Happy Birthday,
#TaylorSwift!
Thanks for being born on December 13th so my daughter forever remembers my birthday on the 14th. This is my favorite song and concert memory - you are a goofball and I love you for it.
10 years ago, we launched a bike travel guide for Vancouver. Our daughter, Annika, was 5 and never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be returning to see our first Taylor Swift show on the final weekend of The Eras Tour.
Back in July 2023, I was really mad at Taylor. Annika was crying because I wouldn't spend $$$ for Seattle tickets. How was I the bad guy?
I promised her we would see the film when it came out, which ended up being at Nitehawk Cinemas in Brooklyn, right after I spoke at the Vision Zero conference. Walking into the theater with her, I was like "what's the big deal?" 1 minute into the film, I was crying...WTF IS WRONG WITH ME. It was the crowd reactions that got me.
Fast forward to April 2024, I told her if she raised $4000, we would go to the Vancouver show in December. She got her first job as a 14 year old at Fat Tire Farm in Hood River and did some babysitting and cat sitting and little by little, she did it!
We took Amtrak with our bikes to Vancouver and took it ALL in. There were tears, fights over beads, loud singing, lots of walking and biking and amazing food.
Thank you, Taylor Swift and Vancouver, for the mother-daughter memories to last a lifetime.
Special nod to Tanner at @socialcornerrestaurants and the staff at @belgardkitchen and @askforluigi for some of the best GF meals ever.
Hats off @cityofvancouver! Keep installing those protected bikewaya and create more people centric streets!
#swiftcouver #vancouverbc #taylorswift #erastour #bikaboutvancouver
#kidcity #kidfriendly #familyfriendly #boulder #bikaboutboulder
What a great 1st time experience attending the Safe Routes to School conference.
My presentation "Teach them to Fly" during the EBike Boom conference was like therapy. So many of my colleagues around America are wrestling with new found freedom and growing pains of youth discovering Ebikes.
My roomie, Coach Balto, was a fantastic sounding board and source of inspiration, as always.
For those who saw my fun tees and wondered who designed them, it is no other than the genius of Tom Flood and @rovelocreative!
And Fort Collins out on quite the 🍁 show for us, providing a gorgeous canvas for the mobile workshops.
#srtsjoy #saferoutestoschool #hoodriverwalkandroll
When in Rome (Fort Collins), do a Fat Tire tour.
#bikaboutfortcollins #fortcollins #srtsconference
Indianapolis is secretly killing it.
Since the grand opening of the @indyculturaltrail, 8 miles in 2013, the network of protected bikeways has continued to grow, attracting public and private funding.
Just on September 5th, the @colts announced a $100,000 donation. And no wonder when you see the crowds of fans walking on the trail for game days.
👏 to this non-profit, the @cityofindianapolis and the community for rallying on this vision.
#indytrail #indyculturaltrail #biketrail #indianapolis #bikaboutIndy
Portland in summer is the best.
We played badminton 🏸 in the park, 🛼 @secretrollerdisco, sunset swim, 🍦 @saltandstraw, pool time and home hang out with @kielij who took our family photo and hosted us.
Seattle Center has a new grand entrance.
The new Thomas Street protected intersection and cycletracks (still in progress) is another piece of stellar infrastructure for the city.
#bikaboutseattle #seattle #seattlebybike
Happy Pride 🦄 Weekend, Seattle.
It felt so good to park our car at our hotel and use @lime bikes and scooters to get to our restaurant (door to door in 12 minutes) and bonus, saw many people celebrating pride 🌈 on scooters, too.
❤️ the @lime group ride option -it was so easy for our family to hop on and go.
I'm the ice cream truck lady, except instead of ice cream, it's free bikes.
Thanks to Jonathan Maus of @bikeportland for helping me talk about all the cool stuff I'm up to in Hood River including managing @hoodriverwalkandroll and free bikes for kids via @ansonsbikebuddies.
Topics:
-how she first got involved in transportation reform advocacy
-how raising a daughter sharpened her appetite for safe streets work
-what a typical week is like for her
-how some folks have the wrong impression about the type of families who call Hood River County home
-what she’ll do with a recent $25,000 federal safety grant
-why she started afterschool bike clubs for elementary school kids and the impact it has had on them
-what music is most often requested for the ride playlists these days
#bikeportland #hoodriverwalkandroll #ansonsbikebuddies
Only 1 day to bike around Madison felt like a crime, but we fit it in before flying home.
Annika had an awesome time on the e-fatty, riding next to her cousins who were loving all the "diggers" construction going on.
#bikaboutmadison #madison #bikefriendlycity
1 bonus day in Madison to reflect on how my birth city raised my expectations.
I walked my nephew in a chariot stroller in 0 degrees. All the sidewalks and bike trails were clear. He napped and I got vitamin D and fresh air. Every person deserves this access, 365 days.
#madisonwi #bikaboutmadison #wintercity #snowcity #winterbiking #winterbiker