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Gear Up for the 2024 National Youth Bike Summit
Calling all youth cyclists! Grab your helmets and head to the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, for the 2024 Youth Bike Summit (YBS2024), which will be held June 14-16.
The Youth Bike Summit will bring together hundreds of youth riders and their adult advocates from across the country for three days packed with workshops and rides, all designed to help youth lead through the power of the bicycle. The theme of this year’s YBS is Youth Lead the Way, with a focus on young people who have historically been excluded from cycling.
YBS2024 will kick off on Friday evening with a welcome reception at races at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center (The Velodrome). Saturday will offer a full day of classroom- and ride-based workshops and will include opportunities for attendees to Try the Track at the Velodrome, participate in a Bikes & Boating adventure, and get an insider’s view of Bicycling Magazine headquarters. YBS2024 will culminate on Sunday with a Big Ride that will take attendees through Allentown, along the historic D&L trail, and to Bethlehem’s iconic SteelStacks.
Registration for the three-day event—including four meals—is just $110 for youth 24 and under, and $160 for adults over 24. Click here for tickets!
The Youth Bike Summit is led by the National Youth Bike Council (NYBC) and the YBS steering committee, which includes youth bike advocates from across the country. Community Bike Works (CBW), a Lehigh Valley-based Earn a Bike organization, will host YBS2024.
“Youth Bike Summit fosters connections among youth and adults who are passionate about youth cycling, while it also helps to build leadership skills of students who are the future of our cycling community,” Joshua Funches, NYBC President, said.
“The Youth Bike Summit is a magical, life-changing gathering for young people who love bikes,” CBW Youth Projects Coordinator Avery Daniels said. “This is the 10th Youth Bike Summit and the most authentically youth-led YBS to date. We are so excited to welcome everyone to YBS2024. Come ride with us this June!”
The League of American Bicyclists is thrilled to be participating in YBS once again this year, sponsoring the event as well as sending staff members to join the celebration.
“Getting young people on bikes is essential to building a Bicycle Friendly America for everyone. When we invest in and empower youth through cycling, it starts a chain reaction for stronger, healthier, more inclusive communities,” says the League’s Executive Director, Bill Nesper.
Just last month at the National Bike Summit, the League honored Avery Daniels as Emerging Leader of the Year for his outstanding leadership, particularly in planning this upcoming YBS.
This brings us into a full-circle moment, highlighting the overlap between the two Summits. In 2010, Kimberly White and Kristi Nanco, two bike-loving high school students, attended the National Bike Summit. As the League reported that year, “During their first trip to the Nation’s capital, the then-17-year-old participants explored the city by bike, attended the conference, and lobbied elected officials on Capitol Hill. As the pair debriefed on the bus ride home, they discussed the importance of engaging people of all ages and backgrounds in the national dialogue of cycling education and advocacy. As a result, the idea of the Youth Bike Summit came into being.”
The National Bike Summit continues to welcome youth participants, offering discounted membership rates and scholarships as well as free virtual admission for youth when virtual attendance has been available. But part of championing inclusion means supporting spaces that exist solely to benefit those who’ve previously been excluded. As the bike movement grows, we celebrate whenever leaders like Kimberly, Kristi, Joshua, or Avery step up to organize their peers around shared experiences, affinities, and passions.
Young people deserve the chance to build the future they want to see. The Youth Bike Summit attempts to do just that — carving out space for youth and empowering them with tools for change, all the while staying centered around the joy that bicycling brings. Do you know a young person who should attend YBS2024? Don’t miss their–or your–chance to be part of this transformative experience. Find out the details and secure your spot at YBS2024 today!