Bike & Trike will be a fun family event

Are you ready to get out of the house? Maybe stretch the legs on a bike?

We’re putting together an extremely affordable family-oriented community event on Saturday, April 11, for Treasure Valley residents called Bike & Trike, featuring Olympic Gold Medalist Kristin Armstrong. The event will be held at the new West Highlands community in Middleton, where Coleman Homes is making brand-spanking-new pavement available for elite bike racing, adults racing on trikes and kids bike races. We will be giving away a free kids mountain bike to people who sign up (must be present to win). All race participants will get a free water bottle and T-shirt.

Coleman Homes is co-sponsoring the event with George’s Cycles. Mike Cooley, the bike racing guru who puts on the Twilight Criterium every year, is organizing the races. The day will start with Miss & Out races on a half-mile course. You can set up your lawn chair on a sidewalk right next to the course and feel the speed of true bike racing. The last rider to cross the finish line on each lap is out of the race. So they’ll be riding for their life.

At lunchtime, we’ll hold some celebrity trike races, as a fund-raiser for the Middleton Library. Local TV and radio personalities, elected officials and general public will participate. Check out this You Tube video of what a trike race looks like. It’s hilarious.

A no-host catered lunch will be served by Darcy’s Catering in Nampa.

And then at 1:30 p.m., the kids bike races will start, with categories of age 3 with training wheels on up. Kristin Armstrong will ride victory laps with the kids, award medals and sign autographs. The kids races are open to ages 3-14.

How often do your kids have a chance to rub shoulders with an Olympic gold medalist? And get a free T-shirt and water bottle to boot? Kristin Armstrong is very generous to share her day with us. I hope you can bring your family out and have a good time.

More information can be found at http://www.mycolemanhome.com/. You can sign up for the event in advance at http://www.spondoro.com/. Or call me for more information, 484-0295, sstuebner@drakecooper.com – Steve Stuebner