The Portland Bike Party is a new biking group that meets on the first Friday of each month from April through October. The group has been biking in different locations in the Portland area, announcing locations on Instagram @portlandbikeparty. The next ride will take place July 2 at 7 p.m., location to be announced. On June 4, bikers met up at Thomas Knight Park in South Portland. Catherine Bart photo
SOUTH PORTLAND — A new biking group, that most recently gathered in South Portland, wants to offer a fun and positive experience for anyone who is interested in participating.
Organized by Emma Scudder, Ian MacLellan, Nate Steinauer, Aspen Fersch and Andrew Fersch, the Portland Bike Party takes riders on a 10- to 12-mile ride each month, Andrew Fersch said. The ride is meant to be accessible to everyone and family-friendly, with everyone biking at a leisurely pace, playing music and chatting.
From April through October, Portland Bike Party will take riders through a different route, Andrew Fersch said. The group meets once a month at a different locations, usually on the first Friday of each month, and information is announced on Instagram @portlandbikeparty.
For its first year, rides have been taking place in the Portland area, Andrew Fersch said. On June 4, participants met at Thomas Knight Park in South Portland.
He said that group wants to give people a safe activity outside and create an opportunity for people to socialize.
“Our goal as people should be to maximize joy and minimize hurt — Portland Bike Party hopes to provide one more space to maximize joy in the lives of people in the area and cause no harm in the process,” Andrew Fersch said.
Besides having fun, the group also wants to spread awareness about the benefits of biking, Steinauer said.
“Portland Bike Party is community centered and everyone is welcome,” he said. “It’s primarily about having fun, but we also hope to raise awareness around the needs of the cycling community. Portland is a small city, and biking as a means of transport is a great option, but much more could be done to make that option safer and more accessible.
“People riding bikes instead of driving is good for everyone and it would be great to see the city put more resources into making Portland biker friendly.”
Andrew Fersch said that people don’t need to stay for the entire ride if they can’t or don’t want to. They can join for the first couple of miles before parting.
“We’d like to try to make sure anyone who wants to come can come,” he said.
Right now, the Portland Bike Party Instagram page has over 250 followers, and organizers hope that the group will continue to grow, Andrew Fersch said.
“One of the big things is the idea of creating as many opportunities as possible feels valuable,” he said. “Lots of other group rides happen in Portland. We’d encourage anyone to explore as many as possible, make connections. I think we’d also encourage people to show up in general. It’s a joyful thing in an otherwise challenging year.”
He said the next rides will take place July 2, Aug. 6, Sept. 3 and Oct. 29. The October ride will be Halloween-themed. Locations will be announced on Instagram.
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