Thousands of people, Montrealers and tourists alike, of all skill levels and ages, take part in the Montreal Bike Fest every spring, in cycling tours of the city and other events. For over 40 years, non-profit organization Vélo Québec has been boosting biking for recreation, commuting and as a great way to tour Montreal’s many neighbourhoods – the Bike Fest takes this advocacy to the next level, with the Tour de l’Île de Montréal, the Tour la Nuit, an entertainment event at Olympic Stadium, a fashion show and more.

Serious cyclists take advantage of the just-right springtime weather on Sunday, May 26 in the Metropolitan Challenge, featuring 75, 100, 125 and 150-km routes leaving from Saint-Lazare, but for a more casual, chilled-out, city-focused bike ride, choose the Tour la Nuit on May 31 – experience Montreal by bike at night, surrounded by, oh, about 17,000 other cyclists, many of them in wild costumes, biking for 25 kilometres through the city streets. The event begins at 8:15 p.m. out on Boulevard Pie-IX and finishes with a party at Olympic Park’s Esplanade. Encouraging families to get and stay active together, the Tour la Nuit is free for all kids aged 12!

Also free for kids is the Tour de l’Île de Montréal on the morning of Sunday, June 3, a ride now in its 29th year, with options of 25 and 50 kilometres as well as a 100-km morning tour all along the city’s shoreline. Cyclists who want to test their speed and stamina can go for the 50 or 100 km Express routes, with average speeds of 30 km/h for 1½ hours. For families and others who want to stop and smell the roses, or at least glide past them more slowly, bike together on a loop of of either 25 km or 50 km, ending at a new finish site this year, Olympic Park’s Esplanade, complete with ferris wheel!

If you’re not bringing your own wheels to town or renting a bike from one of Montreal’s many bike tour and rental shops, opt for Montreal’s public bike system, Bixi, offering a $10 deal for the Tour la Nuit and the Tour de l’Île. But if you’re in Ottawa or Quebec City and looking for a challenge, bike over to Montreal on May 31 or June 1 and hop the train home after the Tour de l’Île with a special-to-the-festival VIA Rail Canada package. On the other hand, just soak up the fashionable side of cycling at the Montréal Cycle Chic fashion contest at a Happy Hour event on May 30, organized by new bike-culture magazine Vélo Urbain.

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 THE DETAILS

The Montreal Bike Fest, May 26-June 2, 2013

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A bike can be whatever you want it to be:  An Individualistic statement, environmental activism, sightseeing method, or simply a tool for getting from point A to point B. In Montreal, tens of thousands of us think of our bikes as all of those things and more, which is why we throw a big party about bikes every year. So in the spirit of a spectacular two-wheeled summer, hope to see you all at the Montreal Bike Fest and Le Tour de L’ile…

[A Mighty Wind]

According to the folks at Velo Quebec (motto: “Free as the wind”), who organize the Montreal Bike Fest, the end of May and beginning of June is the perfect time to “ride, see, taste, feel and hear Montreal’s Bike Capital”.

Velo-Quebec which is an organization devoted to bike tourism of all stripes, offers several packages for travelers who want to be part of the fun, starting at 155$ for three days and two nights. There’s also the luxurious full-comfort package where the amenities are more in line with a hotel-style vacation.

Montreal Cycling Classic “Tour de l’Ile de Montreal”, on June 5, is what  Velo-Quebec quite rightly calls “one of the finest human processions on the planet”. The 27^th edition of the will see more than 30, 000 people roll along a 52-km route, from a start on Parc Avenue all the way south, along the Lachine Canal bike path, and finally a stopping point downtown, where free cartons of milk, transit passes and more await you!

[You bike the nightlife]

Those who  like the nightlife can come out and bike the Tour La Nuit, which starts out at the Maison des Cyclistes, the  lovely headquarters of Velo Quebec at the axis of Montreal’s two main bike paths and across the street from Parc Lafontaine. Check out the webcam out front of the Maison before hopping on to tour the city by night, when it shines with a duskier kind of light. Another cool thing is that this year, there will be a ferris wheel in Jeanne-Mance Park, at the foot of Mount Royal, for another expansive view of our beautiful city by night. It’s going to be a feria, check it out!

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DETAILS

Montreal Bike Festival

TOUR DE NUIT: Friday June 3rd, 2011

TOUR DE L’ILE: Sunday June, 5th, 2011

Register here

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Guest Blogger: Melora Koepke

photo credit: Gaétan Fontaine

The post MONTREAL BIKE FEST 2011 appeared first on Tourisme Montréal Blog.