RIDESJ – Green Spaces Ride Recap
Click here to see more pictures from the rideThe 5th ride (Saturday, June 8) in the RIDESJ series was about our environment and community groups who work really hard towards keeping it GREEN. The ride wouldn’t have been possible without their support and enthusiasm that they brought to the group at every stop. We are so grateful!Valley Verde (Stop 1) – Valley Verde works towards creating a Silicon Valley that has reconnected to its agricultural roots and resources, where there is food access and a healthy lifestyle for all. Raul Lozanzo’s (Founder and Executive Director) self-motivation behind starting Valley Verde has resulted in over 400 families graduating from their home gardening program, and the installation of 530 raised garden beds!Guadalupe River Conservancy Visitor and Education Center (Stop 2) – The center is equipped with trail maps, information about composting and gardening and not just that – you could say hello to their local wildlife displays which include a few snakes, lizards and so on!Heritage Rose Garden (Stop 3) – Established in 1995 through an extensive community effort, the garden contains 2,600 varieties, more varieties than any other rose garden in the Western Hemisphere! They also have an adjacent picnic area, perfect place to relax post-work or on weekends.Our Community Forest (Stop 4) – Our Community Nursery and Training Center grows and nurtures thousands of native and non-native trees, shrubs and grass species - all growing to be planted in the community. Can you believe they have planted over 68,000 trees so far!We had a group of 30 riders, which was a wonderful mix of advanced bikers to those who were really new to biking and we are glad everyone had a good time. They were all there in spite of the heat wave. But! To make up for the hot evening, we had Mr. Softee! What else could make-up for the scorching sun on your heads than ice-cream with delicious options of soft serve, milkshakes, and sundaes!Thank you once again to all those who joined the ride and hope you left inspired enough to ride more often. A special thank you to our amazing ride leaders Alexa, Karie and Nory for your compassion, enthusiasm, and positivity.Also, we would like to invite you for our next ride on Sunday, June 30. Because it's June and Pride Month - well, it's a natural fit to celebrate the San Jose LGBTQ community, allies, initiatives and overall, those working towards social justice. This ride will be from 3-6pm! Former Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager will be joining us. Ken has worked over the decades to bring awareness and equity to Santa Clara in the growing progress towards LGBTQ equity. We're super excited to have him and he's a huge bike enthusiast also!Click here to register!