Sunday, July 6, 2014

August Ride: Waterfront to Ruston Family Fair

On August 9 our monthly ride will head to the waterfront for a 1.7 mile route to the Ruston Family Fair in the heart of the historic Ruston Business District. There will be many free activities for kids at the Fair including old fashioned games and wagon rides, a classic car show, and outdoor music. Something for everyone to see and do!


Let's meet-up at 10:30am near the Copperline Apartments (4760 Ruston Way), where the new Point Ruston trail starts with this Giant Octopus on the sidewalk. If you're driving to the start, there's a big gravel lot across the street (on the south side of Ruston Way) where you can park for the afternoon.


The ride will follow the waterfront trail north around Point Ruston towards the marina, then up the hillside towards the main entrance to Point Defiance Park. The hill section is a rather steep grade, but the paved trail is accessible to riders on nearly any size and type of bicycle, even training wheels and push bikes. We'll regroup at the top of the hill and ride together through the Ruston neighborhood to the Fair. 


We'll plan to hang-out at the Fair for an hour before regrouping again for a ride back down the hill. You are welcome to ride back with the group, stay longer at the fair, or head back early. (If you are staying at the fair, please bring a lock to secure your bikes!) 

As usual, our pal Jeff's Ice Cream will be along for the ride to hand out a free ice cream treat to all of our riders, courtesy of the Tacoma Wheelmen's Bicycle Club.


If you're new to Kidical Mass, you can find out more about our free family bike rides here. Feel free to leave your questions in the comments below or email Matt at kidicalmasstacoma<at>gmail.com.

P.S. The Underwater Music Festival is also happening on August 9, so don't be surprised if you see a ton of boats moored off-shore near Point Ruston. 


Wednesday, July 2, 2014

July East Side Ride: Stewart Heights to Charlotte's Blueberry Park

Let's go berry picking!

On Saturday July 26, we'll meetup at 10:30am at Stewart Heights Park near the playground. At 11am we'll roll-out for a flat ride to Charlotte's Blueberry Park. We'll pick blueberries for a little while (bring a container!) then head back to Stewart Heights.

We'll provide a free ice cream to all riders at the finish, but you may want to pack a picnic or bring your swimsuit to take full advantage of both the Stewart Heights park and pool.

The route is quite flat and there's only one arterial to cross. The road surface through the neighborhood is a little rough, but this should be manageable for riders on smaller push-bikes or even training wheels. Roundtrip is 3.5 miles, but tired riders can make the ride a little shorter by not looping around the southern end of Blueberry Park.



Charlotte's Blueberry Park is a gem. There are TONS of huge blueberry bushes, picnic tables, a short trail, a port-a-potty and plenty of space to run around. The bushes are loaded with berries and should be ripening up just in time for our ride. The picking season continues through August.




Questions? Suggestions on how we can make this more fun and awesome for kids?  Leave us a comment below or email us kidicalmasstacoma (at) gmail (dot) com.