Mention bicycle advocacy and a certain stereotype might come to mind.
Do you envision one of those sinewy Tour de France whippets decked out in sprayed-on Lycra bike shorts and colorful cycling jersey hunched over the handle bars of his $9,500 Lapierre Xelius 400 EFI that weighs 14.9 pounds?
Or do you envision 32-year-old Mason Ellis, who arrives for an interview atop his reasonably priced Townie Electra 7D cruiser wearing a casual Friday office outfit -- chinos, a long-sleeved sporty business shirt and loafers -- and looking for all the world like an architect? (Which he is.)
Ellis' two nods to biking gear are a Bern helmet with flip visor and a Velcro trousers clip that keeps his pants out of the bike chain. But just because Ellis doesn't appear geared up for a peloton doesn't make him any less the passionate advocate for biking. In fact, he could be the modern Millennials' poster boy for changing, healthier times.
Example: Without breaking a sweat, Ellis rode the 1.3 miles from the Third and Izard streets offices of WER Architects/Planners to South Main in about the same time it would take to drive and find a parking spot.
Ellis is a past board member and current president of Bicycle Advocacy of Central Arkansas (BACA), which "seeks to provide a unified voice of advocacy for changes in attitude, public policy and infrastructure that will improve the safety, convenience, and acceptance of bicycling in central Arkansas."
The organization's overarching goal "is to make it possible for central Arkansans to bike anywhere safely."
Ellis can't help himself. His eyes light up when asked about biking. One might suppose the Little Rock native started out early on a tricycle or a bike with training wheels and has been in the saddle ever since. Not so.
He grew up in his family's historic 1918 house on Stagecoach Road about three miles west of University Avenue. His folks, Alda and Buddy Ellis, now use the property -- with its idyllic lake, pastures and big red barn -- as a wedding venue (Alda's Magnolia Hill).
Young Mason's chore was to mow the grounds, but the spread wasn't all that conducive to childhood bike riding since he, surprisingly, was a bit of a bike klutz.
"I didn't get going on a bike until I was about 12 years old. If there was one tree within a hundred miles, my front wheel would find it. Yeah, I was that kid many times.
"I didn't really get started riding until [college] in Fayetteville when I moved off of campus."
It wasn't a long drive, but Ellis discovered he'd end up parking his gas-guzzling 1990 Chevy pickup halfway between the architecture school at Vol Walker Hall and home.
"So I brought my grandfather's old bicycle -- a solid steel behemoth that weighed a ton -- back one weekend to give it a try. I rode it all the way up Weddington [Drive] hill. I thought I was going to die."
But his calves eventually got stronger and soon Ellis was zipping around campus, down Dickson Street and wherever he needed to go.
"That was when I started getting interested in how to move around without having to have a car."
After graduation in 2006, Ellis took an internship with WER (he's now an associate) and moved back in with his folks to save up for his own place. Fighting the traffic in the daily commute was frustrating.
That experience led him eventually to buy a condo four blocks from his office. He has been there eight years, and the resurgent downtown area is developing the quality of life Ellis was seeking.
"Do you want to live in a city where downtown shuts down every night and everyone gets in their cars and drives way out to the suburbs, shuts their garage door and never sees anybody in their community?" Ellis asks. "I didn't want to be a part of that. I was proud of Little Rock and I wanted Little Rock to be a thriving city."
That desire led Ellis to become involved with BACA, an organization of like-minded people working for the future.
"There's so much potential and opportunity," Ellis says. "It's not just having your streets where the cars can get out of town fast enough, it's about having your streets where people want to walk on the streets or bike on the street or get on the bus. It's about building excitement for the community you want to live in."
And BACA is always looking for new members to peddle the cause.
"If people would like to get involved, they can come to our next BACA quarterly membership meeting Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Oyster Bar [3003 W. Markham St.] and talk with us. Or reach out to us through our Facebook page [search for BACA]."
Ellis has added incentive to plan for the future these days. He and his wife, Nicole (they married in 2011), welcomed a baby boy in January. He will no doubt be riding as soon as he can walk. Unless, that is, the little guy inherited his father's penchant for running into trees.
High Profile on 07/05/2015