Adrian Barniak, Friday Night Bikes | Every Little Bit
8/4/2025 | 2m 19sVideo has Closed Captions
Adrian Barniak is the founder of Friday Night Bikes, 3 springtime community rides in Anchorage.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Adrian Barniak would bike out to the small boat launch in Anchorage to watch the sunset. He started inviting friends along and the group grew from there. Adrian had never organized a community event before, but his passion for biking and sharing his joy came naturally. He now organizes Friday Night Bikes, 3 springtime community rides open to anyone who wants to join.
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Every Little Bit is a local public television program presented by AK
Adrian Barniak, Friday Night Bikes | Every Little Bit
8/4/2025 | 2m 19sVideo has Closed Captions
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Adrian Barniak would bike out to the small boat launch in Anchorage to watch the sunset. He started inviting friends along and the group grew from there. Adrian had never organized a community event before, but his passion for biking and sharing his joy came naturally. He now organizes Friday Night Bikes, 3 springtime community rides open to anyone who wants to join.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipIt's a very inclusive thing.
The motto for the ride is everyone is welcome.
Doesn't matter what kind of bike you have.
Some people even just come on their roller blades.
We're just friends.
Going out for a time together.
My name is Adrian Banyak and I live in Anchorage, Alaska.
And five years ago, I started a community bike ride called Friday Night Bikes.
We ride for three weeks in the spring and just enjoy our public parks and time spent together.
I moved to Anchorage and just couldn't afford a car, so I bought a bicycle and started biking to work every day to my job as a physical therapist, and I did that for two years before I saved up enough money to buy a car.
And that's how I got into bikes.
In the early days of the Covid pandemic, I used to ride out to the small boat launch and watch the sunset.
It's a really pretty spot by the water and it was great, but it got a little bit lonely.
So I started inviting friends and they had a good time and they started inviting their friends.
And eventually we just became this community of people that get together every spring and ride up to the boat launch and watch the sunset together.
This is just the thing that I put on.
Just show up and ride on any bike you have and come have a good time with us.
I maybe know about half the people that come, which is great because then I get to make new friends too.
The bike community is really strong in Anchorage and I know for myself, going for bike rides with my friends was one of just the most innocently joyous experiences I ever had during my youth, and it's great to still connect with that as I move throughout my life span, and I think other people just relate to that.
I've never had experience with organizing something before.
I just kind of did it.
I think if someone wants to start a community event, they should just go for it.
I think if the interest is there and just wants to just purely for the sake of creating something, create something, I think that they should do it.
Even if no one shows up.
It doesn't matter because ultimately they're still doing something that they love.
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Every Little Bit is a local public television program presented by AK