Cirque du Cycling, the Portland bike parade, came and went like…well…a parade. People lined up and down
Mississippi Avenue to witness the spectacle of collected bike groups. Our family rode with a group of cargo/utility bike users. Aside from all being larger bikes, this group shares the belief that bikes are superb vehicles for moving large objects from place to place. James--seen in the photo below with his dog Louie who sits in a custom made box atop his Xtracycle--made our banner, which pretty much summed up our group’s thinking: WeGO Cargo!
Kael and Soren, our two eldest sons, tossed candy to the crowd, probably the highlight of their time, snatching a candy or two for every handful tossed. Our youngest rode behind his mom on a trail-a-bike, occasionally helping to pedal the way.
Jamie and Phillip of
Metrofiets were performing bunny hops on their cargo bikes. That's a sight I have not seen before and it got me thinking…Hmmmm, there's possibility for a whole new pastime—Extreme Cargoing. Would a bike jump be too much for a cargo bike? Anyone?
A contingency of
Xtracycle bikes were on hand. What I like about Xtracycle is that it extends the back of the bike to provide a cargo area, and the extension is not so much that it makes the bike handle weird. I see these as the station wagon of bikes (sorry for the car comparison).
Image used with permission from Metrofiets. Photo by Diana Rempe.
Clever Cycles, of Portland, loaned us their
BIG cargo bike. Citing from the
WorkCycles web site, the company that hand makes these bikes, "Please note that these trikes are really big and heavy . . . suitable for essentially flat terrain such as in Holland." A big hand to Scott Mizee, who piloted the trike to and from Clever Cycles with his four children aboard and plenty of room for a couple of bails of hay. I am sure his legs got a workout that day.
An unexpected showing of naked riders appeared at the end of the parade, probably getting a jump on the World Naked Bike Ride that was to occur that night. It certainly caught the attention of our sons and provided topics for the ride home after the parade. I feigned being out of breath for some of the topics. I mean how do you explain ... ? Nevermind.
Ar right, enjoying life by bike. Take one out today and ride. Photo credit: Diana Rempe.
More photos are on my
Flickr.