~~~
Day’s Verse:
“Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed,”
says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
Isaiah 54:10
~~~

What have I been up to lately? Well, on Friday Every and I taught a seminar to an amazing 60 people (we expected 30 or fewer) on winter bicycle commuting in Seattle. We talked about riding in the rain, in the dark, on leaves and slippery grates; about the ABC Quick Check; what to wear; how to keep your glasses from fogging up or getting covered in water; and drilled in over and over that…

Bicyclists fare best when they act and are treated as vehicles.

Afterwards I tabled and chatted with lots of current bicyclists and people interested in bike commuting. It was awesome, and I had such a good time teaching my part of the seminar, it’s hard to believe I got paid (a little tiny bit) to do it! In general I felt it went well, and afterwards a number of people verbally told us they had learned something. Then today the organizer of the event forwarded me and Every the following email:

I just wanted to let you know that your bike seminar won two new bicycle commuters to the city of Seattle. My husband and I just bought two mountain bikes on Craigslist this weekend, along with helmets, seats, pumps, and other accessories – and thanks to the seminar we feel confident about what we need to do to stay safe in the commute. The bike path that already exists 98% of the way to our work helps too!

Well, well, well! Good feelings! Then we got more:

Thank you for putting on the seminar. It was well prepared and delivered.

I am already a daily commuter and was looking for one or two little tips to make my rides more enjoyable in addition to bringing back information for those of us at work who could not make it.

Thanks for taking the time to get more people “living more and driving less”!

And then we got even more great feedback from a Seattle Department of Transportation employee who attended:

Just wanted to say “great job!” to you [Every] & Katie with the lunchtime seminar today. I really enjoyed it & I’m sure people learned a lot of new tips. Sorry I had to cut out early.

This is so exciting, I can barely contain myself, really.

I just hope that — brace yourself; here comes the plug — the Open House at the Bicycle Alliance office on Thursday, February 4th goes even as well. I hope that if you’re in the area you will come to the Bike Alliance between 6:00 and 8:00 pm on this coming Thursday; I will be there. You’ll get to have free food and drink, hear what the Bike Alliance is up to, and see where I work. Come even for a few minutes if you can. I would certainly appreciate it.