Over the past 20 years, Gary has been advocating for increased access and infrastructure to improve road cycling and mountain biking both nationally and in Minnesota.  Gary will provide insight into how advocacy efforts by many helped Minnesota to become a top city for cycling, the untold back stories of how Cuyuna was developed into a national mountain bike destination, and the keys to why the MN high school mountain bike league is creating cycling families, healthy lifestyles, and a lifelong activity for students.

Erik Noren has been building bikes for over twenty years and has become one of the most well-recognized and -respected figures in the world of handmade cycles. Under the Peacock Groove label based in Minneapolis, he has created the now famous Evil Dead and Prince bikes as well as many other artistic and simply beautiful cycles. Erik will give an illustrated history of his career and insights into how he’s arrived at his mastery.

Women cycling in the nineteenth century often is associated with the image of a “liberated” woman riding in bloomers. The history of women’s cycling, however, existed in tension between the progress the bicycle allowed and most wheelwomen’s need to be perceived as respectable. This talk address the way that discourse around women’s dress both reinforced social norms and helped legitimize the idea of cycling as an appropriate activity for women.

The Major Taylor Bicycling Club of Minnesota is nearing twenty years old, and has been a leader in a movement of similar clubs around the nation. Its commitment is to be a social/recreational club that promotes safe and fun cycling geared towards African-American communities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.