To me, this event is kind of a pain in the ass. Because of the one-way street we live on, we’re kind of trapped . . . along with the about 15 – 20 cars per hour that drive down the one way street the wrong way risking car accidents by not stopping because there is no stop sign when going the wrong way. Kinda fun, kinda scary to watch. No police or volunteers in sight to help with the traffic issues people just fend for themselves and make up the traffic rules and the poor visitors are just completely confused because there is no signage about where to go. In short, it creates a mess in my residential neighborhood that is outside the loop. But maybe that is the intent?
Ride the Drive – a festival on wheels!Madison, WI | Ride the Drive is Sunday, June 5, 10a.m. – 3p.m. www.cityofmadison.com/ridethedrive
Quickly becoming an iconic Madison favorite event, the City of Madison & Madison Parks’ Ride the Drive presented by Trek will be on Sunday, June 5, 10a.m. – 3p.m.
Ride the Drive is a community event that transforms some of Madison’s streets into a public promenade. During the event, roads in the six mile route are open for participants to bike, skate or walk through some of Madison’s signature streets. The event is free and open to the public.
Event Activities
This year’s event includes family friendly events along the route provided by the city, community organizations and local businesses, including:
- 10:00a.m. – Charity Lap Kick-off. WMMM 105.5FM will kick off Ride the Drive with the “charity lap”. If you are riding in a charity ride this summer, join us for a casual lap around the ride the drive course–it’s the world’s easiest training ride! Wear your ride jersey or shirt create a sea of jerseys and shirts from the Trek100, Best Dam Bike Tour, Tour de Cure, Scenic Shore 150, etc. The charity lap rolls from the capitol square at Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd at 10am.
- 11:00a.m. – Bike Parade.Decorate your bike, your helmet and head on down to Parade Drive (John Nolen Drive/Olin Park). The parade will head down John Nolen Drive to Bike Avenue on East Washington Ave.
- Noon – 1p.m. The Milwaukee Brewers Famous Racing Sausages will be at the Capitol Square & Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Come down, get your picture taken with all FIVE sausages, and see who wins the race. The Sausage Race will kick off at 12:30p.m. Thank you to the Harmony Bar & Grill for sponsoring the Famous Racing Sausages.
Ride the Drive is a festival on wheels! Along the route, there will be activities, informational booths, musicians, food vendors and a drawing for a Trek Allant bike and other prizes.
- Parade Drive (John Nolen Drive/Lakeside Street) & Family Drive (Brittingham Park) feature bouncy houses, kids games, food and fun
- Madison Parks Village (Capitol Square) features live music from local musicians, food, vendor booths.
- Bike Avenue (East Washington Ave.) features a climbing wall, bicycle demos, games and vendor booths.
- “Tunes in the Tunnel” features live music from local musicians.
For a full listing of events, vendors and locations, please visit the Ride the Drive website.
Volunteers still needed
It’s not too late to volunteer for this event. Volunteers are essential to the success of the event. Bring a friend and have twice the fun! To register please go to the Ride the Drive website or on the day of the event, stop in at one of the information tents.
Donations/Balloons/Ride the Drive t-shirts
To show your support for this free community event, please donate at any one of the information booths along the route. Donating to the event is a great way to help with its continued success. Every donation will get a special Ride the Drive balloon!!
Also available for purchase are exclusive Ride the Drive 2011 tshirts! The proceeds of the sales support the event.
Downtown is open for business! Stop, Shop, Eat and Drink!
While you are downtown, be sure to enjoy the fine dining and shopping that Downtown Madison has to offer. While some of the roads on the route are closed, access remains open to downtown and motorists can still get to and through the Isthmus to shop, dine, or participate in the event.
Route Detours & Road Closures
The route will feature a six mile loop downtown that will include a beautiful view of capitol on John Nolen Drive, the bustling State Street, and other highlights.
The following roads will be closed at 8:30am on June 5th. All pedestrian traffic and activities will be cleared from the roads starting at 3pm so that the streets may be promptly reopened for automobile traffic. Major streets included in the road closures are:
- John Nolen Dr from Lakeside St to Wilson St
- Blair St from E. Wilson St to E. Washington Ave
- E. Washington from Paterson to Pinckney
- Main St from N. Pinckney to S. Carroll St
- Carroll St from Main St to Mifflin
- Frances from University to Dayton
- Bedford from Dayton St to North Shore Dr
- North Shore Dr from W. Brittingham Pl to John Nolen Dr
Routes Crossings into the Isthmus and Downtown areas
Although the roads are closed there are crossing points on the routes were Police officers will be directing traffic through intersections. These intersections are:
- Butler at E. Washington Ave
- Webster at E. Washington Ave
- Dayton St at Fairchild
- Johnson at State St
- Gorham at State St
- Gorham at Frances St
- W. Johnson at Frances St
- W. Washington at Bedford
- Williamson St at Blair St
For a detailed list and map, please visit the website at: http://www.cityofmadison.com/transportation/ridethedrive/route.cfm
Thank you sponsors!
The success of the event is thanks to our sponsors: Trek, Triple M 105.5, Charlie 105.1FM, WOLX94.9, Harmony Bar & Grill, Metcalfe Markets, Group Health Cooperative, Hallman Lindsey Paint, UW-Stevens Point Adventure Travel, MG&E Foundation and Oscar Mayer. Madison Parks thanks them for their support of the June 5th Ride the Drive.
