The Bike Expo

Earlier today, Cycle Twin Cities ran a piece on last week's Bike Expo by yours truly. I was disappointed by the Expo this year but I couldn't put my finger on what exactly was bothering me. The Expo seemed smaller, true, but after talking to a few friends, I realized that what disappointed me was the lack of diversity in the cycling community at the Expo. As I said in the CTC post, I saw very few people over 60 or under 30 years old, and most of the vendors and presentations were aimed at the "drive-your-bike-to-the-trail" style riders.

There's much, much more here than that. I hope that next year the Bike Expo can add to presentations - a first person account of the Arrowhead 150 would be fascinating. An introduction to Alley Cats would be an eye-opener for most people, and a demonstration of obstacle riding by the people with skillz from MORC would be fantastic.

We need to celebrate all that we have, from the little kids who want to decorate bikes to the seniors who want to stay active, and everyhing in between.