STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Traffic was at a standstill on Highway 75 leading into Ketchum as Matt Conover and his children Rosalie and Wyatt pedaled along the Wood River bike path to school Wednesday morning.

Their reward: A beautiful spring morning with low hanging clouds left over from an overnight rain tucked away in the folds of Bald Mountain and fresh snow plastering the mountain tops illuminated by the sun rising over the Pioneer Mountains in the east.

There was the opportunity to oogle four elk watching passersby a few feet away from the bike path south of the hospital. And, then, there was the breakfast buffet at the turnoff for River Run Plaza served up Sun Valley Resort.

Rosalie, Wyatt and Matt conover enjoyed their stop at the Sun Valley Resort booth.

Such were the perks of Bike to School and Work Day.

“We really enjoy it,” said Conover as his son, decked out in a dinosaur helmet with a dinosaur pack on his back, played a Prize Drop game in hopes of scoring a Spuddy Buddy, sweatshirt or other prizes from Sun Valley.

Dozens of youngsters accompanied by parents took to the Wood River Trail in the annual event organized by Blaine County Recreation District to get people out of their cars and enjoying the active outdoor living that’s so prized in the valley.

Sam Cochran laid out bacon on a giant Evo Professional Blacktop Grill while his Sun Valley co-workers arranged a buffet of muffins, fresh fruit and hot chocolate.

Sam Cochran prepared bacon for bikers while Pete Lane’s took the opportunity to showcase some of its bikes for sale along the path.

Employees of The Elephant’s Perch popped waffles from a toaster, combining them with other goodies, as cyclists eyed some of the more unusual bicycles on the path and instructed their children how to park their bikes off the path.

Members of the Wood River Land Trust handed out granola bars from a booth fittingly situated overlooking Boxcar Bend, one of the first areas the Land Trust preserved. And employees of Wild Rye doled out socks, bike gloves and T-shirts while talking about their new line of ski wear expected to debut this coming fall.

But the biggest perk, perhaps, was the chance to bypass the highway construction at Ketchum’s south end that meant a two-hour commute in one case for a woman trying to get to work from Gimlet.

“It took me 15 minutes to get to Cold Springs from my house in Hailey and another hour to get to the Y the other day,” said Brian Dirksmeier, who was handing out bicycle bells and donuts at the Wood River Community YMCA.

Mary Malkmus and the Rev. Kathleen Bean offered Clementines and blessings.

“I come to work at 6 so I don’t have that problem,” added Andy Bassett, the COO for the Y. “Although we did have a traffic jam on the road today—five cars!”

Owners of The Trailhead Bicycles and Backwoods Mountain Sports say they’ve sold bicycles to commuters wishing to avoid the construction that is slated to take place through October and again next year from May to October.

Backwoods owner Paddy McIlvoy said he brought in a new step-through model from Orbea this year with the road construction in mind.

The electric bicycle is Class 1 so it’s legal on the bike path, and it can make the trip to and from Bellevue to Ketchum at least twice on one charge, he said. What’s more, it has racks in front and back that can carry 40 pounds of cargo.

The bike path offered a visual feast on Wednesday, thanks to fresh snow on the mountain tops and fogs in the folds.

“I have biked the bike path for years and it’s so beautiful compared to the hour and 30 minutes I spent sitting in traffic on Friday,” he said. “I think that the bike path is one of the valley’s greatest resources.”

The thought of so many people possibly using the bike path this summer prompted Larissa DeHaas, who was handing out homemade pumpkin bread on behalf of the City of Ketchum, to quip that they needed to widen the bike path.

But, oops, that would mean another construction project.

Nevertheless, the Rev. Kathleen Bean and Mary Malkmus of St. Thomas Episcopal Church were willing to bless all the cycle commuters to come, although one wondered if their services would have been better employed blessing potentially angry commuters on the highway.

“I bless them with strength and the experience of joy and of being outside,” said Bean.

Liz Pedersen, of the Wood River Trails Coalition, didn’t need to be convinced about the benefits of two-wheeled commuting.

“Biking is such a wonderful way to get around the valley,” she said as she handed out a Crunchy Peanut Butter Clif Bar. “It brings so much joy. I say, ‘Hi,’ to those I see along the way, chit chat and by the time I get where I’m going, I’ve had a great community experience.”