On Sunday, Justin Timberlake was welcomed as a special guest by the Portland organization that arranges escorted bike rides so children may ride the bus to school.
When the group tweeted a social media appeal asking the pop artist to join them while in town for a show at the Moda Center in October, it went viral.
The amount of response was tremendous. The Instagram post has received over 4.5 million views, while the TikTok video has had over 6.9 million views.
Timberlake accompanied over 200 cyclists, the majority of whom were kids and their families, as they rode to Alameda Elementary School, which was a half-mile ride down Northeast Klickitat Street.
Timberlake’s group used speakers on their bikes to blast songs like “Mirrors” along the way. Before departing the school, the pop artist posed for a few pictures with kids. The path is often used by students, parents, and volunteers during the school week, but on Sunday, the music artist joined them for a special ride. Ian Downard, a Bike Bus volunteer and father, stated that it wasn’t a school-sanctioned event. “I mean, it never is,” he added. The turnout, he added, impressed Timberlake’s team.
On Earth Day 2022, Samuel Balto, a physical education teacher at Portland Public Schools at the time, launched the BikeBusPDX program. Rain or shine, Balto and his team of enthusiastic children and families get on their bikes and pedal to school every Wednesday. Numerous other Portland schools have done the same.
For what reason did he invite Timberlake? Balto says the answer is straightforward. He said in October, “Because he’s awesome.” I listened to him as a child. Everyone knows who Justin Timberlake is, thus he has a wide audience across generations.
Balto avoided discussing Timberlake’s conviction for drunk driving last fall in favor of highlighting the benefits the Bike Bus program offers to kids and the neighborhood.
In an email, he stated, “I believe that Justin Timberlake joining the Bike Bus would set a great example for people to get around on a bike for everyday transportation.”
On Monday night, Timberlake will play The Forget Tomorrow World Tour at the Moda Center.
-The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Tyler Brown made a contribution.
