Our tenth annual Bike Week took place in May! Since 1999, we have brought everybody an increasingly robust Bike Week of great bicycling events. This year many of our activities returned—Bike to School Day, Bike to Work Day, a Ride of Silence, Bike Week Celebration, and two presentations at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. Check out details below and mark your calendars. New 2008 events were added, see the list below

In these times of rising energy costs, declining fitness, and growing obesity, the humble bicycle can provide the solution to all those challenges while providing responsible mobility for all. Bike Week 2008 paraded the benefits of bicycling before our community. Here is a listing of Bike Week 2008 events.

	May 15 & 17, Street Skills for Cyclists, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition. Tune up your bicycling skills just in time for Bike Week with our two-day, 10-hour class. You can learn all about it and register online here.
	May 16-23, Bike Week Flags, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition. Each year our 125 handsome Bike Week flags are mounted along State Street in Downtown Santa Barbara.
	May 16-18, Santa Ynez Valley National, sponsored by RideSB. This weekend featured registration and course pre-riding on Friday. Downhill race on Saturday; and a Cross Country Race and Kids Race on Sunday. In addition to the riding, there were meals, camping, raffle prizes, live music and a beer garden. Race location was off Zaca Station Road near Los Olivos. Event details at www.ridesb.com/syvclassic.htm.
	May 17, Children's Festival, sponsored by COAST. The event helped children safely walk and bike to school and other destinations. Low-cost bike helmets were sold and fit. 11:00 AM-4:00 PM, Alameda Park, Santa Barbara. Details at the Family Service Agency site www.fsacares.org/spotlight.htm.
	May 17, Bike Art Project, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition. New for 2008, fanciful bicycles competed for $300 in prizes before our Celebration event described below. Bike Art application and details here.
	May 17, Fifth Annual Bike Week Celebration, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition. World cycling tourist Willie Weir, back by popular acclaim, returned as our featured entertainer fresh from Venezuela and Colombia with tales of bicycle touring and adventure. This year we honored City Councilman Grant House and Bici Centro director Ed France. Participants judged the winning Bike Art entries. Once again, we enjoyed a catered dinner at the Chase Palm Park Center, 236 East Cabrillo Boulevard in Santa Barbara. It started at 6:00 PM with drinks on the patio, judging Bike Art, followed by dinner at 7:00, honorary awards, and then tales from Willie.
	May 18, Mountain Bike Ride, sponsored by Goleta Valley Cycling Club. Wendy Manning and others met at the first water crossing of Paradise Road. The 20-mile ride was on a fire road and trail. Phone Wendy at 967-2813 for details.
	May 18, Willie Weir Bikes around India, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition. We were delighted to have Willie offer another presentation to us. In India, he pondered the proper response to a 13 year-old boy who tells you he is a deity. He wondered what to order for dinner while spending a night in jail. It was at Farrand Hall, Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara. Show at 7:00 PM, suggested $10 donation.
	May 20, Bike to School Day, sponsored by COAST. Events were arranged at individual South Coast and Solvang schools. At least these South Coast schools are participating: César Chavez, Monroe, El Camino, Ellwood, Hollister, Goleta Family School, Monte Vista, Cold Spring, Hope, Vieja Valley and Isla Vista. Bike rodeos and bicycle safety instruction were offered at César Chavez, Ellwood, and Brandon prior to Bike Week. South Coast coordinators were Kim Stanley-Zimmerman at ksz@linkline.com and Angie Dukes at anged@cox.net; Solvang coordinator was John Padfield at jpadfield@mac.com.
	May 20, Climb Old San Marcos, sponsored by Goleta Valley Cycling Club. Met at 5:30 PM at the swimming pool parking lot across from 1030 North San Marcos. Details from Robert and Brigitta 448-0636.
	May 21, Bike to Work Day, sponsored by UCSB and the City of Santa Barbara. Both locations hosted events 7:00-9:00 AM. In Santa Barbara, bicyclists received free food, drinks, prizes, and more at De la Guerra and State Streets. At UCSB, it's on the bikepath up from Goleta Beach, for breakfast food, drinks and raffle prizes.
	May 21, Ride of Silence, unsponsored. This ride commemorated those lost or injured in bicycling crashes in our area. The ride was started in Texas in 2003, and has since grown to over 250 locations worldwide. It is a slow, silent ride of about 8 miles. To learn more about the movement, look at www.rideofsilence.org. The ride began at 6:00 PM at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara.
	May 21, Use Your Bike for Transportation, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition. Ideas from Dru van Hengel, Ralph Fertig, Matt Dobberteen, and Don Lubach about how they chose and equipped their bikes for commutes, shopping and other trips. It was at Farrand Hall, Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol, Santa Barbara, 7:00 PM, free admission.
	May 22 and May 24, Bici Centro Repair Workshops. These were from our local community bike program for bike repair, skill sharing, construction, and great company. Thursday 4:00-8:00 PM, Saturday1:00-7:00 PM, Bici Centro, 601 East Montecito Street, Santa Barbara. Bici details here
	May 24, Bike to the Merc, sponsored by Bici Centro. Group bike ride from Bici Centro to the Mercury Lounge in Goleta for the Bike Film Night (see below). Started at 7:00 PM, Bici Centro, 601 East Montecito Street, Santa Barbara. Details from Ed France, 310-936-0850.
	May 24, Bike Film Night, sponsored by our Bicycle Coalition and HopeDance. It was a fun evening of comraderie and our selection of bike films at the Mercury Lounge. It was held outside behind the Merc. Mercury Lounge, 5871 Hollister Avenue, Goleta at 8:00 PM.
	May 25, Bike Clinic, sponsored by Open Air Bicycles. This Bike Week clinic covered bicycle maintenance basics to give participants confidence to make repairs yourself when they're away from home. Open Air Bicycles, 224 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, 8:30-10:00 AM. Phone 962-7000, or email MFasth@aol.com for details.

Bike Week history

Each May since 1994, the Bicycle Coalition has promoted activities that encourage people to enjoy bicycling more. This has always included our Bike to Work Day that attracts 500-to-2000 bicyclists to multiple sites around Santa Barbara County. This not only rewards those who regularly bicycle, but it encourages first-timers to give it a chance. Also, by gathering bicyclists together, it underscores the seriousness of bicycling as a realistic and responsible way to get around.

Starting in 1999, Bike to Work Day was expanded to Bike Week. Our vision for Bike Week is to fill it with new events each year as resources permit and enthusiasm directs. We have archives of Bike Week 2005, 2006, and 2007 for you to look back at.