The Spring Bike Safety Education Season has begun and this is a great time to help educate the future cyclists of Eugene.

It’s hard to believe we’ve been doing Kidical Mass rides for five years now. Then again, I can’t believe my daughter is turning four already either. Someone certainly shifted us into the big chainring and we are really flying now! Since we started doing the ride we’ve had hundreds of people come ride with us. We’ve had rides with as few as two families and some with dozens of families (and over a hundred people). We’ve only cancelled one ride because of rain/poor turn-out. We’ve had exciting adventures and mellow rambles. We’ve connected families and built community. We’ve grown advocates and inspired change. Most importantly we’ve gotten out there as families on bikes and had fun…and that’s just here in Eugene. The movement of family friendly rides has grown and now over a dozen communities hold regular Kidical Mass rides and “Family Biking” is a standard topic of discussion in the national bike movement.

We had a great ride in Eugene this past Saturday to celebrate our 5th year anniversary. The Birthday themed ride was attended by over 70 people, including at least 4 new families. After meeting at Monroe Park we rode downtown, over to the DeFazio bridge (and by the Earth Day celebration at EWEB Plaza), then back through downtown and out the Fern Ridge Path to the MacRhodes home in the Far West Neighborhood.  The birthday celebration continued with traditional flare; balloons, pizza, ice cream, cupcakes, crazy kids, visiting parents, and even gifts (in the form of a raffle). Thanks to Arriving by Bike for some of the prizes!

We also had Cliff Etzel there taking some special “Family Bike Portraits“.  Here’s a slideshow with a few of the families who joined us, ranging from those there from the beginning to brand new Kidical Mass families. Here’s to five more years of fun family bike rides!

Kidical Mass 5th Birthday Party – Images by Cliff Etzel

Dress up in your “Saturday Best” and go for a ride! Who says biking has to be about spandex and funny shoes?! Dress up and have some fun! Put on your fancy clothes and go for a bike ride, cause, why not?!

Join us this Saturday (March 16th) 11am at Monroe Park.

We’ll be ending up at Noisette Bakery for a fancy treat at the end.

photo via BikePortland

Here’s more information about upcoming family friendly rides too. If you’d like to get our monthly reminder email that gives all the details of the rides you can subscribe here.

read more…

RSVP for the Walk+Bike Annual Meeting in Salem; April 25th.

We’re looking for all the problem solvers, people who want to make the world around them better, and members of the Walk+Bike Network to join us at the Walk+Bike Annual Meeting. We hope you’ll come and discuss:

• How to make walking and biking easier, safer, and more accessible for youth and families.
• A report of last year’s goals
• Set statewide goals for the coming year
• Enable and excite our Network to make it all happen

When: April 25th, 9:30am to 12pm
Where:  The Salem Conference Center
Please RSVP if you plan to attend!

This year the Annual Walk+Bike Meeting is scheduled in conjunction with the Active Transportation Summit, which runs April 24th and 25th in Salem and will include some great SRTS sessions and representations as well as overall learning, networking, and lobbying opportunities.

Registration is open for the Walk+Bike Trainings in Eugene; June 21-23

My community is talking about educating youth and adults about bike and pedestrian safety.
How can we teach it to students in schools?
What would an adult or family workshop look like?

The Walk+Bike Committee has pulled together a couple of trainings that will help make you or a member of your community the resident expert on bicycle and pedestrian safety! The 3 training options are listed below. We are working on providing some travel scholarships, but don’t have anything confirmed yet. We’ll keep you posted. The location of the trainings is Eugene, OR.

-Bike Safety for Kids Curriculum Training, $15 (Register)
Training commitment: Saturday, June 22, and Sunday June 23, 8am-4pm, 16 hours

-Neighborhood Navigators Curriculum Training, $15 (Register)
Training commitment: Saturday, June 22, 9am-12 noon and 12:30-3:30pm, 6 hours

-League of American Bicyclists: League Certified Instructor Training, $300 (Register)
Training commitment: Friday, June 21, 5:30-9pm; Saturday, June 22, 8am-4pm; Sunday, June 23, 8am-4pm

The official lodging for the trainings will be the  Valley River Inn where we have confirmed a special rate of $99 a night and we will organize some fun events based from there since it is along the Ruth Bascom Riverbank Path Trail system, near McMenamin’s North Bank, and a short bike ride from pretty much everything (this is Eugene after all).  Be sure and let them know that you are calling to reserve a room with the “Oregon Safe Routes to School” group.

You can read more about these trainings HERE. We will also provide some networking and hanging out time surrounding the trainings so all training participants can make plans for taking over the world!

This just in from a student involved with the UO active transportation group “LiveMove”:

LiveMove, the transportation and livability student group at the University of Oregon, is starting a walking school bus for Adams Elementary in which parents, their children, and LiveMove members will meet at Washington Park and walk to school together. This is a great way to teach children about safety, meet neighbors, save money on gas, and create a more sustainable environment! Please email me if you would like additional information on dates and times.

Hannah Crum
LiveMove Community Outreach Coordinator
hcrum@uoregon.edu

We’re excited to see this walking school bus form as part of a student led project working with the school and families to encourage more kids to be active in their transportation choices!

Riding a bike to and from school can give students a head start on the 60 minutes a day of exercise that their body needs. Sometimes the weather is wet but kids can usually ride their bikes to school year-round. Encourage your children to give it a try, but first make sure they are aware of these bike safety tips. Get your bikes ready and join the growing number of Bethel kids who are choosing two wheels for their daily school commute.

BICYCLE SAFETY TIPS
It is a great idea to ride your bike to school, but please ride safely:
1. Obey traffic signs and signals—Bicycles must follow the rules of the road just like cars
2. Wear a helmet and never ride with headphones (helmets are mandatory for everyone under 16 years of age)
3. Always ride in the same direction as traffic – Motorists aren’t looking for bikes riding against the flow of traffic
4. It is legal to ride on the sidewalk, but pedestrians have the right of way
5. Always pass on the left
6. Scan the road behind you – learn to look back over your shoulder or use a rear view mirror
7. Keep both hands ready to brake
8. Use hand signals – even if you just point in the direction you are going – let motorists know your intent
9. Make eye contact with drivers
10. Choose the best way to turn left—There are two choices: (1) Like a car: signal to move into left turn lane and then turn left; (2) Like a pedestrian: ride straight to the far side crosswalk then walk your bike across.
11. Watch for road hazards
12. Use lights at night (or all the time to be even more visible)
13. NO TEXTING OR TALKING ON THE PHONE WHILE RIDING
14. Lock your bike at school

The most efficient machine on earth in terms of weight transported over distance for energy expended is a human on a bicycle!