Teens Biking To Destinations is part of a Statewide initiative to increase teen bike ownership and sustainable transportation. It is a grant funded program by the Climate Commitment Act and WSDOT, managed by Cascade Bicycle Club. This is the ReCyclery’s second year offering the program and it’s been a great success. It falls in line with the ReCyclery’s mission of bike education and access for the community.  We have been having a lot of fun and are really impressed with Chimacum students.

TBTD is rolling along, delivering all good things bikes have to offer: confidence, competence, and community. The fall cohort finished at the end of the semester and Pi is currently hosting a spring cohort. The lessons alternate between maintenance and riding. The instructors were nervous—having fun on a bike in the rain can be a hard sell—but Chimacum students are resilient, embracing winter riding and handling the challenge exceptionally well. “Even though we all got muddy and dirty, we are still having a lot of fun!” a student shared. Getting comfortable riding in wet conditions and on wet roads expands the opportunity for independent travel year-round.

Confidence grew when students learned to replace their disc brake pads, a basic maintenance task that can save up to $100 and a trip to a bike shop. They learned how to fix a flat tire and before completing the course they must do a roadside repair. One student confided, “When I first got here, I wasn’t confident at all, but you guys (the instructors) made me feel so comfortable, and now I’m a lot more confident and I'm so happy I joined.”

Students were interested to learn about multi-modal transportation (linking up bikes and buses) in a partnership with Jefferson Transit Authority. The lesson offered students a chance to practice loading their bikes onto a bus without busy commuters putting on the pressure!

At first students were wondering “Why would you want to put your bike on the bus?” You could really see the group’s eyes light up when they understood how far they could go with just a bike and the bus, and travel for free!