You’ll know the sound of 150 cyclists passing by when you hear it. The 17th annual North Star Bicycle Festival is coming back this next week, June 15 -19, in Minnesota, . Photo above shows some kid’s having fun on their bikes at the North Star Bicycle Festival race course, in Stillwater, MN, last year.
Family Fun Bike Festival and Races Begins This Next Week
North Star Criterium in Uptown Minneapolis. photo Stephanie Williams:
Bring your friends, family and cycling curiosity to seven days of:
PRO RACING
STUNT RIDERS
FREE KIDS RACES
A CEO RIDE WITH GREG LEMOND
BIKE EXPOS
SURLY BEER GARDENS
FOOD TRUCKS
INTERACTIVE PROGRAMMING
LIVE MUSIC
AND MUCH MORE!
Presented by North Memorial Health Care and benefiting the Special Olympics of Minnesota, this is a free bike event in five Minnesota communities with professional stage races featuring top cyclists from the U.S. and several foreign countries. Attendees will also enjoy food, fun, music, along with kids’ bike races, a stunt rider exhibition and more. Free secure bike corral parking each day for those who wish to avoid the hassles of traffic and event parking.
When:
Wednesday-Sunday, June 15-19, 2016
Where:
Stage 1, June 15: Saint Paul Riverfront Time Trial, at 8:30 a. m. near Ford Plant link
Stage 2, June 15: Saint Paul Downtown Criterium, 6:15 p.m., Lowertown’s Mears Park link
Stage 3, June 16: Cannon Falls Road Race, 4:45 p.m. downtown Cannon Falls link
Stage 4, June 17: Uptown Minneapolis Criterium, 6:15 p.m., past Calhoun Square link
Stage 5, June 18: North Mankato Road Race, 12 p.m. start link
Stage 6, June 19: Stillwater Criterium, 10:45 a.m. start link
* Please Note: Festival with exhibits will open about two hours before the race starts.
Who:
Pro racing is a dazzling sport that can only be fully appreciated in person. The roar of a motorcycle and shrill blasts from the course marshals’ whistles announce the approach of the racing pack. The racers fly by, a brightly colored blur so close that you could reach out and touch them. They kick up enough wind to blow your hair back on a calm day. You hear the buzz of their chains and clicks as they shift gears. Shoulder to shoulder and wheel to wheel, hard physical contact between pro racers is common and the risk of a sudden crash is ever present.