This article is the tenth in a series profiling the varied and amazing nominees for the 2008 Alice B. Toeclips Awards, which will be presented to five winners at the Alice Awards & Auction on March 22nd. This profile was written by BTA correspondent John McLaren
Tom Ralley, a Community Cycling Center volunteer and board member, has truly gone 
the extra mile working with the CCC’s Bike Clubs. It’s a great program for everyone involved, the retired Portland State University professor believes. “Who could object,†he says, “to a program in which kids earn bicycles, helmets and locks by learning to ride their bikes safely on city streets?â€
The Bike Clubs offer kids at eight Portland elementary schools a safe environment to learn bike safety skills. Tom began working with the BSC at Lent Elementary when his wife, Linda Ralley, became the school’s principal in 2003. Linda found that she needed a school volunteer to assist with CCC’s bicycle program, but available teachers were already committed to other activities, so she volunteered her husband Tom.
For the past five years he has been part of the expanding cycling activities at Lent. Along with volunteers from the CCC and the Lent school staff, he helps stage the Lent SUN Schools’ spring Community Bike Fair. For the past three years, the fairs have attracted up to 100 kids (along with some parents) who bring their bikes to the Lent playground to demonstrate their bicycle safety knowledge and skills and to just have fun.
The fairs revealed that many Lent students have bikes that are unsafe and in need of repair, so Ralley now sets aside one day a month to do free bike repairs in the Lent School lobby using supplies furnished by the CCC. For students who have completed BSC, Ralley started the SUN School’s Adventure Cycling Club to encourage students to use their bicycles to explore the Lents neighborhood. The Club cycles to places like the local swimming pool, the public library and the nearby Springwater Trail.
Since moving to Portland 12 years ago, Ralley has ridden several Cycle Oregon and Bridge Pedal events with his wife and sons. He participates in the monthly Bicycle Master Plan rides around Portland led by Roger Geller, the city’s bike coordinator. The BMP rides examine ways to improve conditions for cyclists, and will start again this year when the weather warms up.
Ralley and his wife, a committed cyclist herself, also volunteer with the Get Lit program – a joint CCC/City of Portland venture – to give lights to cyclists who ride without them (and he was at Project Homeless Connect last week). “We find a spot along one of the major bikeways at dusk and wait for unsuspecting, unlit cyclists to pass by,†he says. Most recipients appreciate getting the free lights, and some ask for additional sets for friends – but that’s not allowed since lights must be installed on bikes on the spot.
Ralley also works on the CCC’s Holiday Bike Drive, which provides bicycles and helmets to young children whose families could not afford a bike. In advance of the event, his volunteer group refurbishes many of the bikes that are ultimately given away to these families. On the big day, he’s helped with just about every part of the event: kids are registered in advance, then they arrive and go through bike safety trainings, helmet fittings and bike adjustments before leaving with just the right bike.
Next nominee: Bike commuting coach Teri Redwolf.
