JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas –
Schoolchildren will learn about bicycle safety from law enforcement officers and have a chance to win prizes at the Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston spring bike rodeo from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 8 in the parking lot at Stanley and Reynolds roads, across from the Personnel Processing Center, building 2263.
The event is being hosted by the 502nd Security Forces Squadron at JBSA-Fort Sam Houston and is open to elementary and middle school students throughout JBSA, grades three to eight. Activities include obstacle courses for children to ride and compete in, a film and information on bicycle safety and proper safety equipment and a display by the San Antonio Police Department on drinking and driving and distracted driving.
Lt. Steven Dews, 502nd SFS police supervisor, said children who participate in the bike rodeo will watch a film on bike safety, which will be shown in a classroom located in the basement of the Personnel Processing Center, before they can ride on the obstacle course.
Children will be required to bring their bicycles and safety equipment, including helmets, to participate in the bike rodeo.
Three obstacle courses will be set up to test a rider’s ability to assess a simulated situation, their decision making and reaction skills, their knowledge of hand and arm signals and signage and wearing of proper safety equipment, including helmets, said Dews.
“The purpose is to test our children to see how much they know about the aspects of bike safety,” Dews said. “The main goal is to get that knowledge of safety out there and for them to think about safety whenever they go out. Safety is something they should think about at all times.”
The obstacle course competition will consist of elementary and middle school age categories, with the top performer in each category receiving a bicycle and the runners-up safety helmets. Each of the prize items are being donated by the JBSA-Fort Sam Houston Exchange. The top two riders in each category will be determined by the least amount of cones they knock down on the obstacles courses.
For parents and high school-age children, the display by San Antonio police officers will enable them to try on goggles that simulate them driving impaired while riding an oversized tricycle on a course.
Dews said the display will familiarize teenagers who are going to become first time drivers about the consequences of drinking and driving and distracted driving.
Also, police officers will be giving out McGruff the Crime Dog flyers and brochures on bike safety, drinking and driving and distracted driving.
“We are getting in gear for the summer months,” Dews said. “We want to let our JBSA members know that we care about their well-being and safety. I want them to have some fun and to do it carefully. We want them to get through the summer months without any incidents.”
Refreshments, donated by the JBSA-Fort Sam Houston Commissary, will be provided at the bike rodeo.
For information on the bike rodeo, call 221-3735.
Parents and children who want to learn more about bike safety can find information on it at http://www.safekids.org/tip/bike-safety-tips-pdf.