(Photo © J. Maus)
Once again, it’s that time of year when bike advocates from all over the country converge on our nation’s capitol for the National Bike Summit.
I’ll be attending the event for the third year in a row. I leave on a red-eye tonight from Portland and I’ll hit the streets of D.C. on my Bike Friday tikit (thanks Paul!) in the wee hours of tomorrow morning.
from previous years:
The Summit is always an important event, but this year I expect even greater things from the collective energy of the hundreds of advocates and bureaucrats who attend. In addition to pounding the pavement on Capitol Hill to educate members of Congress about the role bicycles can play in the health and well-being of our country, we’ll also learn from ourselves through a full schedule of workshops and panel discussions on a variety of topics.
The past two years, I’ve worked hard to bring you the insider view of this event through many articles and hundreds of photos. My plan this year is more of the same, but with even more experienced eye and mind for the people and the issues.
I am taking this trip on your behalf — to keep you in the loop on the big issues, to share the experience with you, and to share the Portland story with anyone who will listen. For the past two years I have been extremely proud to have my trip funded by readers, and I hope a few of you will contribute again this year.
If you appreciate BikePortland.org and extensive coverage of events like this, I would be very grateful for your help in offsetting trip expenses.
Special thanks to those folks who have already chipped in, and also to Planet Bike, who has stepped up to be the official sponsor of all my coverage (you’ll notice their banner on every story I publish about the Summit).
(*Note: I plan to continue my regular news coverage as much as I can during the trip, but I won’t be back in my Portland office until Monday, 3/10)