The Kingston Women’s Bicycle Festival celebrates Bike Month, offering more opportunities to experience, engage and empower, than ever before!
The Kingston Women’s Bike Festival (KWBF) is back for its third year and excited to announce this year’s event will offer even more opportunities for every woman to explore empowered bicycling. During May, Bike Month, KWBF programming will be offered throughout the entire month. Most opportunities will be remote but there are a limited number of in person rides on the itinerary as well. To stay informed on updates and to register for programs and events please visit: Bike Friendly Kingston/ Kingston Women’s Bike Festival . As always, all events and programs are free of charge and open to all who wish to participate.
This year, KWBF kicks off with a remote keynote presentation on May 14th at 6pm, delivered by Kea Wilson of Streetsblog.org and formerly of Strong Towns USA. Kea will be speaking to participants from her home in St. Louis about building communities centered on transportation equity. Her conversation is “specifically geared towards women and other gender-marginalized people who primarily identify simply as people on bikes rather than capital-C Cyclists, capital-U Urbanists, or technical experts on how streets are planned, designed and maintained.”
Other opportunities include:
“How to Effectively Shop for a Bicycle and Keep Your Bike Rolling Smoothly” with Samantha from Revolution Bicycles as well as ” Recomendaciones para adquirir tu bicicleta y como rodar sin problemas y segura por la ciudad”. By journalist and full time bike rider Maria Hubeaut.
“Tips on Safely Riding with Kids” presented by Inno Powell and “Cómo Montar Bicicletas Con Los Niños,” presented in Spanish by Rosebella Landau with the support of Live Well Kingston.
Presentations from the City of Kingston on upcoming projects and community engagement opportunities including: “The Future of Kingston’s Bicycle Infrastructure and How to Be an Effective Advocate” presented by Kristen Wilson, Director of the Office of Grants Management and Emily Flynn, Director of Health & Wellness.
GPI and Susan G. Blickstein, LLC will also present updates on the Safe and Accessible Foxhall and Flatbush Project and share tips on virtual engagement during COVID-19.
“Values Building and Manifesto,” hosted by Women’s History Month Kingston and facilitated by Aimee Gardner (KEII, and formerly O+). Visit murals that prompt discussion on how women have navigated and taken up space on bikes and against the status quo. Then help define the values for women’s bicycling culture in Kingston. The ride culminates in a group writing session to draft a manifesto.
Panel discussions include: “Safe Streets for Everyone” presented by Rise Up Kingston safety and accessibility envisioned by BIPOC community members, as well as innovative discussions on transportation equity hosted by Citizens For Local Power on what role cycling and other transportation alternatives play in a sustainable future. and an in depth discussion on bicycle law by with experts from O’Connor and Partners
In person opportunities include “Strong Like a Mother” guided mural rides and other wellness programs hosted by our friends at O + Festival celebrating the women who occupy space on the walls of Kingston and the heart journeys of our sacred female ancestors . Plus other group riding opportunities which explore local trails, with our friends from the Wallkill Valley Land Trust and from traffic safety educators from :SUNY Ulster and The Governor’s Traffic Safety Commi
At the heart of the KWBF mission are the goals to empower healthy, diverse, and engaged communities as a means to create environments which make bicycling accessible to women. This year the Kingston Women’s Bike Festival is expanding upon their annual one-day event to go even farther in achieving those goals. “Bike riders know that momentum is vital to any ride, but so is understanding the terrain,” says KWBF founder Rose Quinn.“That is why our journey this year will foster civic engagement and community-building. We not only want to see the road ahead, we want to play a role in where it takes us. We believe in the power of informed bike riders and community members alike.”
This year’s Kingston Women’s Bike Festival is made possible by the hard work of many women and with the support of: Women’s History Month Kingston, Bike Friendly Kingston, YMCA of Kingston and Ulster County, SUNY Ulster, La Voz, Radio Kingston, Revolution Bicycles, O+, Susan G. Blickstein, LLC, The Kingston Land Trust, Live Well Kingston, Citizens for Local Power, O’Conor and Partners, Wallkill Valley Land Trust, Rough Draft, Ulster Savings Bank, Stewart’s Shops, and The Kingston Wire.
KWBF mission statement:
We believe all women should feel free to ride a bicycle anytime, anywhere, alone or with others. The Kingston Women’s Bike Fest facilitates this vision through a festival focusing on women new to cycling or who don’t identify as cyclists. The mission of the festival is to remove barriers and empower women with the camaraderie, and the ways and means, to include cycling in their lives.
