Originally Posted by Redmond Chamber of Commerce

Bicycle Capital of the Northwest

Casual visitors might suppose Redmond came by this nickname in 1990, when the bicycle races at the Goodwill Games were staged in the velodrome at Marymoor Park. Although the velodrome dates from 1974, Redmond’s claim to bicycle fame goes back much further, to 1939.

That’s when the community created Derby Days, a bicycle derby intended to raise money to buy Christmas decorations and equipment for the high school team. It soon became a summer tradition. Now the annual race is a nationally sanctioned criterium, and the race is the oldest annual bicycle derby in North America.

You’ll find more than bicycle races at today’s Derby Days celebrations. It features a grand parade, vendors and entertainment. And throughout the summer, racers meet several nights a week at the velodrome.

A monument honoring Redmond’s cycling tradition stands west of downtown. Redmond residents take their cycling seriously. Many streets have marked bicycle lanes, and a bike trail system enables riders to reach Seattle and other points.

The 1990 census showed that one percent of Redmond workers bicycled to work. City officials suspect the number has grown with the influx of young workers in Redmond’s technology companies.