Free bikes at Marymoor Park

Come by foot, car or bus to pedal on the Sammamish River Trail on a Trek Cruiser Classic at Marymoor Park in Redmond, the newest site for the national Dasani Blue Bikes community bicycle program. If you don't have a bike of your own or don't want to transport your bike to the park, the free rental "cruisers" are a great way to explore the scenic, flat Sammamish River Trail's 11-mile route from the park. At Blyth Park in Bothell, the paved trail connects with the Burke-Gilman trail.

King County residents 18 and older can sign up for a card that opens storage lockers near the park's Velodrome during daylight hours to check out a free rental bike. A photo ID is all that's required to sign up for the cards at the Marymoor Park Scheduling Office, open 9:30 a.m-3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Riders are required to bring their own helmets to ride the one-speed, pedal-brake bikes, and are asked to return the bikes before dusk.

Twenty bikes are available in 19- and 21-inch frame sizes with adjustable seats. The program celebrated its grand opening last week and, so far, availability of bikes has been good.

Marymoor Park, the most popular park in the King County Parks system, also features a climbing rock, model-airplane flying field, bicycle-racing Velodrome and off-leash dog area among its diverse 640 acres.

The park is at 6046 W. Lake Sammamish Parkway N.E. in Redmond; parking is $1 per day. For more information, call 206-205-3661 or seehttp://dnr.metrokc.gov/parks.