Gazelle Toer Populair
After a few wrong turns, spring has made it to Chicago. Commence springtime activities: an outdoor meal on a sidewalk patio, daygames cheering on two mediocre hometown ball clubs, riding the Lakefront Trail with the Netherlands Consulate General of Chicago. Wait, what was the last one? Why it’s the Go Green Go Dutch Go Bike! event, which is coming to Chicago for the first time this Saturday. The ride began in Canada in 2007 when the Consulate General of the Netherlands in Toronto organized the event to promote the health and environmental benefits of riding a bike. Chicago’s Go Green Go Dutch Go Bike! is also sponsored by the Active Transportation Alliance in Chicago, which puts on the annual Bike the Drive on a carless Lake Shore Drive. Margo O’Hara of Active Trans says that the event encapsulates the mission of their organization. “Our goal is to reduce crashes in half and work towards having half of all trips in Chicago be biking or walking,” O’Hara says. The springtime ride is a chance to bike the Lakefront Trail from Montrose Harbor to the John Hancock Center with other cycling enthusiasts. Organizer Herbert Wennink, the Commercial Officer of the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Chicago, will be present on two wheels, and all registered riders will be entered for the chance to win a Gazelle Toer Populair, a Dutch bike valued at $1,400. The prize bike is sure to speed up the winner’s riding cling times, but Saturday is not a race. “Everyone just goes at their own pace and enjoys the Lakefront Trail,” O’Hara says. The event begins Saturday at Montrose Harbor at 9:45am. To register, visit activetrans.org. (Andrew Rhoades)
