Urban bicyclist group Phoenix Spokes People started a series of “Biketober” events Wednesday night with a bike ride from Phoenix City Hall to Phoenix Public Market Cafe for post-ride refreshments.
Lisa Parks, one of Phoenix Spokes People’s organizers, said Biketober is a way to get more Phoenix residents out biking. The group meets every Friday morning to bike to work. Parks said after Biketober, she hopes people will become more involved in their Friday morning rides.
Phoenix Spokes People is already involved with Valley Metro’s bike month in April, but Parks said the group wanted to have their own event in October to start bike-riding season.
“(April) is sort of the wind-down of bicycle weather,” Parks said. “We get all these people to ride, but then summer comes, and nobody wants to ride.”
One of Wednesday’s ride participants, Paul Loomans, said he has been car-free for the past three years.
“It really changed my life in a lot of ways,” Loomans said. “In terms of health, and also just finding that it’s easy to get from place-to-place on a bicycle and it’s easy to park. The bike is such an efficient machine.”
Loomans said Biketober is a way for other bike riders like himself to celebrate bicycling and for people new to the biking community to make friends.
Biketober is also a chance for Phoenix Police Sgts. Jared Lowe and Brian Bachorski to promote bicycle registration and bike safety. As part of the kick-off event, Lowe and Bachorski set up a booth to register bikes for free outside of the Phoenix Public Market Cafe.
“We’d eventually love it to be where every bike in the city was registered,” Lowe said. “It doesn’t cost anything and we hope it will become a deterrent for people who are stealing bikes.”
Lowe also said many cyclists don’t ride with a bike light at night, which can be dangerous. But he said most drivers are aware of riders, and bicyclist safety isn’t typically an issue. The officers also handed out pamphlets to participants outlining bike laws and safety tips for riding in the city.
More bike-related activities are coming up this month including the annual Tour de Fat ride Saturday that will start at Tempe Beach Park and end at Civic Space Park. Phoenix Spokes People’s main event will be Hello Velo on Oct. 19 at the Arizona Historical Society.
“There’s going to be vintage bicycles on display and we’re going to have prizes for the best vintage and hand made bicycles,” Parks said.
The event will also include music and dancing, Parks said. Entry will be free and New Belgium Brewing Company will provide free beer. Food trucks and bike valet will also be available at the event, according to Phoenix Spokes People’s website.
“A lot of our rides are super easy, fun, short rides,” Parks said. “We try and include everybody.”
Parks said she is hoping for a turnout of 500 people for the event. She said she wants to get people excited about riding their bikes and have them continue to bike after October.
“The friendliest thing about Phoenix is its weather,” Loomans said. “Over the winter now, we’re looking forward to seven or eight months of gorgeous bicycling, and you couldn’t do that in most other places in the country.”
Contact the reporter at Nina.Barone@asu.edu
