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Enthusiasts peddle awareness for bicycling
Matt Denardo
Jasmine Gehris/Tribune-Review
When: Friday through June 26.
Admission: Fees for most events.
Where: Variety of locations from Downtown to Sewickley.
Details: 412-731-4094, complete schedule at www.bike-pgh.com.
Bob Karlovits can be reached via e-mail or at 412-320-7852.
But he insists there is a change in mentality that is putting air in the tires of Bike Fest, which begins Friday.
"What we're trying to do is to create a larger awareness of cycling," says Boerer, the coordinator of Bike Pittsburgh, a group organized to promote bicycling in all of its aspects, as a sport, a hobby, a way of commuting.
"It's slow, but it is growing," agrees Patrick Hassett, assistant director of design, development and transportation for the city Planning Department. He has worked with Bike Pittsburgh in this project.
"We have over the past 10 years done a lot of work on our bike trails and that has opened eyes to cycling," he says.
And that's just what Bike Fest is trying to do.
The weeklong series of activities is a blend of primarily already-existing events that Boerer and others from Bike Pittsburgh and Free Ride! have put together to gather some attention. Among the 38 events are:
The schedule of activities also includes such prominent events as the Tour de Sewickley, which offers 60-, 30-, and 5-mile rides starting at the Sewickley YMCA June 26. Details: 412-922-8322, ext. 13 or natalie@earlylearninginstitute.org.
"We just went to events like the Tour de Sewickley and said, 'Do you want to be included?'" Boerer says about organizing the event. "It's just a matter of putting things together; just a few good people and a computer."
Boerer, says the purpose the Bike Fest is to show people that the bicycling has a home in Pittsburgh.
John Strait of Highland Park also believes Bike Fest will be a good way to illustrate the growth of riding in the Pittsburgh area. He has been leading rides Tuesday and Thursday nights starting at Enrico's Tazza D'Oro Cafe on Highland Avenue for about five years. He's seen more people become interested in the riding sessions.
"The Thursday night rides can get pretty intense," he says of those jaunts that feature longer distance and more hills than the Tuesday ones.
His rides are not sponsored by anyone, but are listed on the calendar of the Western Pennsylvania Wheelman riding club. He is enthusiastic about being part of Bike Fest, too.
"Some people are just happy to get out and ride," he says.
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