The 14th annual Bike Play kicks off tonight (Thursday, July 13th) and it’s going to be a scary good time.
What is Bike Play? It’s a theater production by professional actors who integrate bikes into the script and move between scenes in a massive group ride. Put another way, it’s a must-see event, easily one of the best things about Pedalpalooza, and an amazing example of Portland’s creative and accessible bike culture (it’s free!).
[‘Bike Play: Beyond Velodrome’ is Pedalpalooza’s must-see event]
This year the title is Jurassic Bike. When I ran into the Bike Play crew at the Pedalpalooza Kickoff Ride on June 1st, cast member Emilie Landmann said we can expect all the fun, original stunts and songs Bike Play is known for, in addition to more puppetry and lots of scares.
“We can’t guarantee the safety of our riders,” Landmann said, jokingly. Then another cast member, Scott Weidlich, interjected, “The ride itself will be safe. It’s the dinosaurs that will be scary!”
For more on this year’s play, here’s the description from the Pedalpalooza calendar:
Hold onto your bike seats, Bike Play is back and bigger than ever! Welcome to Jurassic Bike! We fused dino DNA with Bikes together to create the world’s first Bikeosaurs, what can possibly go wrong? Join the exclusive tour of Portland’s most dangerous biological preserve and witness the evolution of Bike kind. Bike finds a way! WARNING: Bike Play is not responsible for any sudden dinosaur attacks*.
Dino-related costumes are encouraged!
Bike Play begins at 7:00 tonight at the Abernethy Elementary School (2421 SE Orange Ave) playground. Meeting up starts at 6:30 and I highly recommend getting there early if you want a good place to sit. For more updates and info, follow Bike Play on Instagram.
