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Happy Bike Month from WE Bike NYC! Check out all the great activities happening this month!
WE <3 Moms!
 
WE Biker Susannah and her son

May is bike month, so WE are super busy. Of course, there's the Mother's Day ride with CycloFemme on May 12, but the following Sunday, WE have something really special planned. There is an awesome community of moms in New York who bike, and WE want to reach out to more of them! So WE are throwing them a party. WE're hosting a meetup called "Moms on Wheels" in Carroll Park, Brooklyn from 10AM to 2PM on Sunday, May 19. There's going to be food, fun and prizes, and the event will be open to moms and non-moms alike!

In celebration of New York's cool biking moms, WE spoke with WE Biker Susannah Bortner about why she loves biking with us, and some tips for biking with kids.

WE Bike: Why do you like this initiative? Why are you part of it? 
Susannah Bortner: I love this initiative because it aims to increase the community of mothers riding bikes with their kids in NYC. I want to help more moms in NYC discover the joys of biking with their kids, as I have!
 
How is biking and bike knowledge that you get from WE Bike NYC specifically empowering to women who ride with their kids?:
I was biking the Prospect Park loop with my 3-year old son this past summer when I realized I had a flat tire. I walked the bike over to the grass, sat down, and busted out my official WE Bike NYC fix-a-flat kit. Luckily I'd purchased one a few weeks before at the fix-a-flat workshop that Liz taught. I'd taken notes on my phone during Liz's workshop, and so I looked up my notes and went to work. Within 30 minutes, the kid and I were back on the road! While I was fixing the flat, Donovan stood by me and handed me things and talked with me about what I was doing. It was a very meaningful parenting moment for me, as a woman raising a young feminist son, to demonstrate to him how biking empowers me, and by extension, empowers him, as I pass on knowledge to him.
 
Why do you love cycling with your kids? Do you have a personal anecdote about an activity that is only accessible on a bike? 
My son and I have our best moments as mother and son when we're biking together. We talk, sing, make up silly rhymes, and generally just act silly together. And while we're spending that time together, we're also getting around the city and exercising! 
 
We specifically love biking to the Brooklyn Children's Museum, as without a bike it's a bit of a public transportation trek. On the bike, we just zoom down the Dean Street bike path and have a great time observing the beauty of the city around us as we ride. Once we saw a dead rat, too! And my son has never forgotten that. :-)
 
What are a few ways that women can get started cycling with kids? Three quick tips?
1. Find a bike that fits your needs, height, and child seat of choice. Don't settle for an old hand-me-down bike if you aren't comfortable riding it! Bikes are like shoes; they have to fit!
2. Get comfortable riding your bike without your child first. You have to feel confident riding on your own before taking your child along with you.
3. Start small with local trips to playgrounds and stick to bike paths. Soon you won't want to travel any other way!
 
 
WE Bike NYC Upcoming Events

*WE Bike NYC events are open to women, trans, and gender non-conforming riders only,  unless otherwise noted.*
All WE Bike NYC events can be found on our website here: http://webikenyc.org/events/

May 5
5 Boro Bike Tour
ALL DAY!, WE’ll be meeting at 6:15am, at the fountain in City Hall Park
This ride is a great opportunity to see all 5 Boros by bike with 13,000 other people! This year WE Bike NYC has a group of 20 riders. If you didn’t register this year, it’s ok, there’s always next year!
http://www.bikenewyork.org/ride/five-boro-bike-tour/

May 10
Bike Month Kickoff Event
2pm- 6pm, Whole Foods Market, TriBeCa, 270 Greenwich St.
WE Bike NYC will be hanging out with a table at Whole Foods helping kick off this amazing month!

May 11
Brooklyn Bike Jumble
10am- 4pm, Old Stone House, 5th Ave and 4th Street in Park Slope
This is like a huge yard sale where everything is related to bikes! Come to buy a vintage Raleigh or peruse a variety of locally made bicycle accessories.  WE Bike NYC will have a table where WE’ll be selling t-shirts, giving away stickers, and generally having a great time! Come by and visit!
http://www.nybikejumble.com/

May 12
Cyclofemme Ride sponsored by Eleanor's with Bike Portraits by Biking Public Project
Meet at 11am for the ride, or join us on Roosevelt Island at 1pm for a picnic.
Manhattan-Fountain at Central Park at 59th Street
Queens-Immigrant Movement International 108-59 Roosevelt Avenue
Brooklyn-Brooklyn side of Williamsburg Bridge Entrance
Bronx-Neighborhood Cycle, 571 Courtlandt Avenue (btwn 149th & 150th)
Cyclofemme is an international event that celebrates women on bikes! Join us for rides coming from 4 different boroughs (Manhattan, Queens, Bronx and Brooklyn) to converge on Roosevelt Island for a picnic (veggie sandwiches will be provided) and free bicycle portraits by the Biking Public Project.
Please RSVP to webikenyc@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/events/292420140889154/?ref=14
http://cyclofemme.com/
http://www.eleanorsnyc.com/
http://bikingpublicproject.tumblr.com/

May 13
Officer’s Meeting
7pm- 9pm, Irving Farm Coffee,  27 W 20th Street, Manhattan
All are welcome to join us to plan upcoming events and activities. What do you want to see WE Bike NYC do this summer? RSVP to webikenyc@gmail.com.

May 19
Moms on Wheels
10am- 2pm, Carroll Park, Brooklyn (at Carroll and Court Street)
This event is dedicated to getting more moms on bikes with their kids! Join us to test out various bike seats and trailers, talk to expert moms who ride with their kids in the city, get your helmet fitted, sign up for a free safety class in June from Bike NY, enjoy kids activities like face painting and bike/scooter/stroller decorating and enter to win some amazing prizes in our raffle!

May 22
Hollaback! Anti Street Harassment Workshop
TBD.
Hollaback! has been working against sexual harassment on the street in NYC and all over the world through their web and phone apps, and now they are taking it a step further with “Bystander Intervention Trainings”.  The after work training on May 22nd will focus on how cyclists who are not being targeted can help empower targets and end street harassment.
Please RSVP at webikenyc@gmail.com
http://www.ihollaback.org/

May 25
Fix a Flat workshop
1pm, Meet under the arch in Grand Army Plaza, Prospect Park
Start off the season right by learning to fix a flat yourself! Even if you already know how to do this, it never hurts to practice and pick up a few tips from our professional female mechanic teachers! Bring your bike, tools will be provided.  Fix A Flat kits available for purchase for $8.
Please RSVP to webikenyc@gmail.com.

May 31
Queens Mujeres en Movimiento Graduation

6pm, 108-59 Roosevelt Avenue, Queens between 11th St. and 108th St.
Our first WE Bike NYC Earn- A- Bike participants are graduating! Join us at the Immigrant Movement International to celebrate the incredible amount of work these women have put into becoming bike leaders in their community.  
To learn more about the Earn A BIke program, check out the WE Bike NYC website http://webikenyc.org/madres-earn-a-bike/

June 4
Street Skills class by Bike NY
6pm-8pm, Prospect Park YMCA, 359 9th Street
This is a chance to learn rules of the road off your bike. Join us for this classroom session where we will tackle issues like "what to do when the bike lane ends" and "can you really go either direction in a bike lane?" (no.) Test out your knowledge with real scenarios and ask any questions you might have in a women, trans, gender non-conforming setting. This class is free, but space is limited! Learn more here.
Please RSVP to webikenyc@gmail.com.
Community Events
May is Bike Month so there are about a thousand things happening! Any time you want to ride a bike, you can ride it to a party, basically! So check out bikenyc.org for a full calendar, and look at a few of our favorite events by going to our website below:
 
All Month!
National Bike Challenge!
Sign up. Ride your bike. Earn prizes!
 
May 17th- National Bike to Work Day and TA Party/ 8:30 pm Reflective Fashion Show featuring some WE Bike NYC women! 
 

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