Record Pedal Palooza Turnout Shows Growing Demand for Safe Streets in Shawnee

Pogo hosted its largest Pedal Palooza bike festival yet on Saturday, September 19, drawing hundreds of kids, residents, and families to Rotary Briscoe Boy Scout Park for a morning of riding, family fun, and community celebration. 

In addition to event attendance growth, the annual community bike ride saw its highest ridership yet, with more than 40 residents of all ages taking to the streets of Shawnee together. Among this year's riders was a group of students from Horace Mann Elementary, who rode to the festival together as a "bike bus" led by Principal Christi Lovelady, a firsthand look at what it can be like when a community prioritizes safe ways for residents to walk and ride.

"Our students loved riding as a group, and honestly, so did I," said Lovelady. "It's a small taste of what it could look like if more kids had safe routes to bike and walk to school every day."

While Pedal Palooza is designed to be a fun, free festival for families, organizers say this year's turnout points to something bigger: a clear and growing demand for safe infrastructure for biking and walking in Shawnee and across Pottawatomie County.

“We've been doing Pedal Palooza for years, and the crowd just keeps getting bigger,” said John Bobb-Semple, executive director of Pogo. “This kind of turnout is proof people are hungry for places to safely get out and move, whether that's for transportation, exercise, or just for fun.”

Pedal Palooza is hosted by Pogo's Built Environment Committee as part of the organization's ongoing work to promote bicycle and pedestrian safety and access to safe green spaces across Pottawatomie County. Organizers say the event's growth year over year reinforces the urgency behind that work.

"Every kid who wanted a helmet, every family that showed up to ride, even every smile on a bike — that's data," said Mike Affentranger, co-chair of Pogo's Built Environment Committee. "It tells us safe streets and places to bike or go for a walk are more than a nice-to-have for our residents, and we need more of them.”

At the event, residents had the opportunity to share their perspectives and personal experiences on local bike safety and infrastructure at the Safe Routes to School station. Data gathered will be used to support the work of the comprehensive Shawnee Safety Action Plan aimed at enhancing the safety and infrastructure of Shawnee’s streets particularly around school sites across the city.

Pedal Palooza is only possible thanks to the dedication and work of partners and volunteers. This year's event featured a full slate of activities alongside the community ride, including a bike obstacle course, a bike rodeo focused on street safety skills, learn-to-ride lessons led by volunteers from Uplift Mentoring, a free bike repair station from Kids Action and Salty Dogs Cycling, and a bike decorating station courtesy of the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art. 

Highlights from this year's giveaways and community support included:

• Helmet giveaways: Kids Action and First United Bank teamed up to give away nearly 60 bicycle helmets to local kids.

• Bicycle giveaways: Kids Action gave away two brand new bicycles, one to a local boy and one to a local girl.

• Free meals: Pogo provided more than 100 free meals to kids and families throughout the event.

• Gift card giveaways: Jersey Mike's, Giorgio's Pizza, and Play It Again Sports donated gift cards awarded by drawing to lucky attendees.

For more information about Pogo's work on safe streets and active transportation in Pottawatomie County, visit gopogo.org.