Seminars Planned For Organizations Interested In Starting Or Enhancing Their Cycling Without Age Program

The Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin Educational Foundation will be offering four educational training seminars throughout the state in September and October for organizations interested in starting or enhancing their cycling without age program.

Cycling Without Age is a program that aims to reduce loneliness and isolation while providing the feeling of a bike ride for those who are unable to pedal on their own. The program provides outdoor experiences through the use of a trishaw – a three-wheeled, pedal-assisted electric bicycle – that accommodates one or two passengers riding in the front while a volunteer pedals from the back.

The training seminars are designed to help community members, local organizations, skilled nursing homes, assisted living residences, and ADRCs learn how cycling without age programs and trained trishaw pilots can provide older adults with enriching outdoor experiences that connect them to their community.

Pilot training includes classroom and hands-on instruction for trishaw operation, rules of the road, best practices for interactions with passengers, and a Q & A.

The seminars will be at the following locations:

Bloomer/Chippewa County Trishaw Pilot Training
Wednesday, September 27, 2023 1:00-5:00pm
Register and complete pre-class materials by September 25
Dove Healthcare
2217 Duncan Rd, Bloomer

Merrill/Lincoln County Trishaw Pilot Training
Thursday, October 5, 2023 10:00am-2:00pm
Register and complete pre-class materials by October 2
Bell Tower Residence – Assisi Hall
1500 O’Day St, Merrill
Community introductions to Cycling Without Age include a brief presentation, Q & A, and the opportunity to experience a short trishaw test ride.

Stoughton/Dane County Community Introduction
Wednesday, October 11, 2023 9:00am-10:00am
Skaalen Nursing and Rehabilitation Center
400 N. Morris Street, Stoughton
Register for Stoughton Introduction

Fort Atkinson/Jefferson County Community Introduction
Wednesday, October 11, 2023 2:00-3:00pm
Fort Atkinson Senior Center
307 Robert St, Fort Atkinson
Register for Fort Atkinson Introduction

The Bike Fed’s Cycling Out Age team is dedicated to providing support for municipalities and organizations that wish to start or enhance a program. Free assistance includes community introductions, education, trishaw rides, and online resources such as information on how to get started, fundraise for trishaws, coordinate pilot participation, as well as a library of forms – all available on the Bike Fed’s CWA webpages.

Inquiries regarding Cycling Without Age in Wisconsin may be directed to CWA Program Manager Michelle Bachaus at michelleb@wisconsinbikefed.org.

About the Wisconsin Bike Fed
The Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin Educational Foundation, Inc. (AKA Wisconsin Bike Fed) is a 501(c)3
non-profit organization that cultivates, motivates, and unites residents, communities, businesses, and
political leaders to move bicycling forward in Wisconsin through education, legislation, and involvement. The
Wisconsin Bike Fed is the only statewide organization that advocates for better bicycling for everyone who
rides a bike in Wisconsin:
● Advocate for cycling – including encouragement for the governor to include transportation
access and environmental concerns in the proposed 2023-24 biennial budget.
● Provide programs to make bicycling safer and more accessible across the state –
particularly in the state’s most populous urban communities of Milwaukee and Madison.
● Promote Wisconsin as an economic engine for cycling – highlighting scenic trails and
emphasizing the many large and small businesses that support bicycling as direct producers,
repairers, or vendors of bikes and related accessories, as well as the hospitality industry that
benefits from cycling. According to the most recent impact study released by the governor’s office
in 2020, consumers spent $1.42 billion in 2017 on direct bicycle-related expenditures, bringing
funds into our businesses and state budget.
Celebrating 35 Years of Cycling Advocacy and Education in Wisconsin in 2023
Learn more about how the organization was established in 1988 as the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin,
then became the Wisconsin Bike Fed along the way, and the impact for cyclists around the state.