The City of Santa Clarita held the 9th annual Bike to Work Day as part of the Bike to Work Month, on May 17, 2012. The event took place all across the Santa Clarita Valley, complete with 4 pit stops that offered riders, not only a chance to enter into the drawings, but also free refreshments and goodies, as repair kits, plastic water bottles etc.

The City of Santa Clarita announced on the “Green Santa Clarita” website: “Make a resolution to join other regional commuters on Bike to Work Day, May 17. It’s fun, healthy and good for the environment! Pledge to bike to work or school and be eligible to win cool prizes. Prizes include: REI Novara Transfer commuter bicycle and accessories valued at $750, Five (5) one-year memberships for nationwide bicycle roadside assistance from Better World Club and one (1) one-year membership to any Bikestation facility.”

In addition, there are gift certificates given away at the drawings, for businesses small or large that signed up.

The four pit stops were located at the City Hall, Bouquet Cnyn. Rd & Valencia Blvd., Soledad Cnyn. Rd. & Camp Plenty trail access, and Newhall Ave. & 16th Str. trail access.

 

This event is rooted in the history of the National Bike Month, that was started in 1956 by the League of American Bicyclists. It later evolved into Bike Month and it strives to promote safe bicycling as an healthy option for commuting to work.

In LA County, over 75 pit stops have been set up for people to celebrate Bike to Work Week, May 14-18, 2012. Similar events took place all across the nation.

On Thursday May 17 in Santa Clarita approximately 150 people chose to bike to work, just one more way to promote a greener Santa Clarita.

 

Unfortunately at 8:04 a.m. a collision occured between a female bicyclist and a car, near the City Hall, however neither the bicyclist nor the driver sustained any major injuries. The circumstances of the collision are not clear.

 

Pictured here are the pit stops at the Bouquet Junction and Camp Plenty and Soledad Canyon Rd. trail access. At the Bouquet Junction pit stop hosts Cindy Marnoch of Performance Cyclery and resident John Pennala are greeting riders and offering them refreshments, small gifts and a chance to sign in for the prize drawings that the City of Santa Clarita put together. At 8 a.m. there were already over 30 riders that passed through the Bouquet Junction pit stop. At the Camp Plenty and Soledad Canyon Rd. trail access pit stop, City employee July Brooks performed a similar function greeting riders that either entered the bike trail or transfered from the river trail to the street section on the trail that meanders along Soledad Canyon Rd. westward and thus taking most of the riders to their places of work.

 

To read more about this city wide event, click here.

To read another story of local bike riders to work, click here.

 

Scroll down for more images from the day.

At the Bouquet Junction pit stop, there have been over 30 riders passing by between 6:15 and 8 a.m. and the hosts Cindy Marnoch of Performance Cyclery and resident John Pennala think they might have missed some early riders.

This rider, a City employee, was proudly fashioning her vintage bicycle build by her husband in 1976.

 

	Rachel Wethington riding to Kaiser Permanente.
Bouquet Junction Pit Stop hosts: Cindy Marnoch of Performance Cyclery and resident John Pennala greeting riders (left). Eric Dean of Pricess Cruises, followed by a co-worker, arriving at the pit stop (right).
One of the gifts for the riders, memorable bike-ready water bottle. Other small gifts included a bike tire patch kit, snacks and drinks.	Josiah Green riding to the College of the Canyons, Valencia Campus. He has been adviced by the pit stop hosts about the necessity of a safety helmet and he agreed.
July Brooke of the City of Santa Clarita, at the Camp Plenty pit stop.	Resident Don Regis biking for pleasure, as he does every day.
Resident Uri Martinez, riding for pleasure today, his day off – he usually rides his bike to work.