I had the honor of co-coordinating the SBC Monster Cookie recreational bicycle ride with Debbie Miller this year. This is our third year sharing this responsibility. Tim Newman is our fearless SBC leader and president.
This Sunday, we saw the first run of a new project, the Salem Bicycle Rodeo. This was a first year event and a new addition to our project. We chose to embrace this as part of the Monster cookie this year. We worked with the team from Safe Routes to School to allocate space and share venue resources. We did this as an addition to our increasingly popular 6.2 mile Mini Cookie. The Mini Cookie is targeted at our younger riders and families who want to ride together. This year, Jacob Lippert, SBC club member and Safe Routes principal led the mini cookie ride.
While we are still tallying, it looks like the overall SBC Monster Cookie experienced a 50% increase in ridership this year. We believe our investment in the future of cycling is starting to pay off. Last year we donated most of the proceeds from the 2025 Monster cookie ride to the Safe Routes program and contributed to the new bicycle trailer they have acquired. We also had record attendance for the third year of our Mini Cookie. The Bike Rodeo which your staffer attended was a first year project for us and was organized by the Safe Routes to School team. I know the intention was to invite our Mini Cookie riders to join in. As a first year event, we do look at this with a much longer lens. Just 50 years ago, 17 brave cyclists headed out to Champoeg state park for the first time, for what became the Monster Cookie. We see big things coming from these small beginnings
