As a single parent with two kiddos it’s been imperative to learn out to take my kids bikepacking with me. Like almost anything with kids going kidpacking is equal parts challenging and rewarding. Many of my friends either ride and don’t have kids or don’t ride and have kids, so I found myself wanting to connect with other families that want to go bikepacking. That’s when it struck me that I should just host my own event! And that’s the short version of how the Texas Kidpacking Jamboree was born! If you are interested in joining us (families only please) we’d love to see you there!
The Texas Kidpacking Jamboree is a new event hosted by Bikes or Death. Our Mission is to create outdoor recreation and learning opportunities for families through bikepacking.
*** PLEASE READ FULLY ***
Dates: June 18th-19th 2022 (it will be hot)
Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38557349?privacy_code=LS9iA7ogDsNWD6IL
The route starts at a primitive group campsite in the Davy Crockett National Forest. This is a good area for families to camp at the night before if needed and is big enough to accommodate a group this size. The route itself is 7 miles long on mostly gravel roads all the way to Mission Tejas SP. This route was selected for its safety and it is well canopied thanks to towering pine trees. With very little elevation change this route should be very manageable for most riders.
Support:
This will be a heavily supported endeavor, starting with education before the event and leading up to the ride itself. During the ride we will have sag vehicles to carry gear AND people/bikes if needed.
Due to the time of year it will be hot! Please plan accordingly. For this reason the pace of the ride will be slow. Additionally, we will have a cooler with drinks and cold/wet towels to help keep everyone “cool”. A mandatory group break will take place at the midway point on both days to allow for everyone to group back together and take a break.
Camping:
Mission Tejas State Park is the location for our first Jamboree. We have reserved the group campsite and two additional sites. A major bonus to this park is the enormous pine trees that offer shade from the Texas heat. The park also has nice restrooms nearby with showers, a pond, playground, and hiking trails.
Attendees:
We have the capacity for a total of 42 people (parents and kids). There are no age restrictions per se, but we imagine the largest group that will benefit from this event will be parents with children under the age of 12. But we will welcome all families regardless of size/age.
Cost: $8 covers the cost of the campsites, but everything else is included FREE thanks to the support of our sponsors.
What’s include:
Free Shirts that we will customize at camp
Lunch and Dinner on day one
Firewood and Smores
Breakfast on Day Two
All materials for projects
Water/snacks during the rides
*Families can bring their own food and snacks if desired
Schedule of Events
Saturday, June 18th
9:00 – Preride meeting
9:30 – Wheels down
12:00-1:30 – Arrive in camp, setup, lunch
1:30 – 3:30 – We will have two different educational opportunities, we will split into two groups and then switch.
Group 1: Kidpacking Basics: Patrick and Sarah will be sharing some information about what they use and why along with some of the things we’ve tried in the past.
Group 2: Emily will be leading a outdoor education activity all about pond life!
3:30 – 4:30 – Large group activity
4:30 – 6:00 – Dinner Prep and Eat and family picture opportunity with Maxwell
6:00 – 7:30 – Tshirt Tie-dye and yard games
7:30 – 8:00 – Night hike lead by Emily, bring lights
8:00 – ? – Campfire and Smores
Sunday, June 19th
8:00 – 9:00 – Breakfast
9:00 – 10:00 – Bird/Tracks hike
10:00 – 11:00 – Break camp
11:00 – Group ride back to the cars
Bikes or Death Staff:
Patrick Farnsworth is the host of Bikes or Death, an event organizer, and all around bikepacking & outdoors hype man. He is an Eagle Scout and fell in love with the outdoors through the Boy Scouts. At the age of 14 he organized a “Bicycle Rodeo” for his Eagle Scout project with no help from his parents who insisted he earn his Eagle. This involved getting the LBS to provide basic bike maintenance, the local Police to come out and set up a bike route and teach bike safety, and he had to get on the radio to promote the event. It was a major success with over 100 kids in attendance. In many ways Patrick is still doing the same things, riding bikes, sharing the stoke, and trying to provide opportunities for others along the way!
Emily Thornton has been with Bikes or Death for a little over two years and has expanded her role in BoD as it has grown. She has a background in event planning, parks and recreation and environmental education. The majority of her experience came from building an interpretive curriculum and multiple adult and youth programs at Lick Creek Nature Center in College Station, Texas. She has worked as an interpretive park ranger with Colorado Parks and Wildlife and has collaborated with schools and nature centers to build programs for kids. Getting families outside to hopefully create a new lifelong curiosity for the natural world is what it’s all about.
Maxwell Johnston is a visual storyteller who will be joining us to capture this event and the memories that are made. Maxwell was born and raised a Texan, and loves to inspire people to get outside on their bikes with his images. He is a person in long term recovery and hopes that others share the same joy he feels on the bike. He has created two overnight bikepacking routes in Central Texas, so he also has experience planning, preparing and executing an overnight cycling adventure.
