Photos: BARTmobile gives 11 miles worth of rides to at its 20th Birthday Party
Smiles even bigger than the BARTmobile's famous grin shone from hundreds of faces on Saturday, July 27, when BART hosted a twentieth birthday party for the Bay's beloved transit mascot at Orinda Station. There was face painting, music, carnival games, kettle corn, cupcakes, and lots and lots of BARTmobile rides.
It's a rare ocassion that the BARTmobile bestows the privilege of a ride to non-BART employees, and BARTy fans of all ages seized their chance to take a short spin in the vehicle (which is actually a long golf cart with a custom "skin" over it).
In all, the BARTmobile gave 70 rides during the party, traveling more than 11 miles in just three hours. More than 370 people got a ride, including BART boardmembers Mark Foley (vice president of the board), Rebecca Saltzman, and Melissa Hernandez, who came out to toast the mascot.
At the end of the party, BARTy's handlers, Ricky and Angel, packed him up and put him to bed at the Oakland shops for some much needed rest.
Enjoy snapshots from the day in the slideshow and stay tuned for more BART events this summer.