On October 20, Dave Janis and Katie Ferguson worked with the Liberty Ridge Elementary School in Bonney Lake to help run a bike rodeo for their Walk-Bike to School Day. Engaged parents volunteered, and additional help came from the Tacoma Wheelmen, the Bonney Lake Bicycle Shop, East Pierce Fire & Rescue. Cascade Bicycle Club generously let us borrow one of their excellent bike rodeo kits.
The kids started with a helmet check and a bike check, to make sure they were safe on the course.
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| East Pierce Fire & Rescue’s Dina Sutherland checks helmets. |
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| Bonney Lake Bicycle Shop’s Jim Stevenson checks a bike. |
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| Parent Paul helps a participant adjust his seat. |
Once checked, the kids went to Station 1, where they practiced starting and stopping. Just out of the picture, a parent helper held a stop sign.
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| Tacoma Wheelmen president Tom Reardon directs rodeo participants. |
Then on to Station 2, where participants practiced riding in a circle and looking over their shoulders — what we grownups call “scanning.”
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| Volunteer Louie Boitano helps run Station 2. |
At Station 3, the bicyclists learned how to dodge objects in the road with the guidance of volunteer Peggy Fjetland.
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| Peggy and participant at Station 3. |
Once they mastered dodging, the students learned how to steer by leaning. They practiced with the bike slalom.
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| Volunteer Pam Knight directs a participant at the slalom. |
Finally, the participants practiced leaving a driveway. Many car-bike collisions can be prevented by teaching kids to stop and look before leaving a driveway.
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| Dave Janis monitors a student exiting the practice driveway. |
In the final tally, over a dozen adult volunteers made it possible for 110 future bicyclists to dip their toes into the world of safe bicycling — and had fun doing it. Reaching young bicyclists with bike education is a cornerstone of improving bike-motorist interactions. Thank you to everybody who made the event possible.
