Earlier this month, Damien did a profile of the Santa Monica Critical Mass. Current iterations of the event are relatively small in scale, but in years past they were highly controversial, even within the cycling community. In hindsight, however, it is clear that such events served an important purpose: they “created a safe place for cycling and made a statement that the needs of cyclists are too big to ignore.”
While much tamer in its approach, this week’s featured event mirrors Critical Mass in that it was founded in the pursuance of a purpose. Affectionately dubbed “Kidical Mass,” the event was created in order to get children and their families more excited about riding. As the original organizers state on their website, “We are creating awareness for the growing presence of kids and families on bikes and the need for all road users to respect other users of the road.”
Who: This event is hosted by Santa Monica Spoke, the City of Santa Monica, SMC bike club, and Santa Monica Community Gardeners. In accordance with its name, the event is primarily intended for children, but all children must be accompanied by their parents.
What: Kidical Mass is a safe, legal, and fun family-friendly bike ride through the community. The theme for this ride is “Community Gardens and Parks” and the ride will cover roughly 2.5 miles. There will be a free pizza party, accompanied by raffle drawing and prizes.
When: Saturday, April 26, 2014 (9 am – 12:30 pm)
Where: Memorial Park (1401 Olympic Blvd.) at the North Parking Lot off 14th Street.
To RSVP or find more information about the event, click here.
Other Events:
- Monday: The Santa Monica Architectural Review Board hosts its biweekly meeting at the City Council Chambers, beginning at 7 pm. Public input is permitted. Click here for this meeting’s agenda.
- Wednesday: Sustainable Works hosts a Green Living Workshop as part of its Residential Greening Program. Instructors will teach participants how to reduce their environment impact, while simultaneously improving their quality of life. The workshop is free to attend, takes place at the Santa Monica Library’s 2nd Floor Multipurpose Room, and will run from 7 to 8:30 pm.
- Wednesday: Toni Monzon will be teaching a class on Irrigation Water Management, specifically as it relates to irrigation scheduling. The class is about the interaction between plants, soil, and water and how these relationships can help you determine an irrigation schedule. The class will be taught from 4 to 6 pm at the Ken Edwards Center (1527 4th Street). Please RSVP to Russell.Ackerman@smgov.net to reserve a seat.
- Saturday: The City of Santa Monica will provide secure paper services free of charge for Santa Monica residents. Documents will be commercially shredded by document destruction specialists and all shredded materials will be recycled. To take advantage of this opportunity, come to the City Yards (2500 Michigan Ave.) between 9 am and 2 pm.
- Saturday: Heal the Bay and the Santa Monica Pier will continue the Earth Day festivities with several exciting events. On the north side of the pier, Heal the Bay will be hosting its monthly Nothin’ But Sand Cleanup, running from 10 am to 12 pm. Just down the beach, Heal the Bay will also be hosting a Sandcastle Contest, which will feature the creations of architecture firms, design shops, entertainment studios, and more. This competition will run from 9 am to 12:30 pm, but there will also be a smaller scale contest from noon to 2pm for visitors who want to build their own sculptures. Finally, anyone who participated in the Beach Cleanup will be rewarded with free admission to the Aquarium, which will be open from 11 am to 5 pm.
- Sunday: The Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation (SMMEF) hosts its inaugural Pier Party!, a fundraising event to benefit all students in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD). The Party will take place on Sunday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for families, who will enjoy games, rides, live DJ, face painting and more family fun at Pacific Park on the historic Santa Monica Pier. For more information, visit the event website here.
