October 1st, 2016 at 11:29 pm Posted in Fun, Safety, White Center news | 3 Comments »

Photos by Leda Costa for White Center Now

Learning can be fun! Just ask the young riders who helped inaugurate the new White Center Bike Playground in Dick Thurnau Memorial Park today – a place to learn how to ride safely, and joyfully.

Cascade Bicycle Club, the YES! Foundation of White Center, and White Center Community Development Association made it happen – you might recall the community planning meeting back in January. Today’s party offered music, snacks, and some giveaways during the party, including one announced by Senior Director of Education Shannon Koller, with a winner jubilantly raising her hand:

Cascade Fleet Coordinator Stephen Rowley helped riders with some adjustments:

The celebration included a Duwamish Tribe member with a song of gratitude:

And King County Council chair Joe McDermott pointed out that while this is the first bike playground in the state, it certainly won’t be the last:

The stars of the show though were the riders:

It will evolve – and those who showed up for the party shared ideas for what else it should include:

Cascade’s Koller told WCN that they hope to have people at the park on the weekends to loan bikes and helmets, to “set up some of the rodeo signs we put out today, do some teaching, potentially do learn to ride if folks are interested in that. Eventually we hope to have summer camps here. We’ve got some high school ride clubs that are nearby, the Major Taylor Project would come out and practice all of these right of way scenarios. It really is for all ages and abilities.”

P.S. If you’re wondering where to find the Bike Playground – Kathy Dunn from West Seattle Bike Connections offered a detailed explanation of how to get there: “If coming from 16th Ave SW, turn east on 107th, go past the White Center Library to 12th Ave SW, jog right one block in front of Mt. View Elementary School, then left at the stop sign onto 108th. Proceed 2 blocks to 10th SW, turn right. Entrance to Dick Thurnau Park is on the left. turn left into the parking lot. The Bike Playground is entered from the very north end of the parking lot where the tennis courts used to be.”