This new event is almost ready to roll.

Event director Jeanie Robards and her crew of volunteers are busily putting the finishing touches on planning and coordination for the Bicycle Rodeo set for noon on Saturday, May 5, to be held at the bus lot/parking lot adjacent to Helen Haller Elementary School, 350 W. Fir St.

This free event, a first for the Sequim area, is for youngsters in grades kindergarten-fifth grade, and is the latest addition to the 123rd Sequim Irrigation Festival Youth Day.

Hosted by the recently-formed Olympic Peninsula Bicycle Alliance, the bicycle rodeo is described as a fun event with serious purpose: Among skills and lessons taught at the rodeo are safe and cooperative riding on roads and trails, bike-handling skills, control, slow speed balance, steering, acceleration, stopping and leaning, among other skills.

The goal, say Robards and local bicycling advocate Tom Coonelly, is to help instruct area youth in the safe operation of their bicycles and equip their parents with some basic tools to help keep their children safe.

“We want kids and youth to have fun (and) we want them to keep riding after the Bike Rodeo,” says Brian Watson, a League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructor and Sequim Bike Rodeo technical advisor.

“All interactions with participants … leave kids feeling proud of their efforts and empower them to try more difficult things. This is more than a bike lesson; it’s a life lesson.”

At the Bike Rodeo, bicycle shop experts will inspect and adjust participants’ bicycles, and volunteers will help fit helmets to the young riders. Once cleared, children will maneuver their bikes hrough a series of nine skill and safety events in a controlled environment and under the guidance of skilled area cyclists. Parents can observe their child’s performance from the sidelines.

There are rewards for successful completion of the course and safety instruction and handouts for the parents, event organizers say.

Food and beverages will be available for purchase on site sponsored by the Sequim High School baseball team.

Parents must accompany their children and sign a release in order for them to participate. Children should wear a bicycle helmet and be able to ride their bicycles when they arrive. Training wheels are allowed. Loaner bicycles and helmets will be available.

It takes more than 50 volunteers to conduct a successful Bike Rodeo, event officials say.

To volunteer or for more information about this event, contact Robards at 405-570- 5883 or email to NWbikerlady@gmail.com.

The mission of the nonprofit Olympic Peninsula Bicycle Alliance is to meet the needs and serve the interests of cyclists on the Olympic Peninsula. The group works closely with government, businesses and individuals to enhance bicycle safety and promote the Olympic Peninsula as a “premier cycling destination.”

See www.olympicpeninsulacycling.com for more information.