desert Island Ice Cream store.

Inside, after ordering an ice cream, Obama bumped into a crowd of German exchange students, and bade them a cheerful “Auf Wiedersehen” before leaving the shop.