bai·ku/ˈbīˌko͞o/noun

2023 SaNTA FE BIKE MONTH

BAIKU CHALLENGE

bai·ku/ˈbīˌ ko͞o/noun

There once was a high mountain town
Where cyclists all got around
They’d ride to the plaza
To cheery carousa
& tacos were happily found

Submit your Baiku by May 23rd, 2023.

Follow the link above or email [email protected] to submit your Baiku.

Multiple submissions allowed. All ages will be judged together.

By submitting a baiku, you agree to allow the SFMPO to use your poem in the future.

Must be a resident of Santa Fe County and able to pick up prize locally.

Judging Criteria

Minimalist Japanese aesthetic

5-7-5 syllabic construction

3 lines, no exceptions

Connection to nature

Connection to cycling

Connection to the outside

Connection to Trail Etiquette

Connection to your funny bone

No limericks, however clever they may be

Prizes

Ichiban: $88
Jun yusho: $44
Daisan’i: $22

All Prizes are in uncirculated $2 bills!

Due to the cash nature of the prize, no prize will be mailed. Instead winners must pick-up prizes at the MPO office located at Market Station by appointment. Prizes will only go to those in the Santa Fe County area.

Ikkou, "Let's Go!"

bai·ku

/ˈbīˌko͞o/

noun

an original Japanese poem of seventeen syllables, in three lines of five, seven, and five, traditionally evoking images of the cycling world.
- a poem in English or Spanish written in the form of a baiku.

2023 Winners!

1st Place

I’m a kid again

Exploring, biking up hills

And flying down them

-Christine Starr

2nd Place

Cold Rail Trail morning:

The sun crests Atalaya;

The Jemez glow pink.

-Tom Slocum

3rd Place

Lessons for life, gleaned

Pedaling on changing ground-

Know when to switch gears

-Dani Valicenti

Read all the entries

2023_Baikus

2022 Winners!

Read all the entries

BaikusPortraitForWebsiteCompressed

1st Place

Mi bicicleta

Me lleva a donde voy

¿Qué más necesi ?

Gary Bass

(My bicycle, takes me where I want to go. What else do I need?)

“Need” here is truncated, as if the author was stepping out the door

2nd Place

My mind runs freely

Almost as fast as my bike

Through the 5O5

Morgan Gutierrez

3rd Place

Choose your path wisely.

On road, off road, either way:

GOATHEADS EVERYWHERE!

Lisa Miles

2021 Winners!

1st Place

I bike in the wind,
the rain, the sun, and the snow
to nourish my soul

Amy Schiffer

2nd Place

3rd Place

Riding With Children
Through Arroyos and Bosque
No Hands Wheeee and Splat!

Jeri Lyn Mourning Manzanares

By bike, the secrets
Of night – revealed. No bustle
Instead raccoons, calm.

Shannon Palermo

I want to ride my
bicycle I want to ride
my bike. (thank you Queen)

Farrokh Bulsara

I spin cranks smoothly
wheels roll forward straight and true
burrito after

Bill “Sorni” Sornson

Wittgenstein once said
philosophy is riding
as slow as you can.

James Osterlund

Working up a sweat
Forgot my water bottle
A teahouse ahead

Phineas Kirby

Pedal pedal glide
This is how I love to ride
Enchantment flies by

S Budagher

The bike ride today
Was slipped in between the lines
Of this fine baiku

Elena Kayak

I bike in the wind,
the rain, the sun, and the snow
to nourish my soul

Amy Schiffer

Full Speed, No Stopping
Pull up, fly off, Slow-motion
The world speeds up, lands

Nico Spangenburg

Downhill, Swift turn, drift
Front Shocks, Rear shock, smooth ride, jump
Flying in the air

Nico Spangenburg

now, crickets chirping.
all the bugs running away.
my WHEELS are cool.

Yaku Sabogal

Fly. I love to fly.
Ride, I love to ride. And stop,
I don’t like to stop.

Yaku Sabogal

riding around trees,
make amends, playing again,
having no worries.

Yaku Sabogal

Rumbling through mountains
A beast in metal disguise
Fueled by ambition

Valentina Hussey

The mountain looms dark
The trail winds long, hard and steep
I push off and start

Gabriel Krasilovsky

Fast as a racehorse,
Weaving through the rocks and trails
Drinking in the sun

Valentina Hussey

green bike, purple bike
red bike, blue bike. so many bikes,
I love the outdoors.

Yaku Sabogal

Not a Baiku (wrong structure) But a cool Limerick:

There once was a school named Otero

That ran on very little dinero

The admin was great

The teachers top rate

And the students muy primero

Judy Walker

Cycling is so fun
I have lots of fun riding
Cycling brings me joy

Nicolas Miranda

Biking is so fun
You can feel the drag and air
You can find new things

Raquel

Nature is bright, in
the sun light, beyond the forest
on top of a big height,

Erin Lucio

Tires, wheels, brakes, chain, crank
Frame, handlebar, seat, shifters
Simple yet complex

Gary Bass

Live to ride to live.
Life looks best from the saddle.
Ride to live to ride.

Gary Bass

Some say “4 wheels good.”
I say 2 wheels are better.
Maybe Orwell rode?

Gary Bass

I like to ride bikes.
With friends or alone, it’s still
Better than my couch.

Pat Feghali

Pedals Turn, Dirt Cracks
The Ocean of Dirt Wow’s Me
Tree Hit’s Then Blackness

Gabriel Krasilovsky

Riding With Children
Through Arroyos and Bosque
No Hands Wheeee and Splat!

Jeri Lyn Mourning Manzanares

By bike, the secrets
Of night – revealed. No bustle
Instead raccoons, calm.

Shannon Palermo

Shuttle up unload
Fast turns, nice berms, Winser fun
Margs in Tesuque

Ben Douglass

Silent bike paths wait
While spoked wheels endlessly turn.
Life, round the corner

Kathleen Kler

Rolling down the hill
Face to sky, sun becomes skin.
and me, I am wind

Hannah Burnham

I’d rather ride than
drive contained by metal, glass,
while the world blinks by

Hannah Burnham

Watch out between a
and his name is JOHN CENA
Nope we wont see ya

Ari Rendleman

2023 SaNTA FE BIKE MONTH

Not a Baiku (wrong structure) But a cool Limerick:

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