Cascade is Excited to Welcome Three New Directors to its Board

The new board members bring a wealth of expertise in the fields of equitable street design, sustainable commuting, and inclusivity in cycling.

Cascade members have elected three new directors to serve on the boards of Cascade Bicycle Club and Washington Bikes: Marley Blonsky, a corporate sustainability manager who advocates for inclusivity in cycling; Kelly Koster, a marketing executive who works in sustainable urban mobility; and Brice Maryman, a landscape architect with a history of helping to improve bicycling infrastructure in the Puget Sound region and statewide.

Blonsky, Koster and Maryman formally began their duties with their first Board meeting on Wednesday (Jan. 20). 

“These three new directors bring a wealth of experience and passion to our mission and to both organizations,” says Christopher Shainin, Cascade and Washington Bikes’ interim executive director. “We are eager to work with them, and with returning directors, as we confront the continued challenges of the pandemic, and advance our joint vision of a safe and healthy future where bicycles bring people together, eliminate inequity, and create thriving communities.”

Marley Blonsky: Fighting for Inclusivity and Body Positivity

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Blonsky is well-known in the Cascade community due to her participation in events including our Bike, Walk and Roll Summit, and her efforts to make cycling more welcoming to people of all body types, races, genders, income levels and abilities. She is the sustainability manager for the Fortune 500 logistics company Expeditors International, where Blonsky works to reduce the carbon footprint of her company and its supply chains.

Self-identified as a “fat bicyclist” and profiled in the Washington Post, Blonsky recently became an ambassador for the cycling apparel brand Pearl Izumi, which has launched plus-size cycling clothing items, and for Nuun hydration. She will be featured in an upcoming video from Shimano, and will also present a slide show and talk on Jan. 27 as part of the Stoked Spoke event series. 

“I've started hosting virtual group rides on Zwift on Fridays at noon, aimed at creating an inclusive cycling community on that platform,” Blonsky says. “We've created an official Zwift team, "All Bodies on Bikes," that anyone can join.” Learn more on Blonsky’s blog.

Kelly Koster: Working to End Solo Car Commutes

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Koster is the marketing director for Luum, a company that helps organizations improve their commuting efficiency by reducing the number of people who drive to work alone. In this press release for Luum, she writes about her company’s opposition to mandatory bicycle helmet laws, which have been identified as a barrier to getting more people on bikes, and which have been historically used by police to inequitably ticket people of color. Koster has a graduate degree in urban planning from the University of Washington (UW) and is an expert in the field of transportation demand management.

Koster, who grew up in eastern Washington, is a devoted light rail commuter, soccer fan and skier whose knowledge about the power of bicycles to improve mobility, equity and quality of life deepened during her time teaching in UW’s Community, Environment, and Planning program, when she bike commuted daily. There, she created and led the study abroad course Sustainable Urban Mobility that took students to the Netherlands, Denmark, and England.

In this article, Koster writes about making commuting more sustainable post-COVID-19. 

Brice Maryman: Advocating for Safer, Healthier, and More Inclusive Streetscapes

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With his son, Owen, riding in STP--Owen's fifth!

Maryman is an award-winning landscape architect and frequent bike commuter who has participated in Cascade major group rides including STP, RSVP, and the Ride for Major Taylor. In this 2016 video, he talks about riding in downtown Seattle with his young son, getting hit by a car, and how the 2nd Avenue bike lane has improved safety. 

Maryman has worked extensively in the area of Complete Streets design, and in this article he writes about his work to help Washington create a grant program that has rapidly expanded the number of Washington communities with safe streetscape ordinances. 

Blonsky will serve exclusively on the Cascade board while Koster and Maryman will also serve on the board of Cascade’s sister organization and political advocacy arm, Washington Bikes. 

Meet the full board and read their biographies.