DENVER — For many of us, rolling around on two wheels is our connection to the creatures and natural beauty of Colorado that steals our hearts.
Those wheels can also just have a way of bringing us humans closer together, too.
That connection is something a group of Denver-area cyclists hope to make even stronger next month through a new celebration of all things biking in the Mile High City.
It’s called Denver Bike Fest.
“Denver Bike Fest is hopefully going to be an exciting gathering of the Denver bike community with music, food trucks and raffle prizes,” said Emily Kleinfelter, a Denver cyclist, advocate and community organizer.
“It's just an event to celebrate the vibrant cycling culture that exists here in our wonderful city.”
It’s the perfect time for a celebration of biking as the days grow longer and the temps get warmer, more Denverites might be thinking about airing up their tires and hopping on one of the trails.
“We're really hoping to bring together all of the different amazing community groups and nonprofits and bike shops that exist in the Denver area to celebrate their love and passion for their two wheels,” said Kleinfelter.
Kleinfelter joined other cyclists including Loren Hansen at Z Cycles on a chilly, but bright Saturday morning to talk about Denver Bike Fest and what to expect.
Hansen, also a Denver bike rider and commuter, runs Colorado history rides, which you can check out on their Instagram page.
“If I talk to somebody from a history ride they don’t necessarily know about these other groups – there often isn't a lot of connection. I think what we're doing is building connections, not just to these bike groups, but to fantastic shops like Z Cycle, wonderful shops like Bikes Together,” added Hansen.
Connection is the ultimate goal of Denver Bike Fest.
“We're really hoping to bring together all of the different amazing community groups and nonprofits and bike shops that exist in the Denver area to celebrate their love and passion for their two wheels,” said Kleinfelter.
Denver BikeFest is set for Saturday, April 26 at City Park Pavilion from 3:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. and it’s free.
Watch the video report in the player below.
Organizers met at Z Cycle over the weekend to continue planning for the festival and they are putting the call out to organizations and businesses that want to have a chance to connect with Denver cyclists at the event.
“We are looking to the social groups, the nonprofits and bike shops who are wanting to be there at the festival. We have a really low entry fee. It's only $20 for social groups, $50 for nonprofits, and $100 for a bike shop to participate,” said Kleinfelter. ”It's going to be at City Park Pavilion and it's an incredible space that people don't often have access to.”
Both Kleinfelter and Hansen are experienced riders and hope everyone, no matter their type of ride or how they bike, will come out to Denver Bike Fest.
The celebration is also a great way for anyone curious about biking in Denver to get some perspective and encouragement.
“People can come to and learn about not only the shops that can help them get their bike up and running but also the nonprofits that are helping to make it safer and more accessible for people to ride bikes,” said Kleinfelter.
“I ride the bike because it's fun. It's a meditation for me,” said Hansen. “I jokingly do a Monday night sanity ride and it really helps me – I get centered throughout the week.”
To learn more about Denver Bike Fest or how to help make it a success, you can jump to their instagram page.
There's plenty of information on this event page on Z Cycle's website.
“It's totally free, completely free to the public, it's open to all ages and we're gonna have live music, food trucks, raffle prizes of all different kinds. We are really excited and we hope to see you there.” said Kleinfelter.
Denver7's On Two Wheels aims to dive deeper into the unique hazards when biking in Denver and across Colorado, but to also share the good things and lift up the amazing people who take up cycling to get stronger and feel better about their mental health. You can watch our special report in the video player below.
Biking dangers in Denver: Close call stories ‘On Two Wheels’
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.