Time to get rolling, Sequim.
Regarded as a “bronze-level” Bicycle-Friendly Community by The League of American Bicyclists, Sequim offers a number of ways to get out and about for 2022’s National Bike Month this May, with rides and other safe activities promoted by the Sequim Bicycle Alliance — an umbrella coordinating group for bicycling stakeholders in eastern Clallam County.
Highlighting local biking events is “Safe Biking for Kids,” a free, fun, hands-on safe cycling event for youths in grades kindergarten-fifth grade (and their parents/guardians) set for noon-1 p.m. on Saturday, May 21, at the Carrie Blake Community Park picnic shelter, 202 N. Blake Ave. Participants can learn about: bike parts and how they work; how to get ready to ride; and, how to ride safely. Attendees should bring a “safe to ride” bike and helmet; training wheels are allowed. For details, contact Tom Coonelly at 360-681-7053.
Bike Month events are coordinated by members of the Sequim Bicycle Alliance, with special support and contributions this year from City of Sequim, Olympic Peninsula Bicycling Alliance, Sequim Bike Works, Sequim Wheelers, Ben’s Bikes and Rainshadow Café. For more about the Sequim Bicycle Alliance, visit sequimwa.gov/933/Bike-Month, or search for “Sequim Bicycle Alliance,” @SequimCycling or #bikesunnysequim on Facebook and Instagram.
Other Bike Month events, activities
Bingo! Print the 2022 Bike Bingo card (at tinyurl.com/SQbingo), mark off the squares one by one and declare “BINGO!” each time you finish a row.
Sequim Wheelers, an adaptive bike program for elderly and people with disabilities, kicks off its fifth season with three wheelchair bikes and a side-by-side tandem. To schedule a ride contact Lanie at sequimwheelers@yahoo.com.
Monday, May 16, 4 p.m.: The City of Sequim’s Parks, Arbor, and Recreation Board meets online at 4 p.m. Monday, May 16, and is happy to hear from the cycling community with ideas, opportunities and concerns regarding bicycling in the City. (Get the online meeting link and agenda at sequimwa.gov/219/Parks-Arbor-and-Recreation-Board.)
National Bike to Work Day (or Bike Anywhere!) is Friday, May 20, when Rainshadow Café, 157 W. Cedar, offers a free cup of drip coffee to anyone on a bike.
On two Saturdays (May 21 and May 28), the nonprofit Sequim Bike Works will have basic safety checks and tune-ups for a donation at the Sequim Farmers & Artisans Market at 152 W. Cedar St.
All month, Ben’s Bikes, at 1251 W. Washington St., will have special deals and an “anti-inflation price roll-back.”
Enjoy some friendly competition? Create or join a team for the “Bike Everywhere Challenge” at lovetoride.net/washington. Earn points by riding multiple miles or days and by encouraging others — a great way to motivate yourself, family, and friends to ride, biking advocates say. City staff and other local groups have teams as well.
Anytime activities
On Mondays at 9:30 a.m., the Spoke Folks Cycling Club rolls out at from 950 N. Fifth Ave. — Sequim Community Church’s north parking lot — for a good newcomer ride on the Olympic Discovery Trail. Helmets are required. Speed is moderate speed, no drops and new riders are welcome. For more information, contact Coonelly at 360-681-7053.
At 9:30 a.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays, the Women on Wheels (WoW) group meets at Railroad Bridge Park, 2151 W. Hendrickson Road, for safe group rides. For more information, email Jeanie Robards at nwbikerlady@gmail.com.
On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:30 a.m., enjoy a slightly shorter ride with the Sequim Easy Riders, a medium-paced group. For details, contact Bob Anundson at sequimboy@gmail.com.
Every Sunday at 9:30 a.m., the Sequim Sunday Riders depart from the Dungeness Wildlife Refuge, 554 Voice of America Road, for a 25-plus-mile ride. Departure times vary depending on the time of the year, but most rides start at 9:30 a.m. For more information, call Randy Barber at 360-477-4156.
Take photos of rides and post on social media at Strava.com with the hashtags #BikeMonth and #BikeSunnySequim, or on @SequimCycling pages.
