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One Day Left to Save on Bike Tour Pre-registration

The 20th annual Saint Paul Classic Bike Tour will take place on Sunday, September 7, 2014, and you have one (1) day to save $9 on pre-registration.

She is a big fan of the Saint Paul Classic, also!

More than 6,000 bicyclists come from miles away to enjoy a wonderful ride through Minnesota’s capital city. The attraction for many Classic participants is the ability to ride along Saint Paul’s celebrated Grand Round parkway system with a minimal amount of traffic. Rest stops are spaced evenly throughout the course providing beautiful views, hot coffee, cool beverages, tasty baked goods, organic fruit and live music performed by well-known local musicians. In 2013, riders from 21 states ranging in age from zero to 90 enjoyed this family-friendly event!

With a minimal amount of traffic riders always have fun

2014 will bring you “The Classic Classic” with routes that made the event popular 20 years ago. The 15-mile Summit Avenue loop follows the river toward downtown and turns at the Science Museum to climb Ramsey Hill. The 30-mile Grand Round route is a showcase for the handsome parks and parkways of beautiful Saint Paul. This course follows the river before making a long climb to Indian Mounds Park and then travels on to Lakes Phalen and Como. The 45-mile route combines the 15 and 30-mile loops but ten miles are repeated.

A great time for the whole family to ride together

Pre-registration is available online at BikeClassic.org until midnight, September 3. Day of ride registration is welcome and begins at 7:15 a.m. on the campus of the University of St. Thomas near the intersection of Cretin and Grand Avenues. All riders must be on the course by 9:15 and finished by 1:15. And remember your helmet – it’s required!

An on going tradition, now spanning 20 years

The cost for adults to participate in the Classic is $39 (through September 3) or $48 on the morning of the event. Youth ages 5-17 ride for $12 and kids under age five ride free. New this year – students ages 18-22 with a school ID may register for just $20. Members of the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota receive a $5 discount.

The food and music at the rest stops is great too!

The Saint Paul Classic Bike Tour is produced by and benefits the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota (BikeMN) a nonprofit organization that represents the two million Minnesotans who ride a bike each year. BikeMN is dedicated to providing leadership and a unified voice for bicycle education, advocacy and efforts to make Minnesota more bicycle friendly so that more people will ride bicycles more often. Find more information at BikeMN.org. Proceeds from the Saint Paul Classic Bike Tour fund BikeMN’s education programs. In 2014, BikeMN will reach more than 10,000 kids and adults with safe cycling messages.

2014 Hiawatha/Tour D’Amico Club Jersey

Order Your Hiawatha/Tour ‘D‘Amico 15th Anniversary Club Jersey Today!

If you have not ordered this year’s jersey and would like one of these high quality, limited edition biking shirts, Friday, August 1st will be the last day to order. These attractive jersey have a full zipper down front and the standard three pockets in the back.

Picking the right size? Being a “European Cut” garment, we are seeing that both the women’s and men’s jerseys should be ordered two sizes lager than your normal tee-shirt size you wear (example: if you normally take a medium shirt, order you jersey here as a n extra large – if you take an extra large order your jersey as a 2X, etc.)

To order the Hiawatha Bicycling Club (HBC)) is offering these jersey at a special price of $50 including shipping and handling, please order hear at: http://www.tourdamico.com/jerseys.html .

If you want to save $5 and mail in a check for $45 and pick your jersey at one of the HBC functions, the cost is $45. Make check payable to HBC and mail it with your contact info. to: HBC Jersey, % Russ Lowthian, 12753 Ethelton Way, Apple Valley, MN 55124. Must be postmarked by August 1, 2014.

The final order for the 2014 15th Anniversary Club/TDA Jersey will be placed following August 1, for delivery the week of August 28th. Enjoy!

Thanks Carolyn and Dan Robinson for being our HBC models!

Tour de Fat Returns to Minneapolis for a Day of Fun

Jenny Foust, Tour D’ Fat, photos by Russ Lowthian (except top)

Don’t miss this day, Saturday, July 26, of crazy costumes and bikes, eclectic entertainment and New Belgium libations. It’s the best way to celebrate the summer, complete with costumes, bikes, music, performers, contests and beer.

New Belgium Brewing’s Tour de Fat is coming back to Loring Park, in Minneapolis, for another year of fun. The best part, the daylong event is free, yet all donations and proceeds from beer and merchandise sales go to Twin Cities-area non-profits. In total the 2013 season raised nearly $536,000, with the Minneapolis stop bringing in nearly $24,000. This year, all funds raised in Minneapolis will go to Midtown Greenway Coalition, Minnesota Off Road Cycling (MOCA) and Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota (BikeMN).

At Tour de Fat friends, family and neighbors are all invited to come enjoy eclectic entertainment, brewing education, a bicycle revival and even a fashion show of the best Tour de Fat costumes. In the afternoon, the stages heat up with acts like The Handsome Little Devils and Black Joe Lewis.

The event kicks off with a costumed bicycle parade that winds through city streets. The parade begins and ends in Loring Park where the rest of the day’s entertainment shines from musical acts to yo-yo performers, bike contests and even vaudeville acts. This year will also include some brewing education and feature a “Bicycle Revival” to inspire festivalgoers to believe in the power of two-wheeled transportation.

Throughout the day, kids of all ages can ride funky bikes in the bike corral, eat delicious fare, relax in the grass, and participate in games and activities such as a “Thousand Person Dance Contest,” which will determine the winner of a 2014 New Belgium Cruiser Bike. Everyone 21 and older can sample new and classic favorites from New Belgium, including the brewery’s flagship brew, Fat Tire, this summer’s seasonal, Summer Helles, the brand new year-round offering, Snapshot Wheat, and selections from the acclaimed Lips of Faith series.

“This is our 15th year of Tour de Fat and it’s been an incredible journey. This really is one of the best ways to spend a Saturday – there isn’t much that can beat the fun that comes with dressing up, riding a bike, drinking beer, listening to music and just having a great day with old and new friends,” said Matt Kowal, New Belgium Brewing’s Tour de Fat Impresario. “There really is no excuse not to experience the magic yourself!”

Car-for-Bike Swap Anyone?
This year, New Belgium will once again encourage one brave role model to step on stage to trade in his or her car keys and pledge to live car-free for one year. Each swapper is awarded a stipend to buy his or her own commuter bike. We’re now on the hunt for a swapper in Twin Cities. Car-for-Bike Swappers are chosen after submitting an application describing why they are ready to give up their vehicle for the gift of two wheels. To apply, visit: http://www.newbelgium.com/Events/tour-de-fat.aspx.

Tour de Fat Details:
Date: Saturday, July 26

Location: Loring Park

Registration: 10 a.m. Saturday

Ride Times: 11 a.m. to 12 noon.

Entertainment/Revivalation:
12:00 p.m. — Fashion! (Best Costumes of the Tour de Fat)
12:20 p.m. — The Reals Band (https://www.facebook.com/therealsband)
1:20 p.m. — The Slow Ride Race
1:40 p.m. — The Handsome Little Devils (http://handsomelittledevils.com)
2:30 p.m. — Car for Bike Trade
2:45 p.m. —Yo-Yo People (http://www.yoyoshow.com)
3:35 p.m. — 1,000 Person Dance Contest – winner receives a New Belgium cruiser bike!
4:00 p.m. — Black Joe Lewis (http://www.blackjoelewis.com)
5:00 p.m. –– Finale

Benefitting:
Midtown Greenway Coalition (http://midtowngreenway.org)
Minnesota Off Road Cycling – MOCA (http://www.mocatrails.org)
Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota (https://www.bikemn.org)

Price:
Admission – FREE!
Donations for non-profits are accepted
Beer – $5

Pre-Registration
You can pre-register and donate to receive a limited edition Tour de Fat license plate, bike light or sunglasses at http://bit.ly/TDF_TwinCities.

See https://www.facebook.com/TourDeFat?fref=ts for the Tour de Fat credo, schedules, videos and to submit an entry to swap your vehicle for a fancy new bicycle. For more on the Twin Cities stop, visit http://www.newbelgium.com/Events/tour-de-fat/minneapolis.aspx.

About New Belgium Brewing Company
New Belgium Brewing, makers of Fat Tire Amber Ale and a host of Belgian-inspired beers, is recognized as one of Outside Magazine’s Best Places to Work and one of the Wall Street Journal’s Best Small Businesses. The 100% employee-owned brewery is a Platinum-level Bicycle Friendly Business as designated by the League of American Bicyclists, and one of World Blu’s most democratic U.S. businesses, and a Certified B Corp. In addition to Fat Tire, New Belgium brews nine year-round beers; Ranger IPA, Rampant Imperial IPA, Shift Pale Lager, Snapshot Wheat, Sunshine Wheat, 1554 Black Lager, Blue Paddle Pilsener, Abbey Belgian Ale and Trippel. Learn more at www.newbelgium.com.

Open Streets Will Soon Be In N.E. Minneapolis

Beth Wagner, MinneapolisBike.org

Open Streets cannot be stopped! First Northside Greenway, then Lyndale Avenue, and now Open Streets is rolling into Northeast Minneapolis, on Sunday July 27th. Only two weeks out from today, Central Avenue NE. will be transformed into a safe, car-free area for people to bike, walk, play and hang with local businesses and artists. Come be a part of the magic and sign up to volunteer today!

How can you get involved?
Volunteers help with everything from facilitating chalk art activities at intersections to helping us keep the street clean and car free. We’ll need about 90 volunteers to sign up for this event, so help us keep the momentum of Open Streets going by volunteering for a couple hours on July 27th at Central Avenue NE! You choose the location, the time, and what you’ll do — we give you a t-shirt, a volunteer appreciation party, and a lot of high fives. Couldn’t get much better than that! Check out openstreetsmpls.com/get-involved/ for a complete listing of volunteer options and to get involved.

Thanks so much to all our volunteers. To learn more, visit openstreetsmpls.com or contact Beth Wagner at [email protected].

Open Streets Minneapolis has a number of financial and in-kind sponsors including the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition, Center for Prevention at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, City of Minneapolis, Metro Transit, North Memorial Health Care, 89.3 The Current, car2go Minneapolis and Peace Coffee. Thanks to all our sponsors that make Open Streets Minneapolis possible.

See you at Open Streets in Northeast Minneapolis!

Can’t make it to Central Avenue Open Streets? Sign up to be a part of Franklin Avenue Open Streets, on August 17th!

Watch Monday For HaveFunBiking July 4th Photo Review

With perfect weather in Golden Valley, Minnesota, the 15th Annual Tour D’ Amico ride, on the 4th of July, was a huge success. Highlights from this years ride included a new revised bike route, great food from D’ Amico’s and Sons Restaurant and a Soffie photo contest showing all the fun everyone had.

Watch for a full photo recap article of this event on Monday, here at HaveFunBiking.com.

4th of July Bike Ride Includes Minneapolis’s Newest Bike Lanes

“What a fun way to spend the early part of your 4th of July holiday, leisurely riding the parkways, scenic commuter routes and trails in and out of Minneapolis than on the Tour D Amico bike ride,” says Hiawatha Bicycling Clubs president Leon Webster. “This ride is an annual tour, not a race, perfect for the whole family with a delicious picnic lunch at the end.”

Starting and ending in Golden Valley for the 15th Annual Bike Tour of the Twin Cities on the 4th of July, the three route options are available. This year’s tour offers everyone a chance to explore some of Minneapolis’s newest bike boulevards on the 30, 45 and 62 mile scenic routes through the Twin Cities. Then at the finish, D’ Amico & Sons Restaurants hosts sinfully delicious Italian picnic, in their Golden Valley courtyard.

The tour begins at the Golden Valley Commons Shopping Center, off Highway 55 and Winetka Avenue, and all you need is a bike, helmet, and a cell phone to take pictures of yourself and your friends having fun along the way. This year they are offering a selfie contest, where two winners will be selected from the most fun and the most creative photo categories submitted. The winners selected will each receive a $50 gift certificate for D’ Amico and Son’s Restaurants and a Tour D’ Amico bike jersey. Here is your chance to ride routes through the scenic western suburbs and then in and out Minneapolis offering many picturesque backdrops for selfie photos.