It will be a bike rodeo like no other Saturday when more than 125 kids receive free bikes and helmets at Whitney Community Center, 1609 S. Owyhee St. in Boise, from 9 a.m. to noon.
Cyclists who participated in the 10th annual Blues Cruise recreational ride, hosted by the Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation for Health, donated many of the bikes. The Boise Bicycle Project fixed the bikes and provided more bikes through its ongoing program of recycling donated junkers into finely tuned bikes ready for the road.
Many of the bike recipients are refugees from low-income families with limited transportation options.
At Saturday’s event, the kids will receive safety training from BBP technicians who have been working for weeks to overhaul the bikes. Pro-Helmet, a local nonprofit focusing on bicycle safety, will fit each child with a free helmet provided by St. Luke's Children's Hospital. Blue Cross also is donating bike locks, Let’s Move Boise is providing free string backpacks and ACHD is distributing free taillights.
Since it was founded in 2003, the Blue Cruise has raised more than $122,000 for numerous Treasure Valley non-profit organizations, including the Women’s and Children’s Alliance, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Idaho, Children’s Home Society, Idaho Youth Ranch, Treasure Valley YMCA, and St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital. This year's Blue Cruise also benefited the Miles for Smiles Dental Van.
