150 Walk and Roll in
Second Annual
SpokesnFolks Human Powered
Parade and Festival
150 Walk and Roll in
Second Annual
SpokesnFolks Human Powered
Parade and Festival
| On a sunny Sunday afternoon in October, 150 people took part in a celebration of human powered transportation as the second annual SpokesnFolks Parade and Festival wound its way through downtown La Crosse. The event was held on October 11 and coincided with the opening of the Governor's Bicycling Conference at the La Crosse Center. The history of the SpokesnFolks Parade goes back to the Spring of 1997, when a group of bicyclists held a "Critical Mass" bike ride to protest lack of accomodation for bicycles in traffic engineering. Ten riders received citations at the end of the ride for obstructing traffic, which they contested in Municipal Court. Then-judge Edmund Nix found the riders guilty and sentenced them to "do something creative to promote your cause." Among his suggestions were "parades and demonstrationslegal demonstrations," and the SpokesnFolks Parade was born. Last year's SpokesnFolks Parade attracted nearly 100 people on a rainy fall afternoon. There were pedestrians, baby strollers, wagons, bicycles, tricycles, unicycles, rollerblades, skateboards, three-wheeled bicycles, jugglers, musicians, percussionists, clowns, goofballs, kids, floats and displays, and even a lot of normal people. |
This year's event improved in many ways. The weather was sunny and warm. The turnout increased by 50%. In addition to all of the unusual suspects who participated last year, there were many more children and unusual transportation devices. La Crosse Mayor John Medinger took a seat on an eight-seat bicycle (built by "stretching" the frame of a '36 Harley) for the duration of the parade, and retired Judge Edmund Nix donned his judicial robes to choose the winners of prizes for the most creative costumes and displays. The purpose of the SpokesnFolks Parade is to promote and celebrate all forms of human-powered transportation. Among the advantages of human-powered transportation are freedom from the economic burdens of motorized transportation, improved physical and emotional well-being, reduced noise and pollution, and traffic structures that are gentler on the land and its citizens. Neighborhoods are brought closer together as people increasingly interact face-to-face, rather than from within the shells of their cars. In other words, relying on our own power makes us a richer, healthier, happier people living in cleaner, quieter, friendlier neighborhoods. The SpokesnFolks Parade and Festival will be held again in the fall of '99 and every year thereafter. Specific dates, times, and places will be announced thru the SpokesnFolks web site and other sources. Photos of the '98 and '97 parades can also be viewed at this site. |