The Town of Cutler Bay and Village of Palmetto Bay are for the first time hosting a joint event for bicycling enthusiasts of all ages on Sunday, Apr. 21.
Family oriented, the bike ride and “rodeo” will connect the two cities and have food vendors, bike vendors, music, giveaways, kids’ activities and free water.
Registration begins at 8 a.m. at Lakes by the Bay Park, 8551 SW 216 St. in Cutler Bay, after which cyclists will go on a 3.5-mile bike ride escorted by police to Ludovici Park, 17641 Old Cutler Rd. in Palmetto Bay, according to Cutler Bay Parks and Recreation director Alan Ricke.
“We will be handing out bike helmets for anybody that needs them for the ride,” Ricke said. “It’s registration and point of beginning. When we do our rides that are just in Cutler Bay we’ve had between 75 and 100 riders. I think we can expect the same if not more because this is a joint effort.
“We’ve done a bike ride in Cutler Bay for about five years and Palmetto Bay has done one for a number of years, but this will be the first time we’ve done one together.”
Ricke said that there’s plenty of parking at Lakes by the Bay for people who want to take their bikes there in their cars before the ride
The Bike Rodeo event runs from 9 to 11 a.m. at Ludovici Park and will feature obstacle courses for everyone to participate in as well as the food and bike vendors, according to Palmetto Bay Parks and Recreation director Fanny Carmona-Gonzalez.
“We’re going to have different raffles throughout the event,” Carmona-Gonzalez said. “We’re going to have music. It’s just a fun family day. It’s open to anybody. The thought is to get people from Palmetto Bay to visit Cutler Bay parks and to get residents from Cutler Bay to visit Palmetto Bay parks.
“The bike rodeo is part of the ‘Bike305 Connecting Communities’ that we’ve been working on with the county. That’s how this came about, as we’ve been meeting with municipalities from Cutler Bay all the way to Key Biscayne.”
Miami-Dade County’s Bike305 program is intended to promote using the Old Cutler Trail bike path that actually runs from Black Point Park all the way north to Bill Baggs State Park on Key Biscayne, and to encourage people to visit all the attractions along the way.
“We’re going to be handing out the little maps the county provided us with,” Carmona-Gonzalez said. “They can be used not just for Earth Week but year round.”
At 11 a.m. riders will begin the return 3.5-mile bike trip, also escorted by police, back to Lakes by the Bay Park where the event will conclude.
The county website, www.Bike305.com, displays the entire Old Cutler Trail with all the different attractions.
For information, call the Village of Palmetto Bay at 305-259-1234 or visit www.palmettobay-fl.gov, or call the Town of Cutler Bay at 305-234-4262 or visit www.cutlerbay-fl.gov
