This weekend the Seattle-To-Portland bike ride will make its way through Centralia – the Hub City! The 40th anniversary ride could see up to 10,000 riders.

This is a great opportunity for riders and their families to tour our community and rest at the Centralia College midpoint during the 200+ mile ride. Thank you to all the volunteers, organizers, and sponsors.

The Kaiser Permanente STP is presented by Alaska Airlines. Cascade Bicycle Club organizes the event and it is locally coordinated by our Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce.

This is one of the top 10 recreational bicycle events in the country and we are lucky to have the riders visit the Twin Cities and Lewis County.

I am very proud of the volunteers and local community businesses and organizations for their efforts to roll out the red carpet and make the riders feel safe and welcome. My family looks forward to volunteering at the annual event! Come visit us at the mid-point on the Centralia College Campus.

The Washington State Department of Transportation asks motorists to observe the rules of the road for safe driving around people on bikes and to prepare for travel delays during the popular recreational ride. As state driving laws periodically change, drivers may want to review the state driver guide and the driving among bicyclists section.

Bicyclists should also be aware of their responsibility to follow Washington’s bicyclist rules of the road. The Cascade Bicycle Club distributes a free pocket guide about state bike laws with support from the Share the Road license plate sales. To request a copy of the guide, email: info@cascadebicycleclub.org.

The STP route follows state highways and local roads in these areas:

• State Route 513 –University of Washington Montlake Boulevard  parking lot to Northeast Pacific Place
• SR 181 – West Valley Highway in Kent
• Puyallup area county roads and city streets
• SR 7 – near Spanaway
• SR 507 – Roy to Centralia
• SR 507 and Higgins Greig Road/Fourth Street East – Roy
• SR 507 and Third Street – Yelm
• SR 507 and Mosman Avenue – Yelm
• Centralia and Chehalis city streets
• County roads – Napavine to Winlock to Vader
• SR 506 – Vader area
• West Side Highway (becomes SR 411) – Vader to Castle Rock area
• SR 411 (also known as West Side Highway)  – Castle Rock to Longview
• SR 432 – Longview industrial area
• SR 433 – Crossing Lewis and Clark Bridge into Oregon

Saturday, July 13

• SR 507 between Roy and Yelm (roving Washington State Patrol trooper).
• SR 507/Third Street in Yelm (police officers directing traffic).
• SR 507/Mosman Avenue in Yelm (police officer directing traffic).
• SR 507/Tenino Trail crossing (police officers or certified flaggers directing traffic).

Sunday, July 14

• SR 411/Castle Rock area (flagger directing traffic at SR 411/ PH 10).
• SR 411 between Castle Rock and Longview (roving WSP trooper).
• SR 411/Lexington/Riverside County Park area (police officers directing traffic at SR 411 and Riverside County Park).
• SR 432/SR 433 in Longview at the Lewis and Clark Bridge (WSP, flaggers and motorcycle escort)

Welcome Riders, Teams, and Families! If you are looking for places to eat, visit, or shop, be sure to visit the Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce at Chamberway.com, Centralia Downtown Association at DowntownCentralia.org, City of Chehalis at ExperienceChehalis.com, and City of Centralia at CityofCentralia.com