Four districts, four rides, 35 candidates on bikes. The first ever 4 Quadrant Candidate Splash Ride happens Wednesday (tomorrow July 3rd!). And it includes a stop at Bike Happy Hour where teams of candidates will have to work together on a collaborative, bike-themed game. After an hour or so on the Gorges Beer Co. patio, the fun will continue to Duckworth Dock on the Eastbank Esplanade where swimming and sunning will ensue.

It’ll be another high point on what has turned out to be one o the most exciting summers of cycling politics Portland has ever seen. We’ve had dozens of candidates hang out with us at Bike Happy Hour, we’ve seen our future leaders show up at bike buses and Sunday Parkways, and BikeLoud’s candidate questionnaire has earned responses from 40 candidates.

Wednesday’s event builds on this momentum. Here’s what’s on tap…

Nonprofit BikeLoud PDX is organizing the ride. They’ll host meet-ups at four parks: Floyd Light Park in District 1, Peninsula Park in District 2, Essex Park in District 3, and Willamette Park in District 4. From 3:30 to 4:30, everyone is welcome to show up at a park to meet-and-great with candidates. At 4:30 all four rides will leave on an easy, 5-mile route to Bike Happy Hour at SE Ankeny and 28th.

All the candidates and riders will converge on the Gorges patio around 5:00 and shenanigans will ensue. We’ll split the candidates into four mixed-district teams (to mimic how they’ll have to work together on council) and then put them to work on a bike-themed group task that will require collaboration.

It’ll be a fun mix of politics, cycling, and socializing you won’t want to miss.

And after Bike Happy Hour, the party will continue to Duckworth Dock on the Eastbank Esplanade where Human Access Project and Lloyd EcoDistrict will host their weekly swimming event with a DJ, food carts, sunset viewing, and so on.

If you’ve been on the sidelines, now is the time to get engaged with this important election. Since the new charter includes a provision that alternates district elections every two years, this is the first and last time Portland will elect all 12 city council positions at the same time. And with just six months from the start of our brand-spankin’ new form of government, it’s time to buckle down, organize, and make sure we get great people into these leadership positions.

Speaking of which, below is the list of candidates who will participate in tomorrow’s event:

Council – District 1

• Timur Ender
• Sonja Mckenzie
• Steph Routh
• David Linn

Council – District 2

• Elana Pirtle-Guiney
• Christopher Olson
• Nat West
• Debbie Kitchin
• Mariah Hudson
• Jonathan Tasini
• Mike Marshall
• Laura Streib
• Will Mespelt
• Marnie Glickman

Council – District 3

• Rex Burkholder
• Theo Hathaway Saner
• Daniel Gilk
• Jonathan Walker
• Matthew Thomas Anderson
• Daniel DeMelo
• Philippe Knab
• Jesse Cornett
• Angelita Morillo
• Tiffany Koyama Lane
• Luke Zak

Council – District 4

• Mike DiNapoli
• Ben Hufford
• Sarah Strawberry Silkie
• Michael Trimble
• Eli Arnold
• Andra Vltavín
• Eric Zimmerman
• Lisa Freeman
• Mitch Green
• Chad Lykins

Mayor

• Liv Østhus
• Durrell Javon Kinsey Bey
• Keith Wilson
  

---

Bike Happy Hour is every Wednesday, 3-6 pm at Gorges Beer Co (2705 SE Ankeny). See you there!