Bike Newport and the Newport County YMCA, together with numerous community partners, have jointly announced the sixth annual ride for bike safety – Elliot’s Ride for Everyone!
The event is named for Elliot Kaminitz, a much-loved community member who championed bike riding and bike safety, and tragically lost his life while riding his bicycle on Memorial Blvd in Newport in 2012. The Kaminitz family has supported efforts to improve bike safety in his memory and as his legacy. Elliot’s wife, Renee Kaminitz, serves on the board of Bike Newport, where she advocates for safer roads and is the honorary chair of Elliot’s Ride for Everyone.
“Elliot’s Ride has become the one day each year when everyone rides together along the ocean he loved, and we do it with a big spotlight on safety,” shared Renee. “Elliot would love this event.”
Elliot’s Ride for Everyone will take place on Sunday, June 10th, beginning and ending at Fort Adams State Park where there will be food, music, activities and demonstrations. Registration is free, and donations are welcome – all funds raised support bicycle education programs. The goal is more people on bikes having a great time together.
“The key word is EVERYONE,” explained Bari Freeman of Bike Newport, “Every age, style, and experience. Everyone who wants to ride will ride. Our beautiful byways will be enjoyed by all – many will ride along the coastline for the first time.”
To make that happen, the YMCA provides bus pickups of people and bikes at multiple locations on Aquidneck Island; there is no registration fee; and there are five different ways to participate: 6-mile, 10-mile, and 20-mile bike routes ; a 2-mile Bay Walk; and the children’s “Tour de Fort” safely nestled inside the walls of the Fort away from car traffic.
Title sponsor of Elliot’s Ride for Everyone is P3GM Newport Bike Share Solutions. P3GM is a smart city development company and will bring a pilot bike share company to Newport for a few days surrounding the event “so people can try it out!”, explained representative Vincent Raia. “Bike share programs are a key to healthy, environmentally-friendly transportation, and to universal access to biking. People on bikes enhance the economic vitality and livability of our cities. We are very excited to sponsor a ride with a vision to include EVERYONE.”
This year, amazing adaptive bikes will join the ranks. Warwick-based Bike-On will bring bikes specially made for people with different abilities, including hand-pedaled bikes and side-by-side tandems. Kyle Printer of Bike-On said adaptive riders are usually overlooked or an add on. “We’re very excited that Elliot’s Ride is focused on welcoming all sorts of riders, and we plan to have lots of people from our adaptive cyclist community participate!”
Newport HEZ is helping to spread the word and encourage new riders to join the fun and ride the coastline. “Our work at the HEZ is to encourage consideration of all members of the community and to see barriers removed. Free registration and transportation are real ways to ensure that anyone who wants to participate can.”
Elliot’s Ride for Everyone is hosted at Fort Adams Family. Joe Dias, Executive Director of Fort Adams Trust, and Megan DiPrete of RI Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) shared that the event fits perfectly with the Fort Adams vision to encourage more people to come out to enjoy the Fort and the surrounding area.
Dave Mann of Bike Newport and Kristin Petrarca of the YMCA summed it up, “We’re excited to have such a rich group of partners involved in Elliot’s Ride for Everyone. With all of us pulling together our communities to participate, we’re bound to have an amazing event.”
For more information, to register, donate, and volunteer – please visit www.elliotsride.org.