Bike to Work Week is underway, sort of

 

I biked to work!

(5/11/2026) It was 41F (5C) degrees this morning, for a chilly start to Bike to Work Week in Cedar Rapids. The forecast high was 68, and the wind was light, so though it was not as warm as last year, it was a good day for biking. Because I'll be leaving shortly for Arkansas to attend the Congress for the New Urbanism--watch this space for exhaustive updates!--this was my one chance to Bike to Work.

Sad to say, today was a disappointment, Bike to Work Weekwise. Programmers have doubled--tripled?--down on the commuter rides which were a small draw last year. This year, in addition to the two rides to Downtown, there were six rides from various parts of town to Collins Aerospace, a longtime partner in things Bike to Work Week.

2018: Pit stop on the Collins campus

Collins Route 4 riders were scheduled to leave from Bever Park on the southeast side near my house at (gulp!) 6:45. I gamely got up, donned the Sag Wagon shirt I scored at last year's afterparty...

All dressed up and ready to go

...with rubber bands to keep my pant legs away from the bike chain...

...and got to Bever Park with time to spare, only to find...

Bever Park in the morning light

...no bikers at 6:45. As I rode around the park looking for some, I found five people walking dogs, and one guy in a truck opening gates, but no one on a bicycle other than me. After ten minutes of quiet contemplation, I returned home. Had the Grinch stolen Bike to Work Week?

1st Avenue entering Downtown by the
Cedar Valley Nature Trail crossing

I decided to go Downtown to meet the incoming riders, as I had done last year. The first person I met was Ben Dattilo, who works at Collins Aerospace as well as being a member of the city's Active Transportation Advisory Commission. He was the entire Collins Ride 1 group, having no takers on the 12 mile ride in from Hoover Park on the far southern edge of the city.

A little while after Ben went on his way to work, Downtown Ride 2 came down the Cedar Valley Nature Trail from the northeast side.

Haley Sevening bikes to work

Haley Sevening from the city's Community Development Department was also riding alone. "Hopefully the weather ticks a couple degrees warmer the rest of the week," she told me later, "and we get some more folks joining!" There is warmer weather ahead, but there are also such things as gloves. A Silver-Level Bike Friendly Community ought to be turning out more cyclists than this on a day like today!

Do I have suggestions? Well, if I were smart, I'd be rich, or at least have more than two people at my New Bo Open Coffee meetups. I think Bike to Work Week in the 2020s could work on visibility, funding, and a sense of occasion. 

1. Organizers need to start fires under their friends, for if they can't sell it to their friends, how will they sell it to the rest of the city? Half a dozen cyclists on a group ride on a weekday morning is many times better than one, and is a start towards more and larger rides.
2. Are there organizations who could lend members and maybe some funds? The Downtown SSMID, for example, or Main Street, Physicians Clinic of Iowa, the Cedar Rapids Kernels, ...
3. We could use some celebrity presence. Ten years ago, Mayor Ron Corbett was a regular part of these events. I gather our current mayor isn't into this, but what about musicians, athletes, CEOs, and other Cedar Rapids-famous people?

The rest of the week looks like this:

Tues-Chain Reaction Bike Hub volunteer night

Wed-Bike to Lunch, Bike Camping Basics workshop

Thu-Meet Me at the Market bike ride

Fri-Handlebar Happy Hour at Kickstand 

The Ride of Silence will occur the following Wednesday, May 20.

LAST YEAR'S POST: "Bike to Work Week 2025," May 12-16, 2025