Have cello, will pedal: Brainstorming a walkable, bike-friendly Kentucky

Cellist and vocalist Ben Sollee, above, in his "Misty Miles" video, will speak at the Kentucky Bike Walk Summit next month in Lexington. (Ben Sollee)

Acclaimed cellist and native Kentuckian Ben Sollee said he gained a sense of freedom growing up in Lexington on his bicycle. He would hop on it to ride around the neighborhood, no cell phone and little worries with him, not having to be home until dark.

But as he grew into adulthood and a career as a touring musician across the country and world, traveling by cars, planes and trains, he began to feel disconnected from the “experience of music and being in a place” given his fast-paced, time-consuming travel.

In 2009, he was booked to perform at the Bonnaroo music festival in Tennessee and decided to try getting there via a newly-bought bicycle capable of carrying more than 50 pounds of equipment, supplies and, of course, his cello. He remembers the roughly 330 miles between Lexington and the music festival as “very hot” as he pedaled across the Cumberland Plateau, playing several smaller shows along the way.

“The wonderful thing about being on a bicycle is you can only ride so far and so fast, especially when you’re hauling so much gear,” Sollee told the Lantern. “I found myself being very present.”

He said over the next five years he would ride about 6,000 miles on his bike as he incorporated it into some of his tours. The bicycle, he said, provides him not only a healthy way to get around but also a way to be more present in his community and with himself.

It’s that message of how bicycling has improved his life and its connections with his music that he hopes to bring as one of the keynote speakers for the Bike Walk Kentucky Summit next month at Transylvania University in Lexington.

The conference, scheduled for Aug. 15-16, is described by organizers as a gathering of hundreds of Kentucky leaders in and outside of government hoping to brainstorm and envision safer and more numerous walking, hiking and biking routes and facilities across the state. A similar summit took place at the private university in 2018 connected to the nonprofit Bike Walk Kentucky .

Jim Gray, the secretary of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and a former Lexington mayor,  will give opening remarks along with current Mayor Linda Gorton. In a statement, Gray said the summit will “promote safe practices and encourage more complete streets to support a safer and more inclusive transportation system that protects all road users.”

Other keynote speakers at the summit include Bill Nesper, the executive director of the League of American Bicyclists; Angie Schmidt, a writer and expert on sustainable transportation, and tourism and recreation leaders Kalene Griffith and David Wright from Bentonville, Arkansas, a community highlighted by Axios for its investments into the cycling industry .

Sollee hopes the summit can promote cycling as not only something that’s healthy for Kentuckians and the environment but also something to be celebrated — highlighting the challenges bicyclists face on public streets battling traffic but also the fun it can bring people, too.

“The biggest thing we could possibly do is just celebrate and promote people that use their feet and bicycles in the community,” Sollee said. “We really have to be very proactive about sharing, not just what a battle it is out there to ride your bicycle on public streets, but also what a joy it is, and how you know how it helps us connect with other people in our community.”

Those interested in attending the summit can register on Bike Walk Kentucky’s website .

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