SCOTT: Fifty-five Bluffs children receive free bikes and safety instruction

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By DAVID CAMPHOUSE

On Saturday, May 31, 55 children from Bluffs participated in a bicycle safety clinic provided by the Village.

The bicycle safety event was funded by a $12,400 Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) Safe Routes to School (SRTS) grant, which was awarded to the Village of Bluffs.

According to the language of the IDOT SRTS grant award notice, the event was designed to teach school-age children the rules of the road and safe bicycling skills and then practice the skills they learned.

At the event, Colin Kuchy, who owns Winchester’s Rural Cyclery with his wife Jaclyn Coultas Kuchy, taught participating children the basics of riding a bike safely.

“Colin did a really nice job with the kids teaching them how to ride and teaching things like using hand signals,” Bluffs Village President Linda Sapp said.

Sapp said that the children in attendance, as well as their parents, were appreciative of Kuchy’s instruction.

“There was one junior high-age boy who learned to ride that day,” Sapp said. “He rode by me later and said ‘look at me, I can ride a bike.’ He was very proud.”

Thanks to the IDOT funding, the Village of Bluffs was able to provide 55 bikes to the participants who had signed up for the event. Sapp said that the Village leadership felt fortunate to be able to positively impact the lives of so many residents with the bike giveaway.

“A few of the kids said they had never had a bike of their own or had a brand new bike,” Sapp said. “All of the kids and the parents were very appreciative.”