October 2024: Bikeway Use in Ann Arbor Surges by 45%
Saddle up! The bikeways are full of cycle traffic, the cargo bike lending library is live, and we're already planning for the 2025 Bike Summit and Ann Arbor Bicycle Film Festival!
Welcome back to Wheelie Good News!, published by the Bicycle Alliance of Washtenaw! Below, you’ll find a list of bike-related events throughout the month of October in Washtenaw County. If we’ve missed something, you can email us at bikewashtenaw [at] gmail, or just leave the information (with a link, please) as a comment below. We’ll add them here and post them on Instagram and Facebook.
Top stories this month:
We’re just starting the Week Without Driving (Sept. 30 - Oct. 6), a campaign to empathize with the one-third of Americans who don’t drive. By disconnecting from our auto-centric lives, we can make our streets quieter, cleaner, and safer for vulnerable road users. Sign up here, or just take the challenge on your own!
And if you need to move some heavy stuff without your car, the link for the cargo bike lending library is live! Click here for all the information you need.
In Ann Arbor, use of the downtown bikeways surged by 45% in September, to more than 44,000! We’re excited to see awareness and enthusiasm for bikes spreading all over the region. Follow along here to see how we do in October.
We’ve already started planning for the 2025 Bike Summit and Ann Arbor Bicycle Film Festival! Stay tuned for official announcements of dates and locations.
Episode 2 of the Wheelie Good podcast was all about the 2024 Green Fair, as discussed by co-organizers Jennifer Wolf and Sheronda Gloster:
Happening This Month
Sat 10/2 | 5 - 7pm
The Neighborhood Institute meets on the first Wednesday of each month to advocate for affordable housing, walkable and bikeable streets, and improved public transit, so that everyone can live and meet their daily needs in the neighborhood of their choice. Meet at the Blue Tractor in Ann Arbor for half-price beer and apps until 6pm!
Sat 10/5
Meet at Chelsea Fairgrounds for a gravel bike event where cyclists choose from four distances: 100, 71, 41, and 24 miles (literally to Hell and back). Most of the roads will be gravel with smaller, paved segments. See the site for route details.
Sat 10/5 | 2pm
The 28-mile route starts at Sic Transit Cycles and follows a mix of paved and dirt roads, most with light car traffic, to the Blind Lake campground in Pinckney. The goal is to get out there and back in under 24 hours and sprinkle in a little adventure into our local lives. (Note: this very popular event is currently at maximum capacity, so keep an eye out for when Sic Transit announces the next overnight in the spring.)
Sun 10/6
The TdL is a fully supported, multi-distance and multi-route fundraising event to support the Go Liv Co Horal Family Foundation, in memory of Dan Horal, who was killed while biking by a distracted driver. Your support helps promote cycling safety and advocacy in order to prevent future bike-related tragedies.
Wed 10/9
Every October, students from thousands of schools across America—from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico—walk and roll as part of a movement for year-round safe routes to school. Check here to see if your school is taking part. (And if it isn’t, sign up!)
Walk Bike Washtenaw Board Meeting
Wed 10/9 | 6:30 - 8:30pm
Anyone interested in making Washtenaw County a leader in bicycling and walking is encouraged to attend on the second Wednesday every month. All meetings are virtual and open to the public.
Sun 10/13
The Fundo is a free, self-supported, un-timed, and non-competitive ride through the dirt roads and bike paths of Washtenaw County. There are 25- and 48-mile routes that will start and end at Lowertown and take you onto the dirt roads north of Ann Arbor. Then we’ll gather for drinks, reminisce on a great summer of riding, and celebrate the fall/winter cycling season to come.
Flying Rhino Cycling Club Fall Back 40 Color Tour
Sun 10/13
Meet in Clarkston and choose from six dirt road tours between 10 and 64 miles through beautiful fall foliage. Prices include donuts and cider provided at rest stops and a catered lunch from Union Joints. Kids under 12 ride free!
Common Cycle Steering Committee Meeting
Sun 10/20 | 4 - 5:30pm
The Steering Committee meets monthly online on the third Sunday of the month, and all are welcome to discuss a variety of organization business. Please email us at info@commoncycle.org for the Zoom link and meeting details.
Ann Arbor Bike Party — Halloween Edition!
Fri 10/25 | 7 - 9pm
Join us at Ann Arbor Farmers Market for a chill, guided, 8- to 10-mile bike ride through Ann Arbor. Helmet, lights, and Halloween-themed costumes are encouraged, and hang around for post-ride fun with friends, neighbors, and visitors around the community!
Sat 10/26
This well-established, 96-mile race features roughly 95% unpaved roads to help riders experience what gravel racing is all about. Racers will find themselves along the banks of the Flat River, through rural Ionia County, and past multiple historic monuments in Lowell.
Bicycle Alliance of Washtenaw Meeting
Wed 10/30 | 7 - 8:30pm
Come to HOMES Brewery and meet your local bike enthusiasts, hear about our ongoing efforts, and get involved!
Fri 11/15 | 5pm
Meet at the League of Michigan Bicyclists’s office in Lansing to light up your bike, enjoy some cider and donuts, and then ride with the LMB in the 2024 Silver Bells parade! This kick-off to the holiday season features a brightly lit array of floats. Bring battery-powered lights for your bike and plenty of festive holiday cheer!
On the Regular
Repairs
Ypsi Bike Coop Repair Booth — Saturdays, 9am - 1pm.
Bring your bike to the Ypsilanti Farmers Market in Depot Town.
Common Cycle Community Workspace — Sundays, 11am - 3pm.
Volunteers at Common Cycle will help repair your bike.
Bike Park Work Days — Sundays, 12:30 - 2:30pm.
Volunteer for trail maintenance work at Tuebingen and Bandemer Bike Parks.
Rides
There are regular weekly rides every day of the week in Washtenaw County, for all surfaces, lengths, and skill levels. Check the ride calendars below for the complete list.
Thanks for reading, and feedback is always welcome. Here’s to a beautiful month on the streets, paths, trails, and jumps all over Washtenaw County—and pump the brakes on all the pumpkin spice.
The Bicycle Alliance of Washtenaw
