Tour de Fat, Los Angeles
If you haven’t experienced Tour de Fat, you just haven’t had enough fun on two wh
eels! On Saturday, September 15th 2012, New Belgium Brewing’s traveling celebration of all things bicycle returns to the L.A. State Historic Park. Tour de Fat sings the praises of the bike life while raising funds for C.I.C.L.E., the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition, and the Bicycle Kitchen. It is more than an event; it’s a rite of passage that includes a costumed bicycle parade, New Belgium beer, eye-popping entertainment, local food, bizarre bike contests and much more. Here’s a breakdown of what to expect!
Bike Swap
The pinnacle of Tour de Fat is the ceremonious car-for-bike trade. At each Tour de Fat, one person becomes the center of the show as he or she gets up on stage, hands over car keys, and pledges to live one year car-free. Tour de Fat is now seeking volunteers to accept the swapper challenge. Each car-for-bike swapper will choose a local bike shop to help them turn their $2,250.00 budget into their ultimate car-replacement commuter bike. The cars will be auctioned by Vehicles for Charity, with proceeds to benefit local cycling organizations.
Swappers are chosen after submitting an application that describes why they are willing to trade in their vehicle for a shiny new bicycle. To submit an entry, go to the New Belgium Tour de Fat Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/TourDeFat), click on events and your city of choice, and upload your application video. Applications may also be written and sent to: trademycarforabike@newbelgium.com.
A few tidbits about Tour de Fat:
Start sewing, collecting and dreaming up something to wear as Tour de Fat encourages embracing your inner costume-loving self. Come dressed up to help put on the most colorful, respectful and creative bike parade ever witnessed in each city.
Tour de Fat seeks to leave as small an environmental imprint as possible and composts and recycles waste. Bring only what you need and watch for proper receptacles. We’ll do the rest!
All performers grab your attention from alternatively empowered stages decked out in recycled materials; trucks and transport use biofuel sourced from recycled waste oils; and all vendors operate off the grid.
This is a pro-bike celebration, not an anti-car rally. Non-cyclists are more than welcome to join the festivities.
In 2011, Tour de Fat traveled to 13 cities, attracting a total of 69,550 festival attendees and 41,150 parade cyclists. In addition, the festival raised $331,428 and boasted an impressive 90 percent diversion of waste from landfills.
See https://www.facebook.com/TourDeFat for the Tour de Fat credo, schedules, videos and to submit your entry to swap your gas guzzler for a fancy new bike.