Biking toward a tight knit community

On your mark, get set, bike!

Bicycle riders from all over the country will gather around Arizona State University’s Gammage Auditorium for the second Sun Devil Criterium on Feb. 7. The ASU Cycling club and Tempe Sister Cities have organized the criterium, or crit, with one goal in mind — to bring the community together.

With 15 different races catered to all levels of expertise to choose from, the Sun Devil Criterium will attract approximately a thousand people throughout the day, according to race director and ASU doctoral candidate, Constantin Schreiber.

“The peak may be about 400 people at one time,” Schreiber said.

Schreiber explained that hosting the crit at Gammage will make it more accessible to the community, “We’ve partnered with Tempe Sister Cities and we’re optimistic about being bigger.”

Lesa Emery, event coordinator for Tempe Sister Cities, said this event creates a community connection and attracts cycling clubs and businesses as sponsors.

Emery described the crit as an alternative spectator sport that is enjoyable to watch: “It’s held on ASU’s campus and Tempe itself is a very bicycle oriented community.”

The crit functions as a free and educational event where spectators can learn more cycling, wellness through the fitness and wellness expo held on the race grounds, and enjoy entertainment.

For those interested in friendly collegiate rivalry, there will be a highly anticipated race in which students from ASU, the University of Arizona and University of New Mexico will be competing.

“It’s just great. There’s a lot of rivalry and fun. We get to hang out and our friends can come out and watch us compete,” said civil engineering sophomore and ASU Cycling Club member Alissa Albrecht.

Community members can cheer on racers by ringing cowbells, or they can join the races. There will be a Community Beach Cruiser relay for teams of four people. 

Lauren Kuby, Tempe council member and manager of events and community engagement for the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability, said she is looking forward to races like the VIP Fun Ride, which anyone can join.  

Kuby said that she, like hundreds of other community members, are “looking forward to enjoying a beautiful day filled with fun, exercise and learning about bikes!”

For more information about the Sun Devil Criterium, visit asucycling.org/sun-devil-crit.

Spectators can watch the Sun Devil Criterium along its ASU Gammage route.