Yakima Beer and Cider Loop

By Guest Blogger | Published June 19, 2015

Taproom and Bike

Frank Hieber is a Yakima resident whose interests include road and mountain biking, ice hockey, music, beer and baseball. He shares a favorite local ride with us today. Find him on Twitter: @ztirffritz

The Yakima Beer and Cider Loop showcases local scenery and allows riders to experience the local craft breweries and cideries.  This ride goes through several parks, and provides stops at up to 6 different watering holes around town.  The length of the ride is approximately 18-20 miles depending on the stops that participants choose. 

Depending on your pace, it could take more than 5 hours to complete.  It is an easy ride with less than 300ft of total elevation gain, but for people from cooler climates it is important to remember to hydrate properly during this ride.  Yakima is hot and it is a desert.  While beer and cider can have a restorative function, make sure that you’re well supplied with water too.  Depending on the time of year, the temperature can range from 50° F to 100°+ F.

The route is available online via MapMyRide.

Yakima Beer and Cider Loop map

The ride can be started anywhere along the route, but the tasting room at the Yakima Craft Brewery makes a convenient starting point for the ride.  Participants can park in the lot and either start with a beer if the tasting room is open, or begin the ride toward Bale Breaker Brewing in Moxee, WA.

The ride begins with a short road ride along River Road and a right turn west onto Fruitvale Boulevard.  The northwest entrance to the Yakima Greenway Trail is hidden behind some industrial buildings.  The parking lot leads to a view of Myron Lake.

Lake

During the hot summer days in Yakima, the locals fish, paddle boat, canoe, and swim in this lake.  There are many unique sights to see while riding this trail.  Lots of birds — water fowl, hawks, eagles, and numerous other species — live here, making this a great route for birdwatching.  Early in the season eaglets can be seen peeking over the edge of a bald eagle nest located along the trail.

You’ll enjoy many scenic vistas of the Yakima River as you ride.  The trail is relatively isolated, but has some facilities for water and restroom breaks along the way.  Picnic benches also dot the trail in several locations.  A few restaurants have access from the trail, including Burger King and El Mirador 2.  The trail passes through Sarg Hubbard Park, the Yakima Arboretum, and Sherman Park and goes past the Yakima Humane Society too (feel like walking a dog in the park? They’ll let you borrow one!). A Greenway spur trail continues east next to SR 24.  Eventually all good things must come to an end, and this is where you must leave the Greenway.

Yakima River

Bale BreakerThe ride continues east on SR 24 for about ½ mile. At the Birchfield Rd intersection, turn north.  Bale Breaker Brewing will be on your right.  It looks like a lush oasis tucked in the parched fields of hops that surround it.  Stop in for a pint or two and refill your water containers.  I recommend the TopCutter IPA but the Field 41 Pale Ale is also very popular and refreshing.  Bale Breaker Brewing has a grassy outdoor area where kids can play and offers both indoor and outdoor seating.  They don’t serve food directly, but guests can bring their own or purchase from local vendors selling food outside the brewery.

OK, you’ve rested enough.  Let’s keep going.

Turn right out of the brewery and continue north on Birchfield Road.  Follow this road about 1 mile. Birchfield Road becomes Gun Club Road and you’ll follow that for about 1/3 mile.  Turn right and head north on 41st St and continue until the intersection with Terrace Heights Drive in about 1 mile. This is about the halfway point of the ride. Turn west on Terrace Heights Drive and continue about 3 miles. Now you have some choices/options in where to go:

  • Yakima Craft Brewing Tap Room, 120 East Yakima Ave. Food, beer, wine , restrooms and indoor seating. Not a full restaurant, but more than just chips and salsa.  I recommend the Vern IPA and the Ploughman’s Platter. They carry more than just their own beers too, so you never know what you’ll find there.
  • The Beer Shoppe, 320 W Yakima Ave. Limited food, a good selection of craft beers on tap in the back, indoor seating and restrooms available. The largest selection of canned/bottled beer in Yakima.
  • Hop Nation Brewing, 31 N. 1st Ave. There’s no food from the brewery, but sometimes local vendors are outside offering food. The tasting room is large and the bar is friendly.

OK, time for some cider. Continue on your way by travelling north on 1st Avenue about 1 mile. Turn west on I Street (that’s ‘I’ as in H, I, J…) for about .25 miles, then north on 6th Avenue for about 200 feet and west again on J Street for about 500 feet to your next stop.

Tieton Cider Works is definitely a diamond in the rough.  It looks like a prison outpost with 10-foot chainlink fence and razor wire all around, but I suspect that’s a remnant from the building’s earlier life.

Tieton Cider WorksInside the ‘compound’ is a welcoming and stylish tasting room. Tieton Cider Works is one of the fastest growing hard cider operations in the country. They make ciders that range from sweet to extra dry and utilize regional sources to provide apples, pears, cherries and hops to flavor their ciders.

This is a real treat if you’ve never sampled ciders. The samples are arrayed like a wine flight listing residual sugars and descriptions that include floral notes and fruity bodies. The beverages themselves range from hearty to delicate. I prefer their Dry Hopped cider. They don’t offer food, but again, local vendors will often set up in the parking lot to fill the void.

Along the side of the parking lot you’ll notice a long, white sandy bocce court. It’s a fun game that I like to compare to shuffleboard crossed with bowling. Take a short break and try your hand at bocce.  Someone there will show you how if you don’t already know.

One more stop on your bike tour of Yakima beer and cider….

Exit the cidery and head south on 8th Avenue for about 150 feet.  Turn right and head west on Hathaway Street for about ½ mile. Turn right and head north on 16th Avenue for about 1/3 of a mile. Turn left on River Rd and head west for about 1 mile and Yakima Craft Brewing will be on your left.

If they weren’t open earlier, they should be now. The tasting room offers a small selection of chips, pretzels, and some other pub fare. Indoor and outdoor seating is available. Restrooms are available, but it is an awkward trek through the brewery to get there; you might need someone to show you how to get there. This will sound strange when you’re at a brewery, but try some of their root beer — it’s really good. The Good Monk and Bad Monk are my favorite beers, but don’t plan on driving for awhile afterward. Don’t be shy with the people in the tasting room. The staff and regulars alike are REALLY friendly. Introduce yourself and make some new friends.

This concludes our Yakima Beer and Cider Loop tour.  There are of course other breweries outside the city and wineries galore in the lower valley, which also makes for a fantastic bike ride.  The Yakima area has fantastic restaurants near several stops as well if you’re looking for classier dining options.

Write Your Ride!

We invite you to share a favorite bike ride with others using our Write Your Ride form. Your description and local knowledge may inspire others to try your ride.

Posted in Adventure, Guest Blogger, News, Rides, Tourism, Travel, Yakima | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Yakima Beer and Cider Loop

What Makes a Bicycle Friendly Community in Washington State?

By Blake Trask | Published June 18, 2015

Last week brought news that 4 new Bicycle Friendly Communities were designated in Washington state. Now with 18 cities (2 expired), Washington state is tied for having the third most bicycle friendly communities in the nation. What makes a Bicycle Friendly Community and how do we get more?

Last week The League of American Bicyclists (LAB) announced its 2015 round of new and renewing Bicycle Friendly Communities.  Ellensburg joined the ranks at the Silver level, while Bellevue, Port Angeles/Clallam County and Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe entered as Bronze level communities. Tacoma, already a Bicycle Friendly Community, retained its Bronze status.

So what does this mean for growing bicycling statewide and how do we get more?

Washington State’s Current List of Bicycle Friendly Communities

Communities have multiple opportunities each year to apply and a Bicycle Friendly Community ranking lasts four years. Consequently, Washington state has 14 other previously-designated communities, but two are expired and need to renew. Here’s the active list of 16:

Bicycle Friendly Community

Gold

  • Seattle

 

Silver

  • Bellingham
  • Ellensburg (new)
  • Port Townsend
  • Redmond

Bronze

  • Anacortes
  • Bellevue (new)
  • Greater Wenatchee MPO
  • Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe (new)
  • Liberty Lake
  • Port Angeles-Callam County (new)
  • Sequim
  • Snohomish
  • Spokane
  • Tacoma
  • Vancouver

The two communities that saw their designation expire as a Bicycle Friendly Community have great cycling advocates and a higher-than-average commute mode share, so hopefully they can work to renew in the August 2015 review cycle:

  • Bainbridge Island (Bronze – last applied in 2008 and designation expired in 2012)
  • Olympia (Silver – last applied in 2008 and designation expired in 2012)

What does this mean again?

Frustration about being named a Bicycle Friendly Community is also expected as it’s a little surprising to be a Bicycle Friendly Community and not always feel like the town or city provides safe and accessible connections for all ages and abilities.

For those that are frustrated, it’s important to put this program in perspective: the Bicycle Friendly Communities Program provides a roadmap for what to do to make bicycling better in your community. Consider it not an end, but a beginning.

Indeed, a Bronze rating represents a fantastic first step toward making a community better for bicycling. But what are the benchmarks to better understand a hallmark of a community that is Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, or Diamond? The League of American Bicyclists has put together this helpful graphic to illustrate general elements of what the different levels represent as communities learn, invest, and work to becoming inclusive of bicycling.

BFC infographic

There are many reasons to receive the designations but in Washington state all but one (Redmond) of the cities receiving a silver or gold ranking enjoy somewhere between 3-6% of their residents commuting by bike.

More Communities Across Washington State Can Take the Next Step – Join Us!

Clearly, a wide spectrum of towns and cities in Washington state are already taking steps to become more bicycle friendly. Beyond looking for Bainbridge Island and Olympia to reapply, cities like Walla Walla and Pullman are prime candidates. Already they enjoy relatively high rates of bicycling – likely due in part to being home to colleges and universities – and they have great trails and beautiful riding.

And there are even more cities and towns that are seeking to attract bicycle riders to visit and ride their main streets, stay in hotels, and eat at restaurants. For those looking to attract more outdoor recreation visitors and make safer streets, applying to become a Bicycle Friendly Community is a great first step. Contact Washington Bikes today and we can help you take that next step before the August 11, 2015 deadline!

Posted in Advocacy, Bellingham, Encouragement, Funding/Policy, Infrastructure, Issues & Advocacy, Olympia, Port Angeles, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, Transportation | Comments Off on What Makes a Bicycle Friendly Community in Washington State?

The Biking Piewalla

By Guest Blogger | Published June 17, 2015

AVC with bike
A.V. Crofts is a bi-coastal educator, biker, pie baker, and writer based in Washington and Maine. She is on faculty at the University of Washington, rides a Trek 7500, and her favorite pie is her mother’s apple. 

 

 

 

I sold my car two years ago and my bike became my ride.

The shift came with all kinds of freedom: parking, traffic, and buckets of savings on car insurance, gas, and maintenance. I also get to eat like a horse and burn it off on my commute.

But for all the benefits, a few challenges presented themselves when four wheels become two. One of them involved dessert. Pie, in particular.

As a pie maker, the safe transport of a freshly baked pie on my bike has particularly vexed me. Seattle’s hills are not gentle on a pie.

The answer, I discovered, was a dabba.

Dabbas, the stainless steel stackable lunchboxes most widely used in India, have starred in recent films like The Lunchbox or the documentary The Dabbawallas, featuring the astonishing network of 4,000 delivery men (dabbawallas) who deliver more than 100,000 lunchboxes daily to offices across Bombay.

Many years ago, friends gifted me with a personalized dabba from Bombay. Until lately it was a patient presence in my kitchen, awaiting action that never came because my leftovers required a microwave’s touch.

One morning I had a flash of inspiration: what if I baked personalized pies in each of the dabba layers? What if, after they baked and cooled, they were stacked, tucked into my bike basket, and served as is at the dinner party?

Look, Ma. No pie pan.

The inaugural pies were a mixed berry trio of raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. This particular dinner party was an intimate affair, so I baked off three individual pies in the oven in their dabba layer and let them sit until they came to room temperature. I then assembled my dabba and hit the road.

A tiffin presents the perfect container for baking, transporting, and eating single pie servings. (Photo A.V. Crofts)

A dabba presents the perfect container for baking, transporting, and eating single pie servings. (Photo A.V. Crofts)

My first transport test was the five miles from my home to the University of Washington Seattle campus. I checked the pies upon arrival at work—perfect. They remained unscathed from the elevation gain from the Burke-Gilman Trail to the Upper Fremont dinner party destination, where I triumphantly handed over the dessert dabba to my hosts. We ate them under an outdoor canopy. All that was required was forks.

When dessert is finished, stack the tiffin and pedal it home! Fewer dirty dishes for your dinner party hosts. (Photo A.V. Crofts)

When dessert is finished, stack the dabba and pedal it home! Fewer dirty dishes for your dinner party hosts. (Photo A.V. Crofts)

That’s one of the keys to reveling in the biking life: it might take me longer to reach my destination, but I’m happier (and hungrier) when I get there. Especially when I arrive with pie.

What techniques do you employ when transporting food, flowers, or other delicate items by bike? Please share by posting a comment.

Posted in Food, Guest Blogger, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

King County Alert: Snoqualmie Valley Trail Closure

By Louise McGrody | Published June 17, 2015

From King County Parks:

The contractor has begun work on the site this week for the Sinnema Quaale Upper Revetment Project of the Snoaualmie River. The project is requiring a stretch of the Snoqualmie Valley Trail to be temporarily closed until approximately October 31. The closure will extend from approximately 1 1/2 miles south of NE 124th Street to two miles north of the Stillwater Natural Area.

Temporary closures of the trail began on Monday where the trail will reopen in the evenings after the construction crew completes their activities for the day. Complete closure of the trail is anticipated to go into effect later this week. No detour will be available.

For more detailed information on this project and closure, visit the Sinnema Quaale Upper Revetment Analysis and Repair Project webpage where you can subscribe to project updates. You can also read the press release here.

Posted in Alert, King County, News, Trails | Tagged | Comments Off on King County Alert: Snoqualmie Valley Trail Closure

Help a grassroots citizens group make the Bay to Baker Trail a reality

By Guest Blogger | Published June 16, 2015

A newly formed advocacy group in the North Cascade foothills is growing a vision of connecting Bellingham to Mt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. The Bay to Baker Trail will enhance outdoor recreation and transportation options for residents and visitors. They need your help. Take the survey to help them create the case for an exciting new trail from Bellingham Bay to Mt Baker.

Bay to Baker

Canyon Creek Road is one of dozens of forest service and private timber roads open to the non-motorized public. These roads are touring and gravel grinding heaven.

The Mt Baker Highway, also known as Washington State Route (SR) 542 stretches 58 miles from sea level in Bellingham, Washington to an elevation of 5,140 feet at Artist’s Point – a scenic overlook located above timberline that on clear days treats visitors to sublime views of Mt Baker and Mt Shuksan.

Since 1992 Whatcom County has had plans on the books to build a trail from Bellingham to Artist’s Point. Dubbed the Bay to Baker Trail, progress on its completion has been slow. Right-of-way has been acquired in some segments, but numerous environmental and human barriers remain.

A group of residents and business owners has banded together in an attempt to urge action on the Bay to Baker Trail. John Adam, owner of Glacier Ski Shop, believes that biking and walking infrastructure will not only make the area more attractive to visitors, but will also provide residents with a safe option to getting in a vehicle and burning fossil fuels when they need a quart of milk. Paul Engel, who owns Wild and Scenic River Tours added that, “Hundreds of reports show that when trails for biking and walking are created in a community it brings nothing but good – the population is healthier, vehicular traffic is reduced, property values are stable and local businesses see more traffic. Everyone benefits”

There’s a strong need for the trail as SR 542 is oftentimes narrow and crowded with traffic and feels unsafe for biking and walking. Due to its beauty, the highway attracts heavy traffic during the winter ski and summer hiking seasons. RVs, families coming up to recreate in SUVs, sports cars, fast-moving sport motorcycles, and road cyclists all share this road. To add to the mix, the residential communities located on the highway lack options for residents to safely walk or ride bikes to community destinations. At the local middle school if a child shows up to school with their bike they are sent home due to the hazard that riding on the road represents.

Take the Bay to Baker Trail Survey Today

More outdoor recreation opportunities are needed to support the local economies. The mild winter that the Pacific Northwest just experienced sent a shock through the small, tourist dependent communities in the shadow of Mt Baker. Businesses closed and residents watched as skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers, who bring much needed revenue to the area, disappeared. It was a call to action as residents and business owners realized that perhaps some diversification of recreational opportunities was in order.

Bay to Baker Trail

However to get to those incredible rides one has to travel on Washington State Highway 542, which in many places has seen the shoulder erode to the white line and bridges act as pinch point hazards for those biking, walking and driving.

While a small group of locals have concerns about the emerging trail effort, the vast majority are for it. One of those is Marty Grabijas, a product developer in the outdoor industry.  According to Grabijas, “What we have here is so special. The access to big wilderness and high alpine environments is incredible. We have an opportunity to engineer the Mt Baker Highway corridor for the future. With a multi-use trail we can reduce vehicle congestion, and provide residents and visitors with a safe way to get around on foot or on a bike. My motive for being involved is to create safe places to walk and ride for everyone. The Mt Baker area is visually stunning, and with a safe pathway in the highway corridor a bike is the perfect vehicle for visiting services in one of the several small towns, or connecting to Forest Service roads and exploring the area.”

This citizens group is in the due diligence stage of forming a bicycle, pedestrian and equestrian advocacy organization. Part of that process is showing a want and need for a multi-use trail by gauging interest of residents, visitors and potential visitors. By participating in their survey you will provide important information about outdoor recreational interests to secure funding in Whatcom County’s 2017-18 budget to make portions of the Bay to Baker Trail a reality.

Regardless if you have been to the Mt Baker area, your feedback is valuable.

Take the survey today.

Posted in Advocacy, Economic Impact, Funding/Policy, Infrastructure, Issues & Advocacy, News, Trails, Transportation, Travel | Tagged , | Comments Off on Help a grassroots citizens group make the Bay to Baker Trail a reality

Write Your Ride

By Louise McGrody | Published June 15, 2015

Cycling on Cottonwood Road.

We all have our favorite bike rides. Maybe it’s a local trail or a ride to an interesting destination. Maybe it’s more epic, like riding around the Olympic Peninsula, biking the entire length of the John Wayne Trail, or biking the perimeter of our state.

Whatever your ride, we invite you to share it with us. Your favorite trail ride might become someone else’s next bike ride. Another cyclist’s overnight bike tour may be your next adventure. Come on, write your ride!

Before you plunge in: Read these tips on writing about bike travel. They’re aimed at people contemplating writing a book, and that won’t fit in our form! But the advice can help you think about what information people will value and what will inspire others to follow in your bike tracks.

Write Your Ride!

Thank you for choosing to write your ride. Your route descriptions will help others learn about great places to ride a bicycle. If selected, Washington Bikes will post your ride to this blog.

Try to keep the route description between 1000-1500 words. Link to websites or other interesting webpages by including the web addresses in brackets next to the word(s) they should be linked to in the post.
Quickly, what are the things that someone needs to see or experience on the ride? What's the best coffee shop, bakery, or restaurant on the route? The viewpoint you shouldn't miss?

Maximum file size: 516MB

Select a photo to send to us. If need be, let us know in the fields above about additional photos to include in your post.
In a sentence or two, tell us a little about you. Feel free to include links to your website or blog.

Posted in Adventure, Rides | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Eastern Washington 4-Day Tour: Challenging Climbs and Long Descents

By Guest Blogger | Published June 12, 2015

Eastern-WA-tour-banner

Almie Borromeo is a ride leader for the Seattle Cycle Sirens through Cascade Bicycle Club, bike racer for Spokeswomen Racing, and lives and bikes with her husband and two kids in Seattle. 

When Terence, my husband, asked me if I wanted to do the Eastern Washington 4-Day Tour through Cascade Bicycle Club, without hesitation I said yes! He had done it last year and couldn’t stop talking about how much fun he had and how awesome the riding was. The cost of the tour was fairly reasonable which included lodging for 4 nights, breakfast/snacks/lunch and full SAG support.

We arrived in Chelan on Friday afternoon, checked in at the Lakeside Lodge, had dinner and attended a brief meeting with the tour organizers. They discussed our route for the first day, what to expect and the rules of the road. We all received day bags for essentials we would need during breaks, cue sheets and reflective triangles.

Day 1: Chelan to Omak: 83 miles with about 5000 feet of climbing! It was a beautiful morning with temps already reaching 70 degrees, no need for leg warmers or jackets! We started the ride at 8am and rode for about 20 miles until our first SAG stop where we filled up our water bottles and had a quick snack. The first 50 miles was pretty flat, some rollers and a whole lot of green. I made quite a few stops along the way to snap a few photos, probably more selfies than one should take.

Made it to the lunch stop and fueled up! It was calming to have the river as our backdrop.

Eastern-WA-tour-2

From here (we’re at about mile 49) we make our trek to the top of Loup Loup pass, which is about a 10 mile gradual climb. I’m not the fastest climber but it was beautiful all the way up. Our SAG vehicle greeted us at about mile 7 or so for a much need water refill and break from climbing. My legs felt pretty good on the climb – kept a comfortable cadence and I was slow enough to enjoy the scenery.

Eastern-WA-tour-3

The reward to any climb is the descent! This one was 15 miles of pure radness with one little incline. If you like descending, you will love this tour! We made it to Omak but made a quick stop for ice cream.

Eastern-WA-tour-4

At the end of each day, there is a debrief of the day’s ride and discussion about the next. The tour leaders would discuss the routes, SAG stops, lunch break and what’s available for dinner. A few of us walked a couple blocks to a Mexican restaurant then back to our hotel and prepared for the next day.

Day 2: Omak to Republic was 64 miles and 4200 feet of climbing with an option to make it a century ride which I did not partake in. The first 20 miles were fairly flat – kept it at a moderate pace, averaging about 15mph. Then it was a gradual climb up Wauconda Pass until about the 50 mile mark. Talk about a power climb! It felt never ending but we saw the summit and we were all smiles!

Eastern-WA-tour-5

This was followed by lunch and more riding to Republic.

Eastern-WA-tour-6

Eastern-WA-tour-7

Republic is a super small town. It was a Sunday and a majority of the town was closed for the day which left the options for dinner to either the brewery or Madonna Pub. Pub food is better than no food. Our hotel reminded me of something you would see in an old western movie. Terence had opted for the century ride which gave me some time to unwind and enjoy a nice cold beverage.

Eastern-WA-tour-9

Day 3: Republic to Coulee Dam was 68 miles with 3800 feet of climbing. The great part of this ride is the 36-mile descent at the start! It was amazing to ride down a nice quiet stretch of road with greenery on both sides. Coming down and watching the sun peek through the trees and bathe you in warmth was amazing. We passed an occasional llama, grazing horses and cows just hanging out.

Easstern-WA-tour-10

Again, the roads were quiet and I loved the uninterrupted riding! No stop signs, traffic lights, Seattle traffic…it was an awesome ride all the way to Coulee. A perfect day, and we beat the rain!

Eastern-WA-tour-11

Day 4: Coulee to Chelan featured 72 miles with 3500 feet of climbing. I unfortunately had some serious saddle issues and only made 40 miles of the ride. We had a ton of headwind in the morning, started off immediately with a 6-10% grade climb with no warm-up. I had a slow start but made 6 miles up to Crown Point for pretty rad views of the dam and of course more pictures!

Eastern-WA-tour-12

I ended up taking the SAG back to Chelan, which I was pretty bummed about but figured it wasn’t worth further injury.

Eastern-WA-tour-13

The Eastern Washington 4-Day Tour was an amazing experience! I loved every flat mile, every mile we climbed and every mile we descended. In four days I conquered 255 miles and 15,788 feet of climbing!

I look forward to signing up next year and hope to see you there!

Posted in Adventure, Guest Blogger, Rides | Tagged , | Comments Off on Eastern Washington 4-Day Tour: Challenging Climbs and Long Descents

Buckley Bike Co-op to Bring Hands-On Learning to Area Youth

By Louise McGrody | Published June 11, 2015

bikes022 croppedYoung people with an interest in bicycling who live in East Pierce County and Enumclaw will soon have a place to gather and learn about bikes when the Buckley Bike Co-op opens its doors this summer.

A program of Buckley Youth Activities and Buckley Youth Activity Center, Buckley Bike Co-op will offer youth hands-on experience with recycling, refurbishing, and maintaining bikes.

“Our mission is to provide a volunteer-run, community bike shop promoting hands-on youth service learning where bicycling, skills training and recycling propels a healthier community while providing sustainable, affordable transportation through refurbished bicycles” explained Monica Gaub of Buckley Youth Activities.

Volunteers Needed

Volunteers who enjoy working with young people are needed to teach bike mechanics, help with parts recycling, teach bike safety classes, and organize youth bike rides. The program carries general liability insurance and background checks all volunteers. Donations of shop tools, bike parts and safety equipment are also needed. Contact Jennie Nicolls at 253-797-0391 or email nicolls5@yahoo.com if you’d like to help out.

The Buckley Bike Co-op is at the Wickersham School, located at 250 W Main Street, Buckley.  Their classroom space is on the NE corner of the campus, entrance on 2nd Street where Balm Avenue intersects.

 

Posted in Education, Encouragement, Kids, Pierce County, Rural | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Five Washington Communities Earn Bicycle Friendly Status

By Louise McGrody | Published June 10, 2015

List Includes First Tribe in the Nation

BFCs by state_spring2015The League of American Bicyclists (LAB) announced its 2015 round of new and renewing Bicycle Friendly Communities and Ellensburg joined the ranks at the Silver level, while Bellevue, Port Angeles/Clallam County and Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe entered as Bronze level communities. Tacoma, already a Bicycle Friendly community, retained its Bronze status.

This increases Washington state’s number of Bicycle Friendly Communities (BFC) to eighteen—nearly double what it was just two years ago. Washington communities ranked in this round represent over 10% of the 42 new and renewing BFCs being announced by the League. Washington has also been ranked the most Bicycle Friendly State in the nation eight years straight by LAB.

BFC Highlights:

Ellensburg has the highest bicycle mode share (5 percent) of any Washington community. Its small town flavor, miles of scenic backroads, and the John Wayne Trail have sparked an interest for bicycle travel and tourism.

Bellevue is busy working on significant bicycle infrastructure improvements, including the addition of bike lanes to West Lake Sammamish Parkway and missing connections to the SR 520 corridor, and the installation of bike counters.

The popular Olympic Discovery Trail

The popular Olympic Discovery Trail

Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe is the first tribe to earn a BFC designation. Much of their bicycle work has been focused on the development of the Olympic Discovery Trail across tribal land. The tribe also hosts a summer Bike Camp, a week-long day camp aimed at giving young riders basic bike handling and safety skills and riding opportunities.

Port Angeles/Clallam County, with active bike and trail advocacy groups, is making great strides to complete their portion of the Olympic Discovery Trail and call out their region as a bicycle travel destination. Over half of all schools offer bicycle education to students, making use of the Safe Routes to School bike/walk safety education program developed by Washington Bikes.

Tacoma opened 13 miles of bikeway in 2014 and continues to implement projects identified in its Mobility Master Plan. The city has a diverse and active bike community, which includes monthly Kidical Mass rides and a community bike shop.

About the Bicycle Friendly America Program

The Bicycle Friendly Community, Bicycle Friendly State, Bicycle Friendly Business and Bicycle Friendly University programs at the League of American Bicyclists are generously supported by program partner Trek Bicycle Corp. To learn more about building a Bicycle Friendly America, visit www.bikeleague.org/BFA

Posted in Economic Impact, Encouragement, News | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

We’re Number One…Or Are We?

By Blake Trask | Published June 9, 2015

Why is Washington State the #1 Bicycle Friendly State in the United States and not #1 in the World?

BFS_Header

Last month’s news announcing Washington state as the #1 Bicycle Friendly State in the nation brought mixed reactions from observers, advocates, and agency staff. For some, it was recognition that Washington state has made important strides forward. For others – especially those that ride Washington state’s roads on a daily basis – it drew jeers as streets and roads still lack safe connections in every city or town across the state.

So what’s going on here? Aren’t we the best? Should’t we rest on our laurels?

The former Bogota Parks Director and now Director of the international organization 8 to 80 Cities, Gil Penalosa, provided some insightful comments about the myth of excellence and complacency at his May speech in Seattle. Writing for Next City, Josh Cohen offered an excellent recap on Penalosa’s talk:

“‘For a place like Seattle,’ Penalosa said,’the greatest barrier for getting people engaged is, the myth of excellence … You think you are great, but you are not.’ Seattle is good by American standards and ranked high in best cities lists as a result. Penalosa advised fighting complacency and taking Seattle from good to great. To do that, citizens need to benchmark themselves against the best in the world, not those already worse than them.”

As a reminder, Washington’s #1 ranking was achieved with a score of 66.3 out of 100. That’s a solid D grade, but in a competition amongst D and F students, someone’s going to win.

Indeed, consider some of the following:

  • Only 0.6% of Washington state’s transportation budget for capital projects (aka building stuff) goes to biking and walking investments (reminder: write your legislators today to ask them to change this by making biking investments in the state funding package)
  • Nationally, biking and walking traffic deaths are 20 times worse than in select Northern European countries.
  • In the face of declining numbers of serious injuries and deaths involving motor vehicles, serious injuries and deaths by those who walk and bike in Washington state refuse to decrease in a significant manner.

It’s hard for Washington state to compete on the world stage with numbers like those.

Target Zero

While significant reductions in traffic deaths have occurred in Washington state, serious injuries and deaths of bicycle riders remain essentially flat. (image: WTSC, Target Zero)

Remember what this state ranking is about:

  • Focused on the state aggregate – while helpful, the ranking doesn’t reflect as much on local work, except for overall bicycle ridership and safety numbers.
  • Reflective of the work of the state transportation agency (in this case WSDOT), and of other state agencies, like the Washington Traffic Safety Commission and Washington State Transportation Commission. It doesn’t take into account local entities, like Spokane Regional Transportation Commission or Seattle Department of Transportation.
  • Uses key laws and policies as a proxy for progress. Don’t have a 3-foot law? That counts against states. No Bicycle Plan? Another issue. There are many proxies that help the League judge the progress and relative ranking amongst states.

So what needs to be done?

It’s not rocket science to say that more investments in staff capacity at the state level, more investments in biking and walking projects, and more thoughtful transportation projects that consider all modes will help Washington increase its D grade on the Bicycle Friendly State Rankings, and hopefully help it achieve some sort of parity on the world scale.

Here are some initial steps that Washington Bikes will be advocating for in the remainder of 2015 and beyond:

  • Grow investments at the state level. This is something that everyone needs to work on today: write your legislators! Funding and infrastructure remains Washington state’s lowest score in the rankings.  This score is something we as a state can make immediate improvements on as the Washington state legislature is currently negotiating a multiyear, multibillion dollar  transportation spending package. This week there is a very realistic chance that some sort of agreement could be reached on spending levels. It’s still unclear the fate of investments in biking in this package. Again, write your legislators today.
  • Grow staff capacity for bicycling and update the bike/ped plan at WSDOT. The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) should build upon its past successes by increasing staff capacity for planning, engineering, and implementation of solutions that make bicycling and walking safer and more convenient. Additionally, so much has changed in bike/ped planning since the last bicycle and pedestrian plan was released in 2008. Then, sharrows were still seen as relatively cutting edge. We’re past that and without so much as an update to the plan by WSDOT since then, much needs to change before the multimodal planning at WSDOT begins to address bicycling in earnest.
  • Grow bicycle and pedestrian safety focus at the state level. Outside of the hugely successful Safe Routes to School programs, safety education initiatives for bicycling at the state level are conspicuously absent. Deeper engagement of the Cooper Jones Safety Committee by the Washington Traffic Safety Commission and increased focus on data collection agency-wide at WSDOT could help.

These are not exhaustive, nor are they even the most ambitious – they are items that are tangibly in the hands of WSDOT and the Washington State Legislature.

Take action today

And for you? Take a moment to write your state legislators right now to ask them to hold the line on the House Transportation Committee proposal of $236 million to make biking a safe, healthy, and realistic option today.

Right now, Washington state continues to deny large swaths the freedom to get around safely and affordably on a bike. Let’s not get complacent with our #1 status, remind your legislators that they can make real progress by making biking and walking investments today.

Posted in Advocacy, Funding/Policy, Infrastructure, Issues & Advocacy, Legislature, News, Politics, Safe Routes to School, Safety, Trails, Transportation, WSDOT | Comments Off on We’re Number One…Or Are We?