Many righteous Chicago bike businesses have supported our challenge grant effort. This is not one of them. Photo: John Greenfield
It’s been very humbling to see, for the second year in a row, the outpouring of support from hundreds of loyal Streetsblog Chicago readers, as well as advertisers and sponsors, as part of the effort to win the challenge grant from The Chicago Community Trust. With everybody pitching in to help, it’s kind of like the digital equivalent of an Amish barn raising. (Stay tuned for more about the Amish, and their bicycling habits, later this week.)
As I type this, we’ve raised $47,980, which means we need to raise another $2,020 in order to win the $25,000 dollar challenge grant from The Trust. We’ve come so far already that it feels like victory is almost within our grasp. On the other hand, there's many a slip between cup and lip, and we've got only about ten hours until the clock strikes midnight, turning our fund drive into a pumpkin. We’ve still got a few potential funding sources in the mix, but we’re going to need more help from readers to make this happen.
On top of that, we’ve got a whole slew of great prizes donated by other awesome bike shops, which we’ll raffle off next week. All readers who have donated will be eligible to win some of this fine schwag:
A stylish, comfortable Kali helmet from Ancien Cycles
A $100 gift card for classy-yet-practical bike bags from Po Campo
A package of essential bike accessories from Green Machine Cycles, including an Axium mini pump, two Velocity water bottle cages, a sheet of Nathan reflective safety stickers, a patch kit and tire levers, and a Soma Fabrications Stash Bottle handy for storing tools and other gear in one of the bottle cages.
NEW: Two bike tours for two and four full-day comfort bike rentals for two from Bike and Roll
NEW: A Topeak frame pump and a Cygolite USB-rechargeable bike light set from Pedal to the People
NEW: A Skid Lid bike helmet, two sets of BlackCat1 Knogg-type bike lights, and a bottle of ProLink chain lube from BlackCAT1.
Best of all, we’ll be holding our Reader Appreciation party later this month at Revolution Brewing. All Streetsblog readers are cordially invited, but those who have donated $100 or more will receive a ticket for a free pint, courtesy of the good folks at RevBrew. Here’s the skinny:
Streetsblog Reader Appreciation Party Wednesday, June 22, 6-9 p.m. Revolution Brewing Kedzie Taproom 3340 N. Kedzie Avenue
In addition to editing Streetsblog Chicago, John writes about transportation and other topics for additional local publications. A Chicagoan since 1989, he enjoys exploring the city on foot, bike, bus, and 'L' train.
Saturday's event was a reminder that there's no better way to get to know a neighborhood than taking a walk with others, enjoying live music, and supporting local businesses.
One of the coolest new things on the on-street route is the treatment of Belmont near and over the Chicago River, by the southern trailhead of the north-south path.
The police statement and crash report provide different accounts of which driver should have yielded, but a 6-lane street layout may have also played a role in the tragedy.