Want to help more families ride bikes?
We’ve just scheduled the 2019 Kidical Mass PDX planning meeting (details below) and everyone’s invited.
Kidical Mass PDX has a special event coming up this weekend: Kidical MASSIVE. I’ve written about Kidical Mass before and how much it means to me. Even as a seasoned family biker, there’s nothing I love more than riding with a big, slow, rolling, bell-dinging parade of kids on bikes.
What’s special about this particular Kidical Mass is that all 50 or so of the the Kidical Masses around the world host will an event on the same day.
Thank you for your responses to my question last week: What prevents you from biking with your young children?
It was eye-opening to read all the comments, Facebook posts, Twitter replies, and emails. I can’t wait to share them in a future column and dive into the barriers people face when they think of biking with kids.
I’m a little embarrassed to admit this, but I had assumed the responses would all be about the expense gear or uncertainty as to what to buy. I hadn’t anticipated anyone would write about bike infrastructure. Not that Portland’s infrastructure is incredibly better than what my boys and I left in Seattle (though it is better!) and there aren’t a lot of point-to-point routes that are suitable all ages abilities (aka “8 to 80”). It’s just that I see so many more families biking here in Portland than I have in any other city (except Dutch cities I’ve visited) that I didn’t realize there were so many of you who aren’t riding.
First of all: next year there will be 1,000 eggs for the egg hunt at the end!
Kidical Mass is one of my favorite things ever: riding bikes with my kids, hanging out with a bunch of fun families, and demonstrating the joy of biking for transportation. The first ride of the year is coming April 1st (no foolin’), and I’d love to see you out there.
My first experience with Kidical Mass was nine years ago when I was new to Seattle and had up until that point only biked around my immediate neighborhood with just my toddler for company. I attended the inaugural Seattle Kidical Mass ride on May 15, 2009 — on my city bike with my two-year old in a front seat and my seven-month-pregnant belly wedged behind it — and was amazed to see so many other families biking with kids. I was intrigued by the many different types of family bikes and overjoyed at riding in a big pack. Each Kidical Mass ride was the highlight of my month and showed me new parts of town I wanted to revisit. I was motivated to figure out a bike route to the start of each ride and then experiencing these new areas with the big, safe group made me eager to return.
I tagged along with the Kidical Mass crowd on Sunday. There was a hailstorm and a rainstorm in the 30 minutes before the ride started, but the crowd massed at Overlook Park. We then rode as a group to Arbor Lodge Park. That’s a few miles, which is a lot for small tots who are happily pedaling along.
Being my first Kidical Mass, I got to see neighborhood parkways from a new point of view. Not only did I notice impatient car drivers more than otherwise, but a few of the road crossings (like crossing Greeley at Williams) seemed insurmountable.
Anyhow, it was a fun event, I’m especially proud of the above shot- capturing the uninhibited glee of the kids.
Kidical Mass PDX, the tradition of family bike rides each month exploring neighborhoods around Portland, will hold its annual planning meeting one week from Saturday and is inviting anyone who might have ideas to join in.
“We’ve had a pretty stable leadership the last few years, and that’s been great,” said Katie Proctor, who took the handlebars of Kidical Mass in 2010. “But we also are feeling a little set in our ways, so we’re looking for new blood to come in and shake things up.”
[*Please note: This article originally said Adams would attend the ride. Unfortunately there was a mix-up with organizers and his staff and we have now learned he is not 100% confirmed. He has been invited, he’s “interested in attending,” but he has not yet committed to it. — JM]
Portland’s beloved Kidical Mass is back for 2012 and, along with already having events scheduled through the end of the year, they’re expecting the Mayor to join in on the fun this month.
After news spread earlier this month about Oregon House Representative Mitch Greenlick’s law proposal that would ban kids six years and under from riding on (or being pulled behind) bikes with their parents, Kidical Mass organizers felt their ride would be a fitting way to demonstrate their opposition to the bill.
On January 15th, despite rain-soaked skies, about 50 people showed up to ride through the streets of Sellwood. Ride organizer Katie Proctor invited Rep. Greenlick to join them but he had a prior commitment (House Rep. Jules Bailey did attend). This month, Proctor once again invited Greenlick, but he has declined the invitation.
Moms, dads, and kid-lovers throughout the state have gotten fired up over the family biking legislation that’s made headlines this week. Many of them plan to join the monthly Kidical Mass ride which will be held this Saturday in Sellwood. Joining them will be Oregon House Representative Jules Bailey.
This just in from Kidical Mass Headquarters…. Full details on this month’s ride (which happens on Sat, 11/20):
Family Fun Bike Ride Plans Tour de Pie
Portland, OR — November 9, 2010 — The Thanksgiving holiday is all about gathering with friends and family, giving thanks for our blessings, and eating pie. Lots of pie. Portland’s monthly family fun bike ride will celebrate these traditions with a “Tour de Pie” in close-in SE.
The Kidical Mass Tour de Pie will be a rolling exploration of southeast Portland’s pie establishments. Stops are not yet finalized, but will likely include pizza pie, fried pie, and of course the traditional baked-in-a-flaky-crust pumpkin pie.
