Kids Bike Tacoma: Tacoma's First Kidical Mass

Over 55 riders joined the inaugural Kidical Mass Tacoma ride. Families, kids, friends, co-workers, neighbors, infants, and toddlers all took to the streets together as we rolled through North Tacoma to Jefferson Park.

We decorated bikes, installed some bike bells, blew some bubbles and generally reveled in a little bicycle chaos before departing the Proctor Farmers Market. Everyone was so excited that we shrugged off concerns about exactly how this was going to work. I'm pretty sure we were all first-time Kidical Mass riders.

Kris and Terry, our volunteer crossing guards, were indispensable on this first ride. At each of the main arterial crossings, we regrouped, they blocked traffic, then the whole Mass rolled across the street. Everyone would ring-ring bells as they crossed the streets, many of the kids thanking Kris and Terry every time. One young rider was awed and impressed to find out that our crossing guards are year-round bike commuters. 

Taking the lane (and then some...)

The Jefferson Park sprayground was turned on for the first time this year, which gave us a chance to cool off on an exceptionally warm May day. (I think it was near 80°F when we finished the ride!)

Parents had a chance to talk bikes at the park, too. Finding safe, comfortable ways to haul your precious cargo is important. There was a little bit of everything: trailers, trail-a-bikes, (trail-a-bikes with trailers!), box bikes, longtail cargo bikes, recumbent tandems, and folding bikes that fit kids and adults.

@JeffsIceCream

Metrofiets and another EdgeRunner!

Thankfully we had Jeff of Jeff's Ice Cream along for the ride. The prospect of a cold treat at the finish was the only way we convinced some of the kids to hop back in the saddle and ride back to Proctor.  Jeff donated the ice cream for the event and we're looking into ways to sponsor him and other treats on future rides. (Contact Matt if you are interested in sponsoring a ride.)

Thanks also to the City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Wheelmen's Bicycle Club for sponsoring and promoting this event for Bike Month. The ride prompted some helpful on-road discussion with kids about how to ride in traffic, which is exactly what I was hoping for. We'll continue to make the routes accessible for most young riders, with a little more riding on bike lanes or low-traffic lane-divided streets (I'm thinking S. 15th St. as an example.) We were moving at 4-5mph, a good pace for our 16" and 20" wheeled riders, but challenging for our lone training-wheeled rider. Our youngest rider, on a push bike, used every ounce of determination to scoot the 2.5 miles to the finish. (Thank you, ice cream incentive!)

Our next ride will be June 8 starting at People's Park in Hilltop. More details will be posted here soon. Please leave a comment if you have questions or feedback about the rides. I don't know if we're doing this right, but I think it's working.

Earth Keg Earth Day Ride

Last Sunday, just before Earth Day 2013, I had a chance to help my friends at 7 Seas Brewing with something called Earth Keg. The Latona Pub in Seattle, in partnership with Feet First (a non-profit promoting walkability), only pours draft beer during the week of Earth Day which has arrived at the pub by people power. Most of the local Seattle breweries that participate use hand-trucks to walk full-sized 1/2 barrel kegs to the pub. In their third year, 7 Seas biked kegs from their brewery in Gig Harbor to the Green Lake neighborhood in Seattle, a staggering 55 mile trip, the farthest journey of any beer in the line-up at Latona.

I met Mike and the 7 Seas crew at the Tacoma-Narrows bridge, where I took possession of my 1/6 bbl keg of British Pale from Mike's bike trailer. That's 5.16 gallons of craft beer; about a 60 pound vessel. Our EdgeRunner cargobike is almost perfectly equipped for this errand. 

The other two 1/6 bbl kegs were trailered, which made it fairly easy for the riders to simply switch bikes and take turns pulling.

Scott Pierson Trail

Fife!

It's surprising how many trails are available for this trip. From the Cushman Trail in Gig Harbor, to the Scott Pierson Trail in Tacoma, to the Milton Trail, the Interurban Trail (even the little piece of it up in Edgewood), and finally the Green River Trail, we didn't take the lane much until we reached south Seattle. 

Milton Trail

Still smiling.

Interurban Trail

Green River keep on rollin'.

Stone Way. Nearly there and still smiling!

Finally: Latona Pub.

I also brought along some items from The Can Hattery, my tiny nano-business, which were auctioned off to raise a few buck for Feet First. After a few beers and some great food, we all carpooled back home. 

Going once! Going twice!

Yep, we did not ride home, and I don't think that negates our efforts either. Earth Day is about raising awareness of behaviors and lifestyles that can benefit our planet the other 364 days of the year. I had some great conversations outside the Latona with neighbors and customers who wanted to know more about the cargobike and what we were doing. Folks are wide-eyed about the keg until you tell them that the bike normally carries two children to school and errands most days of the week. Yes, you can walk there. Yes, you can bike there. Yes, you can leave your car parked. And you may even like it.

PS. For local readers who want to know more about bikes-and-beers, be sure to check out the TRH Pint Pedaler event in Tacoma on May 18. 

Kidical Mass Tacoma #1: Jefferson Park Loop

Here are the details for our first Kidical Mass Tacoma ride.

The route is simple, flat, and relatively safe. It's a 2.7 mile loop with a stop at Jefferson Park in the middle. We will have volunteers to help stop traffic when we cross N 21st and N 26th Streets. 

View Kidical Mass Tacoma #1: Jefferson Park Loop from Proctor Farmers Market in a larger map

We'll have some cool swag from the City of Tacoma for the kids before hand and some snacks afterward. The Proctor Farmers Market is that morning, so feel free to come a bit earlier for the market and stay for the ride.

Many thanks to the Tacoma Wheelmen's Bicycle Club for sponsoring this event!