We had a great time on Thursday at the Kitty Hawk Kites Watermelon festival. There was a lot of watermelon, a lot of watermelon eaten and kids with painted faces were everywhere.
It's difficult to say just what the highlight of the day was—certainly the watermelon eating contest drew the biggest crowds, but the waterslides that were new this year were a huge hit with the kids.
The great thing is, it almost doesn't matter what the best contest was or where the most kids hung out, because all of the proceeds from the waterslide and ticket sales went to the Outer Banks Bicycle/Pedestrian Safety Coalition—which is a very good cause.
Founded in 2013 after a number of bike and pedestrian accidents involving cars, the Coalition has been working to increase awareness of bike and foot traffic along outer banks roads and to educate bike riders especially about how to ride safely.
Many of the summer employees that come to the Outer Banks are from foreign nations and in many cases a bike is their primary means of transportation while staying here. Bike travel and sharing the road with bikes is often viewed differently is those countries than it is here, so education plays a major role is keeping our employees safe.
There few simple guidelines to be safe when using Outer Banks multi-use paths. The first is, use the paths—there are a lot of them and they go almost everywhere. Whenever possible, cross at a controlled intersection with a traffic light; if there is no traffic light, use a crosswalk. For bike riders, wear a helmet and remember courtesy costs you nothing but makes for a much more pleasant day for all.
For more information about the Outer Banks Bicycle/Pedestrian safety Coalition go to their webpage or check them out on Facebook.