Smart Trips Month

Ready to travel smarter? Then join us in May for Smart Trips Month. We’ve got lots of great events planned that highlight the fun you can have carpooling, biking, walking, or taking transit and encourage new Smart Trip members to try an alternative to driving alone.

Undriver License
Get your license to do anything but drive! Challenge yourself to try on a new way of getting around for something you’d normally drive to and enjoy the benefits of “undriving”: fresh air, exercise, community connections, saving money, less stress, and even more time.

Take the Undriving Challenge. Make a pledge to get to where you’re going without driving alone. Here are some ideas for you:

• Commit to not driving on Tuesdays and Thursdays
• Bike to work on Fridays
• Form a carpool to get to church or a regular meeting
• Start a Walking School Bus with your neighbors to get the kids to school
• Get a bike trailer for cargo or kids
• Walk to the grocery store with a rolling cart
• If you are already a committed Undriver, share your experiences as an Undriver with friends and co-workers, and encourage them to make their own pledge

It pays not to drive alone-in more ways than one! Licensed “Undrivers” will get these extra benefits during the month of May when they show their Undrivers License:

• 20% off any regularly priced item at Mast General Store (one discount per day, please.)
• Free rides on KAT every Tuesday
• Free cup of gourmet coffee at the Market Square Farmers’ Market
• Free fountain drink or iced tea with a $5 purchase at Tomato Head restaurant

We’ll have Undrivers License Stations at the Farmers’ Market on Market Square every Wed during May from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and at Mast General Store on Sat., May 10 from noon to 3 p.m. You can also request a license online or get one at any of the Smart Trips events listed here.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

CARPOOL

How Many Can You Fit in a Fit?
May 8, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Watch local companies try to stuff their employees into a Honda Fit (courtesy of Rusty Wallace Honda). The company who can squeeze the most people in will win a pizza party for their Smart Trips participants. Market Square.

Free Ridematching
Find a carpool partner online for free. Just register for Smart Trips, click on “Find a Carpool” and you’ll see the results in minutes. For more information, call 215-2916.

TRANSIT

Try Transit Tuesdays
Just show your Undriver’s License any Tuesday during May and your ride on KAT is free!

Transit Route Planning
Not sure which KAT route goes by your house? Check out the KAT website at www.katbus.com or call 637-3000 to figure out how to get there (wherever your “there” is)!

BIKE

Bike to Work Day
May 16, 7:30 – 8:30 a.m.
Whether you’re already biking to work or just starting out, stop by Market Square or in front of Hodges Library at UT to accept a token of our appreciation. Bike commuters will receive a coupon for a free coffee and pastry, as well as a tire patch kit.

Guided Bike Commutes
May 16
Want to bike to work, but aren’t sure about the best route? Or would you just like some company along the way for a change? More and more people are choosing to bike instead of drive. Meet at one of these locations to join the movement (call 215-3815 for more info or to sign up):

• 7 a.m., North Knoxville to downtown and UT. Meet at Office Depot/Food City parking lot on Broadway, 4212 N Broadway.
• 7 a.m., East Knoxville to downtown and UT. Meet at Holston River Park , 3300 Holston Hills Road (top parking lot by pavilion).
• 7:15 a.m., Bearden to downtown and UT. Meet at Third Creek Greenway trailhead, 130 Forest Park Blvd (former Bi-Lo).
• 7:15 a.m., South Knoxville to downtown and UT. Meet at Food City parking lot, 4580 Chapman Highway .

Get Outdoors Bike Ride
May 17, 10 a.m.
World’s Fair Park
The first of the Knoxville By Cycle summer ride series, this beginner ride will showcase the new Second Creek Greenway connection to Neyland Greenway, and the new skatepark at Tyson Park . Helmets required—all ages and skill levels welcome.

3rd Annual Pedal Vs Metal Race (Results)
May 9, 10 a.m.
Who will win this race to complete errands around town? It’s man (and woman) against machine in this fun event. The race will begin and end at Market Square in downtown Knoxville . The bicyclists have won the past two years. Will they win again, or will the motorist take the crown? And new this year, spectators can see the progress of each participant thanks to Sprint GPS technology! Come cheer as the winner crosses the finish line.

Roadside Bike Repair Class

• May 5, 7:30 p.m.
  Greenlee’s Bike Shop, 1402 N Broadway. Celebrate Cinco de Maya by learning how to fix a flat! Call 522-8228 by May 2 to sign up.
• May 22, 6:30 p.m.
  Cedar Bluff Cycles, 9282 Kingston Pike. Call 692-1010 by May 20 to sign up.
• May 10, 9 a.m.
  Harper’s Bike Shop, 118 Northshore Rd. Call 588-5744 by May 8 to sign up.
• May 12, 6:30 p.m.
  Earth Traverse Outfitters, 2815 Sutherland Ave. Call 524-0000 by May 10 to sign up.
• May 21, Noon
  Farmers’ Market on Market Square, Tennessee Valley Bicycles.
  (They also offer maintenance and repair classes at their shop, 214 Magnolia between Gay and Central. Call 540-9979 for more information.)
• Every Tuesday, 7 p.m.
  River Sports. Call Eric at 523-0066 to sign up ahead of time.

Women's Bike Clinic
May 8, 6 – 8 p.m.
Topics include bike selection and fit, accessories, clothing, basic maintenance, and fixing flats. Men welcome also. The Bike Zoo, 4445 Kingston Pike. Call 558-8455 for more info.

Bike Commuter Fair
Every Wed, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Market Square
Want to find out more about bike commuting and how you can do it? Come to our bike booth and get the answers. Local bike shops will be on hand with commuter bikes and everything else you need to start biking to work, or to run errands.

Confident City Cycling
June 14, 8:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Want to learn how to ride your bike safely and confidently in traffic? The 4½ –hour class combines classroom learning with on-bike exercises and a practice ride in traffic. $30 fee includes League Guide to Safe and Effective Cycling. Blount Mansion, 200 W. Hill Ave. (between Gay St. and State St.). Must pre-register by June 12. More info and registration form at www.knoxtrans.org/plans/bikeprog/classes.htm.

Bike Mentor Program
Want to find the most comfortable route between home and work or school? Call 215-3815 or go to www.knoxtrans.org for more information.

Beginner Greenway Rides
every Thursday, 6:30 p.m., River Sports, 2918 Sutherland Ave. Call Eric at 523-0066 for more info.

WALK

Suttree Lunch & Learn and Walking Tour
May 7, 11:30 a.m.
Knox Heritage presents a lunch and learn on the Knoxville locations in the Cormac McCarthy novel Suttree, followed by an informal, guided walk to selected sites from the novel. The lunch begins at 11:30 a.m. May 7 at The Foundry, 747 World’s Fair Park Drive, with the program by UT professor and Suttree scholar Wes Morgan to begin at noon. The guided walk will leave The Foundry at 1 p.m. The cost for the lunch buffet is $10 for Knox Heritage members and $15 for nonmembers. Advanced registration is required for those who will be eating lunch; call 523-8008 before 5 p.m. on May 2. For more information on the walk, call 215-3818.

3rd annual Mayors’ Cup
May 14, high noon
Market Square. Mayor Haslam won the first time around. Last year, celebrity entrant Missy Kane trounced both mayors. Watch as Mayors Ragsdale and Haslam square off again in the Mayors Cup racewalk, this time joined by teams vying to see who are the real movers and shakers downtown.

10,000 Mile Campaign
For National Employee Health and Fitness Day, May 21, employers all over East Tennessee are signing up for worksite walks to improve employees’ health and raise money for tornado victims in Tennessee. Employees will be encouraged to walk at least a mile during the workday and to donate a dollar for each mile walked. For more information or to register your place of work, call Aimee Pehrson by May 2 at 215-5187.

Central Street—Past and Future
May 21, 5:30 p.m.
Take an afternoon walk along Central Street to visit the past and see what’s in store for this urban avenue. Jack Neely, Metropulse writer and local historian, and Bob Whetsel, City of Knoxville ’s Director of Redevelopment, will lead the walk and the discussion along the way. The walk will leave from the corner of Gay Street and Summit Hill Avenue . Wear comfortable shoes for this approximately 3-mile walk.

Downtown Greenway Walk
May 28, 4:45 p.m.
The walk will be led by Kathryn Eldridge, a nationally certified fitness trainer from the Knox County Health Department’s Healthy Weight Program. Meet at the riverboat landing at the east end of the Calhoun’s parking lot for a brief warm-up and walking tips. The walk will begin at 5:15, and will follow the James White Greenway to Gov. Ned McWherter Park and back. It will finish with a stretching session. The 2-mile walk will take a brisk pace, but there will still be time to enjoy the beautiful scenery.