SUNDERLAND — Matthew Howell and the Sunderland Elementary School community love their old-time Walk and Roll.
Wednesday morning saw the arrival of more than 100 staff members and students on foot, bicycles and skateboards as the school celebrated the 10th anniversary of the biannual Walk and Roll event, which encourages students, their families and staff to take an alternative way to school and promote physical activity.
“It’s a great day. It’s just so good, I can’t say anything,” said fifth-grader Oscar Holmes, who rode about 2.5 miles to school. “It feels great because I get to see my friends riding to school.”
Walk and Roll started 10 years ago and Howell said it’s been growing ever since.
“We do it twice a year and we get a really good response every time. … Now it’s sort of a tradition,” he said. “In a way, it’s a kind of simple thing, but kids get to do something. A lot of kids, if they could bike to school every day, they would, but it takes a lot of effort from the parents.”
Fifth-grader Rupert Pattison said he doesn’t typically bike to school but he really enjoys Walk and Roll.
“I think it’s a great idea to encourage kids to ride their bikes,” Rupert said after biking “just under” 3 miles to school.
With this being the 10th year, Howell said the goal was to “do it bigger than ever,” so the school brought in a pep band of sixth-graders — supported by a few Frontier Regional School students — and set up a Bicycle Rodeo, which taught the children about bicycle safety and was led by trainers from the state’s Safe Routes to School program.
Howell credited The People’s Pint in Greenfield and owner Alden Booth for the restaurant’s long-running Bike to Live program, which incentivizes bicycle commuting by rewarding people’s biking with restaurant gift certificates.
“I was one of the people who would keep track of my commuting miles and turn it in for a restaurant certificate,” Howell noted.
Sunderland Elementary Principal Benjamin Barshefsky and school district Superintendent Darius Modestow both joined the event as they rode to school on their own bikes. Barshefsky said Walk and Roll is a great tradition for the community that has evolved over the years, as it brings people together and advocates for healthy habits.
“School community events are so important for school culture,” he said. “You can see the excitement and enthusiasm of everyone.”
Ben Gates, also a fifth-grader, has ridden his bike to and from school every single day — except for one day where he rode to school but was then picked up.
“At first, I just wanted to try it,” Ben said of his now-daily commute. “Then, I set a goal.”
Through wind, rain, snow and scorching temperatures, Ben rides his bike to school each day from his home that is a little under a mile away. He said he really enjoys Walk and Roll because there are often days “where I was the only bike on the rack.”
“Winter sucked, but that’s really the only thing,” he said. “I don’t care what the weather is, I just want to complete my goal.”
Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.