On August 28th, I’ll be front and center at Boise Goathead Fest, I’m confident it will unfold without a hitch, and I’m excited to share this important and possibly historic day for bicycling and community-building. My ask for you and your family is to engage in a way that’s meaningful and in a way that’s comfortable for your personal level of safety. My promise is to make sure both of those opportunities (meaningful and comfortable) are readily accessible at all times. Today, I want to walk you through that experience.

The Pedal Powered-Parade

The parade launches from The Capitol steps at 11am. We’ve blocked off 4 additional streets surrounding the Cecil D Andrus Park, so there will be plenty of room to spread out while still being in community with each other. I’d recommend showing up around 10:45 to find a nice comfortable spot for you and your family. Masks will be mandatory between 10:45-11am on Jefferson St. Once you’re rolling, feel free to take them off for the 1.5 mile ride. Don’t forget to wear your costume and ride your funnest bike!

Parking Yo’ Bike & Entering the Festival

The parade route shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes. When you get back to Cecil D Andrus Park, the music will already be pumping from our pedal-powered stage. We will have the entire block shut down around the park with bike parking bordering every side. Once you park your bike, pop your mask back on and enter through one of the multiple festival entrances. Or chill out for a second in the street as the line dies down, and come in when you’re ready. Once in you’re in the huge park, you can take your mask off if/when you feel comfortable. There will be some lines or events inside the park when we might ask you to put it back on.

Inside the Festival

There’s a Morrison Center main stage where our headliners perform, a pedal-powered stage hosting a bunch of events, a freak bike pit, a Lost Grove Brewing beer station, multiple food trucks, and tons of space in between. Find a great spot in the shade and engage in whatever ways feel comfortable. If the kids want to do hot laps around the outside of the park, the roads will be completely closed to traffic the entire time. Full event lineup and schedule.

The Grand Finale

At about 4:15, our incredible headline—Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio—will wrap up. DJ Jason D will hop onto the pedal-powered stage, and we’ll encourage everyone to jump back onto their bikes for the Hip Hop Bicycle Dance Party in the streets. This a new tradition, 100% unique to Boise Goathead Fest, and we think it will be one of the highlights of the festival. If you’d rather hang in the park and jam with a beer in your hand, that’s rad too. At 5pm… that’s a wrap!

Boise Goathead Fest is about so many things: the removal of barriers, an expression of culture, and empowering local-organizations, to name a few. But above all, Goathead Fest is something that builds community and unites us through a specific shared experience… the freedom of riding a bicycle. This feeling of freedom is a universal language that is needed now more than ever. During the pandemic, many people turned to bicycling to find that freedom; and on some days we called it “escape.” The desire for both resulted in a national and local bike boom and momentum that, if fostered, will create more equitable bicycle friendly communities for generations to come.

On August 28th, we will celebrate the pedal-powered freedom we all share and our desire for connection with each other. It will be a day to appreciate the beautiful bicycle community Boise already is, and our true Bicycle Capital of America potential when we all ride together.

-Ride On! Jimmy