by Andrew Alonzo | aalonzo@claremont-courier.com

Children and families are invited to bring their bikes and helmets to Sycamore Elementary School, 225 W. Eighth St., Claremont, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, January 29 for the first ever Sustainable Claremont bike rodeo.

Parents and caregivers can sign their children up for this free event at sustainableclaremont.org.

The rodeo will feature a skills course with six stations designed to teach kids ages five and older different safety protocols.

“We teach or reinforce skills like which side of the road to ride on, how do you safely cross an intersection when there’s cars, how to use hand signals, how do you look over your shoulders for cars when you need to go around an obstacle in the road, really simulating being on a road, and what would you do in these fun scenarios?” said Sustainable Claremont Board Vice Chair and School Action Group Chair Elise Ferree.

Sunday’s festivities will also include learn-to-ride areas, a decorating station with reflective decals, raffles for bike gear, and educational courses with Jax Bicycle Center’s five-person crew. The crew will perform bike checks, teach children what to look out for while riding, and lead a fix-a-flat workshop at 11:30 a.m.

Sustainable Claremont Secretary Julie Medero adjusts her helmet before a bike ride on Tuesday. Courier photo/Andrew Alonzo

Ferree said there are three goals for Sunday’s rodeo: to celebrate bicycle riding, encourage more children to ride, and to make sure they do so safely.

“It just seemed like an opportunity we hadn’t really explored for reaching kids and also moving forward with sustainable goals,” Ferree said. “It just felt like, it’s the start of the new year, maybe a little push to get out on your bike.”

The rodeo was made possible thanks to donations from Claremont Sunrise Rotary, Jax Bicycle Center and Boon Companion Toys. Sunrise Rotary’s $1,000 donation was used to purchase the materials so that should another Claremont campus or local group want to host a future bike rodeo, the supplies are available. Jax donated a $100 tune-up service as a raffle prize, and volunteers’ lunches will be courtesy of Boon’s $200 contribution.

It is not too late to sign up, as about 40 spots remained as of Tuesday. Register at sustainableclaremont.org. Though predictions at press time called for a 40% chance of rain on Sunday, the rodeo will likely take place regardless. Emailinfo@sustainableclaremont.org for more info.