With spring weather finally back, bike riders are out and about. Temple’s main and Ambler campuses teamed up to host the second annual Temple University Bike Tour. Almost 250 have taken on the challenge to ride from Temple’s main campus to Temple’s Ambler campus. That’s up from 125 last year. Organizer Vicki McGarvey is excited about the growth. When asked about what the success this year as opposed to last, she replied, “This year we had more time and we have a lot of people who are riding for the second time, and they’re bringing their friends and so I think it’s just getting popular.”
Among those riders there were students, alumni, and faculty. They brought friends and family who aren’t immediately affiliated with Temple. Collaborations with sponsors like Saxby’s, bagel and Co., and Iron Hill Brewery gave cyclists boosts both before and after the tour. The tour started on Temple main campus and carries riders on 19 miles worth of trails in Philadelphia. Riders start on the main campus and head to the trails down Diamond Street. They weave through Fairmount Park, Wissahickon Valley Park, and Fort Washington State Park before ending their ride at the Ambler campus where they greeted food, free beer, and even massages. Two time rider Ken Lawrence commented, “Going through the Wissahickon park is always pretty cool, there’s a lot of cool stuff there, and the green ribbon trail. Hills at the end though. All the hills seemed like they were at the end. And its great to have a beer garden here at Ambler.” Organizers were happy with the event and have booked themselves on Philadelphia’s calendar for the fourth Sunday in April for years to come.
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