Even a trip to the grocery store can be an adventure when you choose to commute on your trusty bicycle. Missoula is a great place to load up our bikes with necessities and pedal home--the relative flatness of the terrain makes a trip home with a load of canned goods and juices entirely doable. Since moving to Missoula at the beginning of this year, I’ve done all my grocery shopping on my bicycle, and I have a few hints to pass along.

First, it helps to be a little organized. Smaller items can be picked up from local/nearby grocery stores on a daily basis, but for the larger grocery trip, I like to make a list of all the items I think I’ll be needing for the week. That way, I can check out what’s going to be on sale, as well as figure out what containers I’ll need to bring along for bulk items. Of course, I always forget things (yesterday, for example, I was making sushi and forgot seaweed!), but it’s nice to get a good collection of the foods I’m going to need for the entire week.....more

As we move into spring, it’s a joy to see so many people getting out for a walk or getting back on their bikes. I live on a very active corner in the University neighborhood and see hundreds (maybe thousands) of people cruising by every week, going to class or the café, heading to work or just enjoying a bit of exercise.

Spring is also the perfect time for us to grow BWAM. The organization’s membership has spurted from a few folks to more than 135. Meanwhile, BWAM is getting more and more active, working to create better bike/walk facilities on Reserve, Russell and Higgins streets, advocating for a “complete streets” policy in Missoula and better treatment of cyclists and walkers in and around the Garden City.

How can we be successful in making Missoula one of the best places in the U.S. to bike and walk? One big way is by growing our numbers. As several local political leaders have reminded me, few things catch their attention more than a big crowd of people demanding change. So if you’ve already joined BWAM, make sure you renew your membership and get friends and family to join. If you’re not part of the BWAM family yet, please join today! Numbers truly matter. And there’s another big benefit of joining: we’ll use your investment to keep improving our website, organize great events, and perhaps hire staff support to really boost our capacity to achieve better biking and walking.

By the way, there’s one other benefit. When you join or renew, you’ll get a $10 gift certificate to one of Missoula's hip local shops. So join or renew today – you and Missoula will benefit in so many ways. Thank you and Happy Spring!

Jim Sayer
On behalf of the volunteer BWAM Board of Directors

April 3rd Spring Kick-off Cycling Party!
BWAM, Adventure Cycling Association and Missoula Bike Works (MBW) will be hosting a fun-filled spring cycling kick-off party at MBW on Thursday, April 3 from 6 pm till the drinks run out (more or less). There’s no charge and it will be a great chance to meet a cross-section of folks who care about self-propelled transport in the Garden City. Snacks, beer, wine and non-alcoholic drinks will be served and you can enjoy the sight and feel of many fine bicycles on the MBW floor. For directions or more information, go to MBW at www.missoulabicycleworks.com or call 721-6525.

Russell on the "Block"!
BWAM has engaged on one of the big road projects facing Missoula in the next decade: the rebuilding of Russell Street. For many years, local residents have argued for a neighborhood-friendly road, a “complete street” that would serve walkers, cyclists, and motorists, keep traffic at sane speeds, and avoid harm to nearby homes.

BWAM recently caught wind that the city and its consultants may not share that vision and wrote a letter to the Public Works Department with a reasonable approach: reconstruction of the Russell Street Bridge, with better car access, bike lanes and sidewalks; a multi-lane boulevard between the bridge and 3rd Street; roundabouts at key intersections; and three auto travel lanes with bike lanes and sidewalks between 3rd and Mount streets, in part to preserve the local neighborhood and slow traffic speeds.

We got a speedy and polite response from Public Works Director Steve King, which indicates that the city administration may have a different vision, with limited or no roundabouts and five travel lanes all the way from Brooks Street to the bridge across the Clark Fork – essentially another Reserve Street in the heart of Missoula. Does Missoula really want or need another Reserve Street, probably the least popular street in the city? You can share your thoughts on the subject at a public forum on the evening of April 16th; for more information, contact John Wolverton in the Franklin-to-the-Fort neighborhood at (406) 543-6696.

BWAM Represents at Bike/Walk/Bus Week 2008
BWAM will be joining and hosting several events during Missoula's annual Bike/Walk/Bus Week (April 19-26, 2008). Stay tuned to our Events page for all the details. However, keep an eye out for BWAM at the following events:

A bike/walk commuter party on April 25th (at Missoula Freecycles)

Travel On Gamelan on April 19th, a bike ride and gamelan concert at Bonner Park (with the Missoula Art Museum, Adventure Cycling and Bernice’s Bakery)

And though not part of BWBW, BWAM will be organizing a Ride for Silence on May 21st.

Thanks to Jessica Roberts and Missoula in Motion
Missoula’s bicycle and pedestrian advocates gained some inspiration and practical knowledge when Jessica Roberts visited Missoula on March 19-20, 2008. Roberts is a Program Manager at Alta Planning and Design in Portland, OR, managing Alta’s growing number of bicycle and pedestrian program contracts, including Personal Travel Planning (individualized marketing) programs, Safe Routes to School programs, program grant writing, and designing education, encouragement, and outreach programs.

Missoula in Motion invited Roberts to come to Missoula as the keynote speaker at their annual Transportation Best Practices luncheon. While here, Roberts met informally with local bicycling and walking groups to share ideas. Her jam packed schedule included a visit with the Bitterroot Trail Group, breakfast with various bike/ped advocates at Adventure Cycling, and the luncheon; all done within a 24-hour period.

Her experience and advice were met with enthusiasm and inspired many to try new ways of advocacy and policy. Special thanks to Missoula in Motion for bringing Jessica Roberts to Missoula and sharing her with all of us.

Missoula Blogger Maps Bike Rides, You Can Help!
Daniel Nairn, Missoula blogger and owner of Discovering Urbanism set up a cool, free Google map of Missoula bike rides, and he graciously opened it up for use on the BWAM website under our Our Trips. There you will find simple instructions on how you can contribute your ride. And don't forget to check out Daniel's blog!

On an different but not so unrelated note, there is a petition circulating around the cyber world to ask that Google add a "Bike There" feature to Google Maps. If you're inclined, you can check it out here. (Hint: it's almost at 30,000 signatures!)

Join the BWAM Events Committee
BWAM is currently seeking interested individuals to help with their Events committee. If you have any marketing or planning talents and are interested in volunteering, please email us at events@bikewalkmissoula.org.

Little Known Fact
According to Ideal Bite, American drivers waste more than 2 billion gallons of fuel each year by idling in their cars..