Saturday, May 30, 2015

How to safely ride to the Bloomingdale Trail

by Michelle Stenzel

We’re very excited for the June 6th opening of the Bloomingdale Trail. This new 2.7-mile long elevated trail and the adjacent 606 park system will be a great asset to the neighborhoods it runs through, providing new green space as well as a low-stress transportation route between Bucktown/Wicker Park and Logan Square/Humboldt Park.
Taken from the Bloomingdale Trail website.

Here’s a map of the Bloomingdale Trail's access points:

Taken from the 606 website.

What’s particularly exciting to us is that the easternmost part of the trail is very close to Lincoln Park! For people living in the area of Armitage and Racine, the Walsh Park access point (in yellow on the map above) is less than one mile away. Even for people living in Lincoln Park’s northeast corner, near Diversey and Lake Shore Drive, the distance is less than three miles, a mere 20-minute bike ride. We know many Lincoln Park residents and visitors will want to visit the Bloomingdale Trail regularly, so the question is, which mode of transportation will you use to get there? You’re not going to drive, are you?  (More -->)

Monday, May 25, 2015

Lincoln Park's Kidical Mass family bike ride 2015 schedule announced

by Michelle Stenzel

So you've got kids now, and want to ride with them on Chicago's streets? One way to begin is to join a Kidical Mass family bike ride in your neighborhood. Kidical Mass rides (it's a play on the words "Critical Mass") are volunteer-led, volunteer-organized, free family bike rides held in a number of neighborhoods, including Logan Square, Roscoe Village, South Loop, Lincoln Square and Edison Park. (Chicago Kidical Mass has a website as well as a Facebook page.)

Lincoln Park's rides began two years ago, and have become popular events. Jerry Quandt, former aldermanic candidate and active Bike Walk Lincoln Park participant, is taking over as Lincoln Park Kidical Mass ride coordinator, and he has announced the season's full schedule:


Most of the monthly rides will be held on Sunday afternoons at 4:00 pm, but the first ride on Saturday, May 30th will be at 9:30 am, and then end at the Spring Zing event sponsored by Lincoln Central Association. That event will have pros from Performance Bicycle providing free safety check ups on bikes, and a team from Lurie Children's Hospital giving a demonstration on bike safety for kids.

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