Marin County Safe Routes to Schools
Team Leader Newsletter
December 2004

TEAM LEADER UPDATES

1. Staff Changes for Safe Routes for Safe Routes to Schools
2. Team Leader Meeting February 2nd
3. Happy Holidays and Thank You
4. Join the Marin County Bicycle Coalition www.marinbike.org
5. Guidelines to Buying a Bicycle for your Child
6. Holiday Ornaments from Bike Parts
7. Bike Parking at Manor Winterfest a success
8. Walk and Bike Across America at Neil Cummins
9. Featured School - Bacich School

TEAM LEADER UPDATES

1. Staff Changes for Safe Routes to Schools

We're growing and changing at Safe Routes to Schools. We are pleased to announce that we are adding a new teacher, Jason Agar (Jason@marinbike.org) who will focus on our On-The-Bike programs that teach children how to bicycle safely. Jason comes to us from Oregon where he headed up the Middle School On-The-Bike program in Eugene. His knowledge of middle school bicycle education plus his skill as a teacher, bike mechanic, and League Certified Instructor will be valuable tools as we expand our curriculum offerings.

We are also shifting Melanie Grubman's (Melanie@marinbike.org) responsibilities to allow her to focus on new curriculum development for middle and high school students. Melanie will now be our curriculum coordinator for all educational activities in the schools. We know that you will all miss working with her directly as team leader coordinator, but we look forward to using her expert skills in getting more students involved in the program.

Kim Baenisch, Associate Director of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition will be our new Team Leader Coordinator starting in January. Kim's skills as an administrator and her expertise in organizing will be a valuable asset in assisting our team leaders in carrying out the day to day activities of promoting Safe Routes to Schools. Contact her at Kim@marinbike.org.

2. Team Leader Meeting February 2nd

Save this date: Our next Countywide Team Leader gathering will be Wednesday, February 2nd from 11 am to 12:30 pm at the San Rafael Community Center on B Street. At this meeting we will be distributing the posters and materials for the winter/spring promotions including the Frequent Rider Miles Contest and Walk and Bike Across America. This is a great time to get together with Team Leaders from all over the county and share ideas and stories. Food and Childcare will be provided. Please RSVP to Kim@marinbike.org.

3. Happy Holidays and Thank You

We wish you all the joy for the holidays (and lots of walking and biking!) In this season of giving, we want to thank you for your support for Safe Routes to Schools. Your tireless work has been essential to the success we have achieved with this program. We have reduced the number of children being driven alone to school by 13%, and look forward to increasing this number as our program matures.

We are also grateful for all the support we have received from police departments, public works, the health department, principals, teachers, businesses and neighbors. These partnerships have helped to improve the safety around our participating schools and assist us in promoting the program throughout Marin County.

We thank the partners on our team, Nelson/Nygaard which provides management and oversight, and David Parisi, the engineer who has developed the plans that will make our streets more walkable and bike-able for our children and the whole community, and the County of Marin which is the official sponsor for the Marin County Safe Routes to Schools program.

4. Join the Marin County Bicycle Coalition www.marinbike.org

We also want to thank the Marin County Bicycle Coalition (MCBC). As our parent organization, we could not survive without the administrative structure the MCBC provides for our program. You can express your gratitude by joining as a member of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition at www.marinbike.org

Many are not aware of the good work provided by the Marin County Bicycle Coalition. It was the MCBC that worked with Congressional leaders to secure Marin County's designation as a national model for Safe Routes to Schools in the year 2000. The MCBC has also worked with local jurisdictions to secure commitments for over $30 million in government grants to be dedicated to improving bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure for the County of Marin and its cities and towns. While $30 million is a lot of money for our County, not a dime of that grant money funds the MCBC. It all goes to government agencies to build bicycle facilities. MCBC is a critical link in making this happen.

The Marin County Bicycle Coalition also provides education for both drivers and bicyclists through its Share the Road program, Street Skills classes for adult bicyclists, and after school bike clubs for children. Together, the Marin County Bicycle Coalition and its Safe Routes to Schools program are working to create a healthier, and more bicycle and pedestrian friendly environment for both children and adults. You can help to support the Marin County Bicycle Coalition by joining the organization today as a dues paying member. For more information about the MCBC and membership benefits, please see www.marinbike.org.

5. Guidelines to Buying a Bicycle for your Child

Use this for a holiday Safe Routes to Schools Newsletter Idea!

Do you ride with your children to school? Take advantage of holiday specials and consider replacing your child's outgrown bike with one that fits! The first thing to check when deciding if it is time to buy a new bike is the bike itself. Feel your child's bike for loose parts especially around the handlebar and pedal cranks. If there is something loose or broken, get it fixed for the holidays. If there are any cracks in the frame, take it to the bike shop immediately for a consultation.

Just like clothes, kids will outgrow their bicycles. Most bike shops can help you size a bike for your child. Before going to buy a bike, think about how your child uses their bike. This will determine what kind of frame and tire you will be looking for. Bicycles that don't fit can cause pain in the joints and make it more difficult for your child to handle his/her bike safely. If your child has a mountain or road bike, they should be able to stand over the top of the bike with about one inch between their groin and the top of the bike. BMX frames are made smaller for better handling during tricks. The length of the bike can be determined by comfort; generally you want to look for a slight bend in the elbow and in the knee. However, adjusting the height of the seat can accommodate the knee bend. Most of all make sure your child test rides his/her new bicycle and that they will like the color and style of their new vehicle. Meeting their new bike should be the beginning of a fabulous new friendship.

6. Holiday Ornaments from Bike Parts

Used chain rings and gears make fabulous tree ornaments and can be made into crafty, recycled gifts. Here is a list of things you can do with a bike cog. The cog is the bike part that the chain wraps around. Most bike shops will give you their used parts or you can buy shiny new and used parts at Recyclery, located in San Rafael at 610 4th Street (underneath the highway)

Bike cogs make wonderful wind chimes. The aluminum and steel parts sound beautiful in the wind. Use wire to hang small bike parts from the bottom of a larger cog and hear them chime. For added beauty, string beads and prisms through the wire. You can hang this mobile by using wire to create a hook at the top. Tie the wire in three spots around the top and pull wires together to form a teepee structure.

Cogs can also make picture frames. You can buy picture corners at most craft stores. Glue these onto the inside of the cogs and you have a great place to frame a picture of your child on their first bicycle. Instead of putting this on your mantel, attach a magnet onto the back and stick it on the fridge (right next to your SchoolPool magnet J).

Use bicycle cogs and spray paint for a stencil for borders around your playrooms, garage or bedroom. It looks fun and reminds you to hop onto the bike for a ride.

For inspiration for your art or to support bicycle artists and recycling, check out this website www.resourcerevival.com

7. Bike Parking at Manor Winterfest a Success

Manor School team leaders Maya Butterfield and John Reed provided bike parking for students attending their annual Winterfest in Fairfax on November 20. They set up the school bike racks near the entrance to the fair and roped them off with space for about 90 bikes. They had the awning, table and chairs from the Marin County Bicycle Coalition (and tickets for bicycle parking). Maya and John took turns and had teenage help for most of the day (the high school kids loved to organize the bikes and be the valets). Next year Maya and John expect that they will need more space, as more people will know about the bicycle parking opportunity. Concerned that people would mix the tickets up with the ones the fair used as currency, they brought some ribbon and a stapler and stapled a little bit of pink ribbon to their half of the tickets. Fortunately, no one lost their ticket or and "spent" it at the fair.

8. Walk and Bike Across America at Neil Cummins

Neil Cummins School in Corte Madera has set up it's own version of Walk and Bike Across America as a whole school activity. Every Wednesday at Neil Cummins is Walk and Roll to School day. The kids check in and use cards to vote on which direction they would like to travel on the map. Tasmin Pesso, Team leader at Neil Cummins explained the contest to the students during motor skills and science classes, which are a natural tie-in to the curriculum. "I think a really neat hook is that I tell them that their actions really make a difference in our environment, their health and for the neighborhood. I think the last one probably is the most effective as they can see so clearly the impact of traffic around our school," said Tasmin. The principal reinforced this message during the morning message on the school PA.

The Wednesday Walk and Roll participation gradually increased over the course of the activity. On International Walk to School day, which was not promoted any differently than a normal Wednesday, they had 175 kids sign in. Then Walk and Bike Across America started. By November they had 204 kids sign in and had accumulated 704 miles. Students can visit the web sites accessed through the walk at home or the school computer labs at www.saferoutestoschools.org/walk.

9. Featured School - Bacich School

Michele Rodriguez from Bacich School has started a regular feature where she recognizes kids who walk, bike or carpool to school. Below is her first installment:

I've always found it interesting to hear from other people why they do certain things. It helps me to compare my values and interests with them and I can better understand how I am "like" them or "unlike" them. As a result, I'm seeking students/families that walk, bicycle or carpool to school for an interview. I'll be asking three simple questions:

1. How do you and your family get to school and what area do you come from?
2. What is good and not so good about getting to school that way?
3. Do you have recommendations for other families who also might want to use this method to get to school?

Our first interview was with Mrs. Harris, Mrs. Block's Aide and her two children Braeden (age 6) in Mrs. Day's class and Spenser (age 9) in Mrs. Kniesche's class.

1. How do you and your family get to school and what area do you come from?

Mrs. Harris: We walk to school one time a week, but we walk home four times a week because we have one car in our household. On the other days that we don't walk, we carpool to and from school.

Spenser: We walk one mile to school each way.

2. What is good and not so good about getting to school that way?

Mrs. Harris: I like it because it gives us a chance to talk about the day without the distractions from home.

Spenser: I enjoy walking to school because we can stop and see the flowers but I don't like the loud noises and the fumes from the cars.

Braeden: I like the fresh air, but I don't like the dead animal's we see along the road.

3. Do you have recommendations for other families who also might want to use this method to get to school?

Mrs. Harris: You get an opportunity to bond with your children that you can't do in the car.

Spenser: It's good exercise.

Braeden: It's fun to do!

Thank you Mrs. Harris and family.

Thank you for your leadership in your community! For more information please contact Wendi Kallins, Safe Routes to Schools Program Director at (415) 488-4101 or wendi@marinbike.org

Safe Routes to Schools is a program funded by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and administered by the County of Marin on behalf of the Marin County Congestion Management Agency and the County, Cities and Towns of Marin