FREE, Family-friendly ~10 mile bike ride and celebration!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Bay View, WI – August 16th, 2024
Join in on the fun! Along Milwaukee's scenic lakefront on Sunday, August 25th for the 9th Annual Slow Roll Bike Ride & Celebration! It's here again and is a FREE Family-friendly 10 mile bike ride put on by the Chris Kegel Foundation. Donations and funds raised during the Slow Roll benefit local bike infrastructure projects to make Milwaukee an even better place to ride a bike.
Starting at the War Memorial parking lot in downtown Milwaukee, the ride follows Lincoln Memorial Drive up to Shorewood and snakes back on Milwaukee's Oak Leaf Trail. The route is safe and great for riders of all ages and abilities. Following the ride, we meet up at the Beer Garden at the War Memorial with food and drinks provided by Kegel's Inn!
From its inception, the Slow Roll was designed to fun and celebrate the amazing bike community we have in Milwaukee. All people are welcome. There's no barriers to entry, just show up with a bike and ride with us. Anyone that attends will get a free t-shirt, lunch, and beverage.
HISTORY OF CHRIS' SLOW ROLL
When word got out that Chris Kegel was terminally sick, his inner circle got together immediately. How could we quickly rally the forces to honor this amazing human and show him how much of a positive impact his life's work had made on the community? The only thing that made sense, was to bring everyone together for Chris' favorite thing- a bike ride.
The slogan the first year was, "The More the Merrier" .
Within a week of planning and getting the word out- a thousand people got together for the first annual Chris' Slow Roll in 2016. Although he wasn't able to ride, the party at Kegel's Inn was an opportunity for Chris to see how many people he had touched. Every year since then, we have come together at the end of August to celebrate and commemorate how bikes can be the common thread in our lives.
CHRIS KEGEL FOUNDATION PROJECTS- TODAY & BEYOND!
● Initiative #1: Saris Bike Park for Kids
○ Goal: Find a location, build, and activate a bike park in an underserved community in Milwaukee, WI.
● Initiative #2: Southern Kettle Moraine Trail School
○ Goal: To raise $50,000 to build a new facility at the John Muir Trailhead in La Grange, WI to teach people how to build & maintain sustainable mountain bike trails.
● Initiative #3: Improved Trail Signage with Milwaukee Co Parks
○ Goal: To improve wayfinding and signage along all bike paths & trails in Milwaukee Co and beyond.
● Initiative #4: Bike Racks & Fix It Stand Donations to Communities
○ Goal: Make each community more bike friendly with bike parking and tools to keep cyclists rolling.
ABOUT WHEEL & SPROCKET Since 1973, Wheel & Sprocket has been serving the community and has grown from its original Hales Corners, Wisconsin location to eleven locations in Metro Milwaukee, Wisconsin's Fox Valley, Madison, and Chicagoland. Wheel & Sprocket is family-owned and operated and employs over 250 people who have a passion for bicycling. Over the years, Wheel & Sprocket has been recognized as one of the best independent bicycle retailers in the country and has been included as one of America's Best Bike Shops for over two decades. Community action, engagement, and political advocacy is also an integral part of the company culture, including support for over seventy bike events each year.
