Seattle Needs you to Plan a Group Ride

Believe it or not, there was a time when there was a casual bike ride or bike culture-related event nearly every night of the week in Seattle. These ranged from Critical Lass to Bike Polo to the Disaster Relief Trials to outer spaced themed Alley Cats. If you rode a bike in Seattle and wanted to find like-minded folks to ride with, you typically could. 

Now, even though it’s Bike Everywhere Month, the Events Calendar on the Seattle Bike Blog is woefully sad, aside from the awesome advocacy work Seattle Neighborhood Greenways are doing.

Obviously we took a very necessary break during COVID, but now that vaccines are available to all and the city has installed new bike lanes all over the city, I think we’re ready for some big bike energy in town!

Big Bike Energy image courtesy of Gears for Queers

In the last week I’ve gotten asked at least six times about upcoming group rides in Seattle that I’m leading, and sorry, but my next one isn’t until June 19th! But there is absolutely no reason there shouldn’t be many group rides between now and then!

While I’m honored that folks look to me as a leader in the bike community here in Seattle and enjoy the group rides that I lead, I’m here to tell you that you too can lead group bike rides that are safe, inclusive and fun! And the Seattle bike community needs you to!

Please, I’m begging you - take a risk, step out of your comfort zone and plan a ride, bike party, alley cat, or charity ride!

Nobody holds the keys to bike culture - together we can shape an inclusive community that reflects our values. 

To help inspire you to plan the bike ride of your dreams, I’ve put together a  5 step no-fail plan. Obviously everybody’s planning process is different - you don’t have to follow my advice. But please, somebody plan a group ride and let’s get the bike community going again in this town!

1. Pick a Day & Time. I like to take into consideration when my intended audience will be able to attend, as well as expected car traffic at that time and any potential conflicting events (sports games, big events, etc.)

2. Designate your meet-up spot. I’ve played around with lots of different spots around town and find that the most successful are those that are centrally located, have a restroom, and food close by in case folks show up hungry.

3. Recruit your friends to help. Leading a ride alone is hard - having friends to help decide the route, act as sweeper (more on that later) and promote the ride is super helpful. 

4. Announce the Ride! Make a flyer (digital or print to put up at shops), Facebook event, Instagram post, etc. Consider posting the event to local online communities like Seattle Bike Blog, Twitter, EverydayRides.com, and the Seattle WTF Bike Slack. Make sure you include all the relevant details of your ride like date, time, pace of ride, meetup spot and things to bring.

5. Do the dang thing! If it’s fun, do it again! If not, that’s ok! Maybe somebody else will be inspired to lead a ride! 

And while I’ve got your attention, there’s a couple of things you can do as the Ride Leader/Organizer to ensure your ride is inclusive, safe and fun.

In no particular order:

• Be honest about what pace you’re going to go at and stick to it. (Using a bike computer can be especially helpful for keeping a real time eye on this during your ride.)  Remember, my “social pace” is probably not the same as your “social pace.”

• Publish your intended route before the ride. Using RidewithGPS or other ride mapping software allows participants to download the route onto the bike computer (if that’s their thing.) This can also help alleviate any anxiety folks may be having about where the ride is going!

• Have a sweeper at the back of the group who knows the destination and can help shepherd anyone who gets separated from the pack to the ride destination. 

• Regroup at the top of hills and actually give the last folks up a chance to catch their breath.

• Don’t use judgement based descriptions like “beginner” when you actually mean slow. Calling out specific required skills (holding a paceline, being able to ride single track, etc.) will better allow potential attendees to gauge if the ride is appropriate for them.

So, what do you say? Need some inspiration for ideas for group rides? Take a look at what Portland is up to for the next 3 months with Pedalpalooza. 

In closing, Seattle is not known for being the friendliest city. But in my experience, the bike community does a pretty damn good job of supporting each other. And I can guarantee that I’ll do my best as a bike advocate and fan of creating community to cheer you on, hype you, and help guide you (if you want it.)

I Introduced My Partner to Bike Camping

I never thought I’d date a non-cyclist. My life revolves around bikes - it just doesn’t make sense. But the heart does funny things and here I am, engaged to a man who hadn’t ridden a bike since childhood when we started dating three years ago!

We’re pretty cute, if I do say so myself

Needless to say, he definitely hadn’t been bike camping and all of our shared camping trips so far had involved the car and way too much stuff. Every time we loaded up the car and a cooler for a weekend, a little piece of my soul died, as I would so much rather be on a bike, even if that limits how far we could go or how much stuff we could take.

Turns out, I had been making a lot of assumptions…and a certain somebody would’ve loved to have been invited all along.

We fixed that last weekend with a quick overnighter to Fay Bainbridge Park. If you’ve been a long time reader, or found me through Google, you might remember my review of this park as “close to Seattle, but kind of like sleeping in a parking lot.” While I still hold true to all of that, my opinion of it has changed.

In my happy place, on the road with my bike.

For a beginner bike camper, or someone just looking to get away for the night, this spot is actually perfect. When I wrote the review previously, I never really took advantage of the beach that’s literally steps away from the hiker-biker sites and doing that changes everything about this campground. I’ve also found a much less hilly route (more on that later) which makes it a bit more enjoyable of a ride!

I helped JR pack for his first bike camping trip, emphasizing that each extra thing he brought meant more weight on the bike. He didn’t quite listen to everything I said and still insisted on bringing a hatchet to split wood, a full roll of duct tape, and work gloves, but he also didn’t complain once about the load he was carrying :)

After catching the 11:25 ferry on Saturday, we took a leisurely route to camp, stopping at both Blackbird Bakery and Bainbridge Brewing. I was glad we took the early ferry, as we got one of the last hiker-biker spots left at camp! Definitely a popular choice this weekend (and we were able to squeeze a few more groups into the area, while still being COVID-safe.)

Going to Fay Bainbridge also meant my sister and nephew got to hang out for a few hours! Liam brought his bike too so we did lots of loops of the parking lot, some beach exploring and of course roasted s’mores on the fire!

A bit crowded bike camping, but still plenty of space to be had

This is a great time to plug the Ride Spot website and app, which I’ve shared our route on. It’s a new venture from People for Bikes to help people discover safe, fun places to ride bikes. You can follow bike shops, ambassadors (hi!), and other industry folks who will share with you our favorite places to ride in cities all across the US. You can also share your own favorite rides as well!

We had absolutely picture perfect weather for our entire trip - 70s during the day and high 50s at night with no rain in sight. We woke up to clear skies on Sunday morning, drank our coffee on the beach and packed up for home.

JR checking out Frog Rock!

On our ferry ride back, JR was gracious enough to let me interview him. I thought it’d be a fun way to share his thoughts directly on how our trip went. Click through for a quick interview with him - I’m just learning about audio and while editing lost most of it, but enjoy a few seconds!!

So what’s his advice for a new bike camper? Well, I had great audio clip of it, but turns out I need to take his advice and learn from somebody who knows what they’re doing. His best advice is to go with somebody who has done it before and can show you the ropes.

A few things he mentioned included that he had no idea you could cook a pad thai so easily over a backpacking stove (or that a backpacking stove was so small), how small and lightweight gear can be and the importance of looking at elevation when deciding a route!

Chopping Veggies for Pad Thai

If you’re curious about the pad thai, it’s my go-to camp recipe. I got it from Bikepacking.com and have modified it slightly. If you make it, let me know how it goes!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

4 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon dried red chili peppers

1 package of rice noodles

1 shallot

2 cloves of garlic (or however much you want)

Green onions

A Lime

A can of protein (Tuna, Chicken, Tofu, whatever)

At home, mix the sugar, soy sauce, peanut butter and red pepper into a water proof container. I really like these squeeze tubes that can be refilled. Pack all the rest of the ingredients.

When you get to camp, boil your noodles until they’re soft (a couple of minutes.) While they’re going, chop up the rest of the veggies. Drain the noodles when they’re soft, mix in the sauce and veggies and squeeze some lime juice. Voila!

Let's Talk Bike Etiquette

Riding bikes as a kid was pretty simple in my suburban neighborhood in Fort Worth, Texas. We rode whatever bike we had: a loose troop of 2nd-6th graders riding to and from school together,  racing up and down our street most nights and weekends, and keeping each other safe-ish by yelling "CAR!" at the top of our lungs as soon as one came near. Etiquette meant helping each other up when you fell down, sharing your bike pump, and inviting the new kid to join in the fun. 

Somewhere along the way though, things got a bit more complicated. Riding a bike in a city with lots of other folks requires compromises, unwritten behavior contracts, and a certain etiquette. As we head into "fair weather season", as one person put it on Twitter, when the "newbs come out not knowing what they're doing", I think it's a really good time to talk about bike riding etiquette.

I know, as people on bikes, we like to think we're immune to impacting anybody. "I'm not causing a traffic jam, I'm on a bike." "I'm a zero-emission vehicle." "One less car" etc. But in reality, unless you're riding in a really rural place, you do have an impact on other folks. And there's some small actions you can take while on your bike ride to ensure everybody has a safe and pleasant journey.

Look at all those patient folks, sharing a bike lane.

To be honest, I've been writing this post in my head for a while now, mostly on my morning commutes while adding up how many times I get passed way too closely in the Westlake bike lane. I've taken my experience, combined it with some crowd-sourced advice from Twitter and am proud to present to you Basic Bike Etiquette...or How Not to be an Asshole on a Bike. 

• Make yourself known, especially when passing. This can be a bell or a verbally, but silent passing isn't cool. It's downright dangerous.

• Slow down, especially on shared multi-use trails during commuting hours. Commutes are not the time to go for that Strava record or KOM. This might be an unpopular opinion, but do your fast training rides outside of popular commute times. If you're going over 15mph on the Westlake path or the Burke Gilman, you might want to re-evaluate why you're riding so fast on those paths. There are pedestrians, kids, dogs, and people of all speeds and abilities. Slow down.

• Pass at a smart time. Narrow spots on a trail, going around a blind curve, on the Fremont bridge, etc? All stupid places to pass. Slow your roll and wait a minute.

• Don't pass at a light. Queue up just like you would in any other line, and when everybody starts moving, take the opportunity to pass. I don't care if you think you're faster than the person at the front of the line, don't do it. (I learned that there's a term for this, called Shoaling. I'm not going to use that, because we don't need another exclusionary bike word. But here's an article BikeSnob wrote about it. I'm not the only one with strong feelings about it.)

• Get fenders. It rains here and riding behind somebody without fenders is pretty miserable. There are affordable options for fenders at Recycled Cycles, the Bikery and other shops, or get crafty and make your own.

• Turn off the blinking lights. I've written about this before. They're illegal in Washington, they can induce seizures in folks with sensitivities, and they don't make you any easier to see. Turn your lights onto steady and everyone wins.

• Turn down your music. I get it, you love your bluetooth speaker and think we all will too. We don't. (There's an exception here for families on cargo bikes. It might be the cutest thing in the world to see a kiddo on a cargo bike rocking out to Caspar Babypants.)

• Share the rack. Be aware of how and where you're locking to the bike rack. If another person showed up on a bike, could they also lock up to that same rack?

• Look out for each other, including pedestrians. Really, it's ok to chat with other folks to let them know about hazards in the road (glass, gravel, potholes, etc.), to say hi, or just to wave. Being on a bike is a lot more fun - we can act like it too :) On the same note, if you see somebody stopped on the side of the path struggling with a flat or other mechanical, maybe check in with them. Don't assume they need help, but a friendly "Hey, you ok?" can go a long way.

• Follow the rules of the road. I know, an Idaho stop makes way more sense and is probably safer, but at a red light, you should definitely stop.

• Stop with the judgments of other folks. Does it really matter if the person who just rode past you is on a $300 bike or a $4500 bike? Does their choice of footwear, clothing, or other personal choices impact you? Nope. It doesn't. Sure, I get annoyed when I see people riding with backpacks who clearly have a rear rack (why do you do this to yourself??) but there is no need to comment on it.

An early Monday commute in February through downtown Seattle

And with that totally non-exhaustive list, happy riding folks.

Wilkeson to Carbon River Bikecamping

Bike camping at Ipsut Creek along the Carbon River inside of Mount Rainier has become something of an annual tradition in my life, first starting in 2015. The backcountry campground used to be a popular car camping destination, but after the road was washed out in 2006, it’s only been accessible to hikers and bikers willing to make the 10 mile roundtrip trek.

In previous years, I’ve driven to the park, stopped at the ranger station, and parked near the gate, thereby limiting my riding to a (very) manageable five mile, slightly uphill ride. This year, however, I accepted an invitation for a trip that would start in Wilkeson, about 20 miles outside of the campground.

Before I get into the details of this trip, I think it would be helpful to give some background on this trip.

If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know that I used to bikecamp all the time. A few years ago, it was normal for me to ride fully loaded into work on a Friday and be gone the whole weekend. Over the last year, however, due to a bunch of different factors, I simply have not been riding my bike that much.

I was invited to join a group of women riding in Montana this summer with Masi, Ortleib, Exped, Adventure Cycling, and Skratch Labs, so to prepare for that trip, I decided I should probably start riding again, with purpose. As part of the trip, we are all being given full bikepacking setups from Ortleib, a new Masi bike and new Exped sleeping mats and pillows!

New (to me) bike and bike bags from Ortleib!

So back to the ride….

One of the other women on the trip also lives in Seattle and put out a call for a partner to join her on a trip last weekend. I decided this would be a great opportunity to test my new bags (the bike is being built) and a good training ride. Two birds with one stone!

When I was first sent the Ride with GPS route, I felt confident about my ability to complete the trip. Sure, the ENTIRE way there was uphill, but I quieted my fears by thinking about the gentle grade, my previous experiences, and the ride back to the car. 20 miles of sweet, sweet downhill.

Fast forward to Saturday, deep in the pain cave, regretting every decision I’ve ever made. This ride was hard. Really freaking hard.

Twenty miles is a long way to ride uphill. Thankfully, I made the last minute decision to ride a bike I bought for my boyfriend which has a triple. That means a granny gear.

I lived in that granny gear all day Saturday, and hoo boy, was it a challenge.

If you haven’t done this ride, I highly recommend it (at least the portion from the Ranger Station to camp.) It’s a beautifully graded, gravel trail through the most amazing old growth forests. At camp, there is ample space for everyone I’ve ever seen up there (be sure to register for your backcountry permit at the ranger station) and clean toilets.

Some helpful tips:

There aren’t any fires allowed, so I recommend bringing another form of entertainment.

Bring your hiking shoes and turn it into a longer trip. From the Ipsut Creek Campground, there’s a beautiful 7ish mile hike to the Carbon River Glacier. This hike is NOT fun in biking shoes, so bring a spare pair.

Bring a water filter. The old water source that used to be right before you got to camp has been washed out, so now the potable water is up the trail a bit at the Ipsut Falls.