OCEAN CITY – Following the success of a month-long festival series, Trimper’s Rides is looking to create a new safety event geared toward children.
Last week, John Shutter and Megan Petro of Trimper’s Rides came before members of the Ocean City Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) to present plans for a day-long safety event being held at the park this spring.
Similar to some of the activities held at last year’s Kids Fest, Shutter said the celebration will focus on all aspects of safety and cycling.
“We did this event last year over a span of four weeks and it was very successful,” he said. “So we are putting it into a one-day event. We have already reached out to beach patrol, the Coast Guard, fire and ambulance, and also the sheriff’s K-9 unit. So far all have agreed to participate.”
Last year, Trimper’s Rides opened the park during the month of April to host Kids Fest, a series of themed family-friendly events held over four weekends. Inviting families to enjoy rides and games at the beach, the month-long event featured carnival foods, special activities and unlimited ride wristbands, among other things.
One of the most popular events, Shutter noted, was Kids Unite, which taught kids how to handle emergency situations and gave park attendees a close look at emergency vehicles that were on display.
“Last year, we actually had 3,000 attendees to the park during the safety event,” he said. “It was a very big event. It was also the week after Easter, so it was very well attended.”
Expanding on that concept, Shutter told committee members last week the park is partnering with the Ocean City Development Corporation (OCDC) to host its inaugural spring safety event April 23 from noon to 4 p.m.
In addition to ambulances, fire trucks, police cars and community vendors, the event is expected to include bicycle safety initiatives, including bike registrations and bike light installations.
“We thought that would be something that would also be great as part of this safety event,” he said.
Officials told committee members the goals of the safety event are to raise funds for OCDC and promote safety initiatives in and around Ocean City. When asked if the park had applied for a special event permit, Shutter said it would do so in the coming days.
“The plan is to position most of the vehicles on South 1st Street,” he added. “I think the vendors are going to be inside the park.”
Shutter also noted the park has been in contact with Special Events Director Frank Miller as well as the police department to request the presence of its mounted unit, K-9 unit and bike unit.
“It’s coming together very nicely,” he said.
