The beautiful weather on July 27^th brought people from across the city and beyond to the 8-miles of Sunday Parkways route located in Northeast Portland. Over 27,800 people joined us in celebrating a grand summer Sunday, with a large number, about 95% bringing their bikes in tow. Once the clock struck 11 am, Alberta Park came alive with a number of fun activities that included the Kaiser Permanente’s Double Dare Challenge, the Parks and Recreations climbing wall, and Zumba Classes. The music from the Zumba classes swept into the streets and carried riders to Fernhill Park where laughter awaited on top of stilts, along with ferrets and many other wonders.  

For riders beginning or stopping at Rigler School, they soon found themselves immersed in a bicycle safety and learning fair presented by Andando en Bicicletas en Cully, also known as the ABC group. The fair present a series of classes that taught bi-lingual trainings on (1) Basic Mechanics (2) Helmet Fitting (3) Rules of the Road (4) and Riding Techniques. The ABC group Bike Fair also taught both adults and kids how to ride a bike, in addition to how to install and ride with a baby/cargo trailer. The cargo trailers used by the group were provided by Kaiser Permanente. At Rigler School,  bike safety went hand in hand with the fun provided by Sunday Parkways duo Sparkle Movement and DJ Doc Rock who gave both participants and vendors a chance to hula hoop and dance to their heart’s content.

For those who wanted the tunes to continue, they soon found themselves in Woodlawn Park whereas back to back music led Sunday Parkways participants on a journey through time and place. Woodlawn started the day with music from Carroll Raaum Swing Orchestra which played homage to passed Portland composer with the song The Big John Special. Mr. Ben then took the musical reins at 12:30 pm and played a series of fun kid friendly tunes. Last but least, DJ Prashant got the crowd moving with his Bollywood beats. The music continued at Holman & 13^th Park whereas The Alphabeticians sang playful and education songs.

All in all, the day began and ended with music, laughter, sun and many many visitors. We would like to thank all of our sponsors, donors, vendors, volunteers, entertainers, Police and flaggers for making this such a great event. We look forward to our next one on August 24^th in North Portland. To stay up to date or to share your stories, join us on Facebook and/or Twitter.