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This flashback Friday, with temps above normal and little to no snow on the ground in the upper Midwest, here bike pic from last year. Riding in the Minnesota River Bottoms in Bloomington, MN. on Global Fat Bike Day.
So, adjust to colder temps and get into the zone when continuing your time outdoors and your #NextBikeAdventure. View all the great ideas and bike destinations in the latest Iowa or Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide. Then plan your next outing with family and friends, and check out more stories at Let’s Do MN.
Thanks for viewing today’s bike pic
Now rolling through our 19th year as a bike tourism media, enjoy! As we pedal forward, we aim to encourage more people to bike and have fun while highlighting all the unforgettable places you can ride. As we continue to showcase more places to have fun, we hope the photos we shoot are worth a grin. Enjoy the information and stories we have posted as you scroll through.
Do you have a fun bicycle-related photo of yourself or someone you may know we should post? If so, please send your picture(s) to [email protected]. Please Include a brief caption for the image, who shot it, and where. Photo(s) sent to us should be a minimum of 1,000 pixels wide to be considered. You will receive photo credit and acknowledgment on Facebook and Instagram if we use your photo.
As we continue encouraging more people to bike, please view our Destination section at HaveFunBiking.com for your #NextBikeAdventure. Also, check out the MN Bike Guide, now mobile-friendly in our 14th year of producing this handy information booklet full of maps.
Bookmark HaveFunBiking.com on your cell phone and find your next adventure at your fingertips! Please share our pics with your friends, and don’t forget to smile. With one of our cameras ready to document your next cameo appearance while you are riding and having fun, we may be around the corner. You could be in one of our next Pic of the Day.
Mounds View is a great mix of busy and calm where you can ride your bike along creekside trails to visit festivals like the town’s Annual Festival in the Park. This two-day jam-packed festival is a great way to start the end of summer vacation. Watch the fastest bike racers in the Midwest roar around Mounds View. Or give it a try yourself in the events beginner race.
It all starts on Friday, August 16th, in Twin Cities Gateway community of Mounds View, MN. where one can find such an adventure. The festival begins on Friday evening with a dance and leads into Saturday, August 17th with bike races, games, a parade and more music to add to your summer memories. Whether you and your family come by bike, or by car, be prepared for an exciting day.
A Fun-Filled Day at the Festival in the Park
Here safety mascot’s ride in the communities fire truck bucket Festival in the Park parade.
Start your morning off on a run, literally. The Festival in the Park’s 5K race kicks off at the community center starting at 8:30 in the morning. After dashing through town, head over to the North Ball Field and see some snazzy cars. The car show is celebrating its tenth year at the festival and will be going on until 3:30 p.m. – with awards to see if your favorite car wins at 2 in the afternoon. At 10 a.m. get ready to catch some candy at the parade. Afterward, take the kids over to the Front Parking Lot to have some fun with the Fire Department activities. At 1 p.m. there will be a K9 demo in the West Ball Field.
Foot Stomping Music at the Festival
It’s your time to show off your inner star. You have about a week or so to pick your favorite hit song and warm up your vocal cords. Karaoke is on stage from 2:30 to 5 p.m. and usually has some surprises and great singers to please your ears. This year’s band the Elements,which starts playing at 5:30 p.m. to entertain the masses. Apart from having a fantastic name, Big Toe and the Jam will have you stomping your feet and singing along. From “Party Rock” to “Jesse’s Girl”, you don’t want to miss this eclectic set-list everyone will love. The night ends with a bang – fireworks over City Hall Park.
Bike Rodeo and Sprint
Watch as the USA Cycling racers sprint by the spectators, stirring the air as they dart by at the Festival in the Park.
The Mounds View Festival in the Park Sprint Races starts at Noon with the last race starting at 6:05 in the evening. The course is a rectangle with a total distance of 1.1 miles. If you are feeling extra adventurous on this particular day, as this is a USA Cycling Race, there are one-day licenses available at registration. Otherwise, it is just as fun watching the cyclists as they dart by, pedaling as fast they can. Competing or not, the race will be an adrenaline-filled phenomenon.
So make plans today to head over to Mounds View on August 16 and 17th.
Plus the perfect trail to ride when in the area
Many who visit here also enjoy pedaling their bikes on the trail along with the natural settings of Rice Creek.
Winter is the time of year my thoughts drift to the beautiful surroundings of warmer climates. Having traveled with my bike a great deal, I can attest to the fact that riding new trails and roads will invigorate your riding. The big issue with traveling elsewhere to bike is finding the good trails, best routes or fun secret spots only the locals know about. That’s why I recommend you enter destination bike races. Not to try and win the race, but for the route.
Stage 1 of BC Bike Race’s 2018 route
How can you enter a bike race, but race?
Any competition is not a race if you don’t try hard enough. So ignore your placement in the race results, relax, and think about the event as a well organized ride instead. This mentality works best for long events. For that reason, road circuit races are out of the question, but there are loads of mountain bike, Gravel, and road events that fit the bill.
Why go to a bike race?
The best reason to register for a race but not actually treat it like a race is the convenience. As an example, If you want to schedule an awesome mountain bike vacation on some of the best trails in the world, going to the BC Bike Race would be a good option. By registering, you have access to lodging, food, bike support, rider support and above all else eight preset courses are offered through BC’s best terrain. While you pay for this convenience, the cost is similar to if you were to plan it yourself with a lot less headache. Also, cycling events are family friendly by design, so bring everyone along!
How do I pick
With all these new options available to you, how do you pick your event? My recommendation is to start with location. Pick some areas you want to visit and ride in. Next check local calendars and see if any events will match up. Finally, register for the event of your choice and plan your vacation!
What to expect
What you will experience at these events depends greatly on the type and size of the event. For the sake of this article I will break the event types up into the two most popular categories: mountain bike and gravel bike
Mountain bike races
Mountain bike races are usually really long (like the Circumburke trail challenge in the Kingdom Trails of Vermont or stage races like the Transylvania Epic in Pennsylvania). The long single day races are fun way to test yourself and achieve a one-day goal and are awesome if you have limited time to get away. If time is not as much of an issue, stage races are where it’s at! Stage races are shorter individual rides spread over a series of days. They usually expose you to many different sections of popular trail networks as well as have a great festival atmosphere.
There are few joys that compare to experiencing new trails.
Gravel bike races
The popularity of gravel rides has exploded in the past few years thanks to dedicated people putting on world class events all around the globe. Many of these races started humbly but have grown to mythic stature. Events like Kansas’ Dirty Kanza 200 might be a stretch for most with it’s 200 miles of tire-splitting flint rock. However, for those interested in the adventure of a gravel race with a bit more approachable distance can look at Iowa’s Colesburg Gravelpocalypse with routes as short as 20 miles. Whatever your distance, gravel races are an amazing option with events all around the country.
Lovely new roads await on countess events around the world.
What to do when you go to “race”
When you sign up for a race, it’s best to come to the event with some fitness and realistic expectations. Plan to take your time and have fun. Most importantly, remember that there are some really fast people out there who are actually racing these events. For that reason wait at the start line when the event goes off. Allow all those looking to compete to get into the race course then head off for your ride. When riding, yield right of way easily to all passing cyclists as some competitive riders may have had to stop to repair mechanicals. Finally, the race is meant to be fun. Feel free to push yourself, but if a section appears to be above your skill level there is no shame in walking it. All in all, enjoy the ride, the atmosphere and allow others to do the same
“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it”- Greg Anderson. Bike racing for some is a stress reliever or hobby, while for others it is a way of life. Whatever it may be for you, focus your energy on the experience, not on finishing it the quickest. People lose their focus on a subject when they worry too much about it.
See all the places to focus your mind on the journey and not the destination in the new Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide.
Thanks for viewing Today’s Focus Friday Bike Pic
Now rolling into our 10th year as a bike tourism media, our goal is to continue to encourage more people to bike and have fun. While highlighting all the unforgettable places for you to ride. As we continue to showcase more place to have fun we hope the photos we shoot are worth a grin. As you scroll through the information and stories we have posted, enjoy.
Do you have a fun bicycle related photo of yourself or someone you may know that we should post? If so, please send your picture(s) to: [email protected]. Include a brief caption (for each), of who is in the photo (if you know?) and where the picture was taken. Photo(s) should be a minimum of 1,000 pixels wide or larger to be considered. If we do use your photo, you will receive photo credit and acknowledgment on Facebook and Instagram.
As we continues to encourage more people to bike, please view our Destination section at HaveFunBiking.com for your next bike adventure – Also, check out the MN Bike Guide, now mobile friendly, as we enter into our 8th year of producing the guide.
So bookmark HaveFunBiking.com and find your next adventure. Please share all our picks with your friends and don’t forget to smile. We may be around the next corner with one of our camera’s ready to document your next move while you are riding and having fun. We may capture you in one of our next Pic of the Day posts.
Here this young cyclist at the North Star Bike Festival‘s kids bike race, in Stillwater, MN found it more enjoyable to walk up the hill she was approaching, rather then struggling to ride.
Thanks for viewing the Bike Pic of the Day here at HaveFunBiking (HFB).
Now, rolling into our 10th year as a bicycle tourism media our goal is to continue to encourage more people to bike, while showcasing unforgettable places to ride. As HFB searches and presents more fun cycling related photos, worth a grin, scroll through the information and stories we have posted that may help you find your next adventure. Then, while out there if you see us along a paved or mountain bike trail, next to the route you regularly commute on, or at an event you plan to attend, be prepared to smile. You never know where our camera’s will be and what we will post next!
Do you have a fun bicycle related photo of yourself or someone you know that you would like to see us post? If so, please send it our way and we may use it. Send your picture(s) to: [email protected] with a brief caption (of each), including who is in the photo (if you know?) and where it was taken. Photo(s) should be a minimum of 800 pixels wide or larger for us to consider using them. If we do use your photo, you will receive photo credit and an acknowledgment on Facebook and Instagram.
As HaveFunBiking continues to encourage more people to ride, please reference our blog and the annual print and quarterly digital Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide to find your next adventure. We are proud of the updated – At-a-Glance information and maps we are known for at the HFB Destination section on our website and in the guide. Now, as the Guide goes into its seventh year of production, we are adding a whole new dimension of information, now available for mobile devices.
So bookmark HaveFunBiking.com and find your next adventure – we may capture you in one of the next photos we post.
The North Star Bicycle Festival presented by North Memorial Health Care and PreferredOne will add several new events this year, providing additional fun for families, new opportunities for amateur cyclists, while drawing attention to their new charity, Special Olympics Minnesota. The Festival includes the Life Time Fitness Hillfest June 13th and the North Star Grand Prix pro stage bike race, festival with expo area, June 17-21 in Saint Paul, Cannon Falls, Minneapolis and Stillwater, MN and Menomonie,WI. In Minneapolis, Greg will lead Greg LeMond CEO Ride for Kids, a new addition to the Uptown Criterium.
Three-time Tours de France winner Greg LeMond now designs bikes – photo Travis Anderson
Three-time Tour de France winner and World Champion Greg LeMond will lead local executives in supporting Special Olympics Minnesota by participating in the Greg LeMond CEO Ride for Kids, a new addition to the Uptown Minneapolis Criterium. The event will take place Friday, June 19 before the men’s race. LeMond and the executives will ride one lap of the race route, accompanied by several Special Olympians. Proceeds from this event will support the Festival’s programming for children and Special Olympics Minnesota, while building awareness of our new benefiting charity.
A new Kids’ Zone
Sponsored by RBC Wealth Management, will be featured at the Uptown Minneapolis Criterium and the Stillwater Criterium. The Kids’ Zone will consist of stunt rider shows, Kids’ Fun Race, cycling clinics, slalom courses, kid-friendly activities such as contests and face painting and treats. The Uptown stage will feature a bike rodeo that includes figure eight runs, start and stop drills and a “chaos box” where kids practice rules of the road under the guidance of the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota. Children who are entered in the Kids’ Fun Race and are sporting a bib can participate in cycling activities within the Kids’ Zone. Any child may participate in the non-cycling activities.
Amateur Omnium
2014 North Star Criterium in Uptown Minneapolis.
There will be increased opportunities for amateur racing in 2015. An Amateur Criterium Omnium (point-based, multiple short circuit races) will be held for elite men and women at the Saint Paul, Minneapolis, Menomonie and Stillwater stages. There will also be increased opportunities for all levels of amateurs to compete in Menomonie and Stillwater over the weekend. The Amateur Omnium will fill the time slots vacated by the pro women’s race, which has been cancelled due to low registration numbers.
Life Time Fitness Hillfest
2014 North Star Criterium win in Uptown Minneapolis.
The festival is partnering with Life Time Fitness by kicking off the 2015 events with its challenging Hillfest recreational ride out of Prescott, WI on Saturday, June 13. Riders on road bikes, cross bikes and mountain bikes will tackle up to 4,000 ft. of elevation gain on the 100-mile course. Routes of 60-miles and 30-miles are also offered. Those with young children can opt for a 15-mile family course, where kids 12 and under ride free with a registered adult.
Saint Paul Criterium Returns to Lowertown
2014 North Star Criterium St. Paul. photo Stephanie Williams
From 2007-2009 the Downtown Saint Paul Criterium was held in the trendy Lowertown neighborhood. It was moved to the Rice Park area in 2010 to make way for the construction of the Green Line Light Rail, but it was never the same. Crowds were thinner and energy was lower during the Rice Park years. With the Green Line now open, the Downtown Saint Paul Criterium returns to Lowertown, and this event will be better than ever. The Green Line is bringing people to the Union Depot terminus, the Saint Paul Saints are playing in their new CHS Field and many new restaurants and pubs have appeared. Lowertown is a very happening place and we are thrilled to be back.
The Park Dental Tour de Kids p/b Shimano Youth Series
A free Kids Fun Race for children 12 and under, will be held at all North Star Grand Prix locations with the exception of time trial. The popularity of this event has exploded in recent years and drew 500 children to the Uptown Minneapolis site in 2014. Registration is available at the Park Dental Booth at each stage.
About the North Star Bicycle Festival
Now in its 17 th year, the North Star Bicycle Festival presented by North Memorial Health Care and PreferredOne is celebration of bicycling that includes amateur and professional racing and community events. The North Star Grand Prix has become the premier professional bike race on the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar, attracting top American and International racing teams from around the world. Spectators can watch the races for free. Proceeds from the festival to goSpecial Olympics Minnesota. For event schedules visit www.northstarbicyclefestival.com.
