Biking in town may be a challenge, but some enthusiasts are putting their helmets together to find ways to still keep the sport fun and safe.
With the Bike and Pedestrian Master Plan approval under the belt from the planning board, area “Way to Go” alternative transportation task force members through Sustainable Cherry Hill are looking toward the future.
A future brimming with well marked bike lanes, sidewalks and rule following on the parts of bikers and motorists.
“This is the best thing that’s happened to us,” task force member Barbara Berman said of the concrete plan that will help Cherry Hill attain grants.
Coming up next, the group is readying for the second annual Family Fun Bike Ride as part of the Art Blooms Earth Festival on Saturday, April 27. The rain or shine event will begin at 9 a.m., with registration an hour prior. Helmets are required, and cyclists must be 8 years old or older to participate. The route will start and end at Croft Farm, 100 Borton’s Mill Road.
Keswick Cycle, located at 305 East Route 70, is supporting the ride by providing free bike checks from now through the start of the ride.
“Basically, we go over the bike and ensure that everything is working correctly,” Store Manager PJ Clark said. “We’ll work on any bike.”
The brakes, gears, tires and bolts are all checked to make sure the bike is in 100 percent working condition, Clark said.
Call (856) 795–0079 for more information about the bike checks or visit www.keswickcycle.com.
Task force member Don Elsas will gear the riders toward safety with a pre-ride, 30-second clinic.
“I just give some tips at the beginning of the ride,” he said.
Tips are to include signaling when turning and calling out hazards to fellow cyclists.
Elsas is also involved in the MS ride from the city to the shore, where he gives four-hour classes.
Last year’s Earth Festival ride was eight miles. Two rides are being offered for this year’s event, a two-miler and a 10-miler, both of which will include the new bike lanes on Kings Highway below Ponzio’s Diner, Berman said.
“We want to share the road with the cars,” she said. “We want Cherry Hill to be a community where you don’t have to get in your call all of the time.”
For Berman, that is not the case right now. When crossing Route 70 on her bike, she sends up a small prayer, which leads her to primarily bike in neighborhoods.
“I love the freedom, I love being outside, I love being able to look at the scenery and get places,” she said.
Staying fit propels task force member Rob Blatt to hop on his bike.
“For me, biking is about exercise and enjoying the outdoors. I’m not one of those guys that loves to exercise so when I can figure out a way to do something that doesn’t feel like exercise it’s a huge win,” he said. “There’s something about a morning ride on a beautiful day that’s just wonderful. It’s really that simple.”
To stay safe, it’s necessary to find routes that are friendly to cyclists, which tend to be different than driving routes, and taking the time of day into consideration, Blatt said.
“With some planning and creativity many of the busy roads and dangerous intersections can be, and should be, avoided,” he said. “Avoiding morning and evening rush hour may be obvious but in a community like Cherry Hill traffic congestion can pick up as early as 2:30 p.m. when the schools start letting out for the day. Early mornings on the weekends, particularly Sundays, is a great time for a bicyclist to be on the roads.”
A comfortable bike is also important, task force member John Berg said.
“Buy a bike that properly fits you and that you enjoy riding. Pick routes to ride that have little or no traffic to start with, and always follow the rules of the road and be courteous to others on the road, cyclists and motorists,” he said.
Berg coordinates the groups’ plans with the township’s recreation department, who talks with the traffic sergeant, who needs to approve the bike route.
“If needed, I discuss the route with both groups and relay the results of those discussions and at which intersections officers will be stationed,” he said. “I also coordinate with the recreation department for supplies to mark the route.”
Jay Jones, a task force member and year-round on and off road biker, developed the cue sheet for the Earth Festival ride. The sheet shows the direction, what roads are involved and the precise distance of the route.
“A cue sheet is used by cyclists when they go on rides,” Jones said. “It actually is a list of all the turns of a particular ride.”
The group ride is a good opportunity for education among cyclists, he said.
While originally focused in the world of mountain biking, he has noticed that bicyclists now tend to have feet in both forms.
“I see more and more cyclists, whether more road cyclists or mountain bike, do all of it now,” Jones said.
The “Way to Go” group meets once a month all year round, Berman said.
“We’re really hoping to beef this up,” she said. “It’s really such a team effort. We really want to get people engaged and excited about this.”
After all, biking saves gas, emissions and is a way to commune with nature, she said.
“(Biking) is very well respected. It’s a great way to get around. It’s good for the environment, it’s good for individual health,” she said.
Learn more about Sustainable Cherry Hill and the “Way to Go” task force by visiting www.sustainablecherryhill.org.
