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Twin Cities bike events 2014

May 19, 2014 at 6:11PM

Bikers rode through a closed Lowery Ave North in Minneapolis during the Lowry Open Streets Minneapolis 2012 Harvest Fest. The one day event was sponsored by the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition and the Lowry Corridor Business Association and featured community arts activities, food, live music, a car show and bike activities spread over 24 blocks on Lowry Ave on 9/29/12.] Bruce Bisping/Star Tribune bbisping@startribune.com ORG XMIT: MIN1209291614451291 (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

From fundraisers to races to social events, there's something to ride for all summer long.

Open Streets Minneapolis & St. Paul: May 31-Sept. 20 • various locations • www.openstreetsmpls.com • www.stpaulopenstreets.org

The fun day fest where bicyclists and pedestrians take over the street is modeled after the Ciclovía in Bogotá, Colombia. This year Open Streets hits north Minneapolis (May 31), Lyndale Av. S. (June 8), Central Av. NE. (July 27), E. Franklin Av. (Aug. 17), Nicollet Av. S. (Sept. 14) and Lowry Av. N. (Sept. 20). In addition, Open Streets St. Paul holds its first event this year on Sept. 15 on University Av. between Hamline Av. and Marion St.

Fourth of July Freedom From Pants Ride: 6 p.m. July 4 • Starts behind 616 2nd Av. SE., Mpls.

Exercise your right not to wear pants in this wild ride full of almost-but-not-quite-nude cyclists gallivanting around town in the heat of summer. Risqué? Sure, but it's a holiday, so what the heck else are you going to do? Make sure to wave at the bewildered spectators.

Red Ribbon Ride: July 17-20 • www.redribbonride.org

A four-day, nearly 300-mile experience with proceeds supporting eight Minnesota AIDS service organizations. There are overnight stops in Belle Plaine, Mankato and Waconia.

Tour de Fat: July 26 • Loring Park, Mpls. • www.newbelgium.com

Celebrate bikes, hear great music, enjoy fun games and activities, and taste some refreshing New Belgium beer, all while raising money for your favorite bicycle nonprofits. One lucky attendee will take the pledge to go car-free for a year.

Square Lake Festival; Aug. 9 • Stillwater • www.squarelakefestival.com

The annual music and film festival offers discount tickets for cyclists who agree in advance to bike from the Twin Cities — about 70 miles round trip. In past years, organizers have reached their goal of more than 50 percent of attendees biking to the fest, which offers an eclectic lineup of folk, rock, jazz and world music as well as a short-film festival.

Powderhorn 24: 7 p.m. Aug. 15 to 7 p.m. Aug. 16 • Powderhorn neighborhood, Mpls. • www.powderhorn24.com

Celebrate the Powderhorn neighborhood with this 24-hour race made up of five-mile laps around the community for yes, 24 hours. Get your friends together for a relay team, or hey, ride it solo.

Babes in Bikeland: Sept. 13 • Mpls. • www. babesinbikeland.com

Join this fun alley cat race/scavenger hunt, geared toward women and transgender cyclists, for a chance to win prizes and meet new people.

Sheila Regan

The Red Ribbon Ride is the largest cycling event for HIV/AIDS in Minnesota and the second largest in the United States. Hundreds of cyclists and supporters gathered at Mall of America on July 19 to kick-off the 10th anniversary opening ceremony. The 4 day ride is nearly a 300-mile journey through Minnesota, to raise money for eight Minnesota AIDS service organizations including The Aliveness Project, Clare Housing, African American AIDS Task Force and Minnesota AIDS Project. ] Richard.Sennott@startribune.com Richard Sennott /Star Tribune. , Eagan Minn. Thursday 07/19/12) ** (cq) ORG XMIT: MIN2014050617140878 (The Minnesota Star Tribune)