Theme Rides

Public Art Ride – Saturday June 24, 2023 – 11:00am – Join the Skokie Bike Network for this relaxed, family friendly ride through central Skokie visiting various public art installations. Check out the route and the installations from our route collection – https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41628319 – and get more information on Skokie’s public art from the Otocast app – https://www.otocast.com/ 

The ride will start at the Emily Oaks Nature Center – 11:00am and will last approximately 60 minutes – after which we enjoy a lunch together at a mutually agreeable eatery in Skokie. Kids welcome.

Skokie Parks & Recreation – Family Safe Routes – Saturday July 15, 2023 – Trying to find safe routes for you and your family to get to Skokie’s parks and recreation facilities? It can be a challenge. This ride will be along safe routes and low stress streets between several popular park district facilities. We’re working on a map as we speak. We will check out the usual suspects of popular parks as well as some lesser known gems.

The ride will start at Emily Oaks Nature Center – 11:00am

Sweets and Treats – Sunday, August 13, 2023 – Have any secret treasures for snacks, meals, goodies and any other sundry treats? Join the Skokie Bike Network on a casual tour through town in search of locally owned and produced stores and treats all while enjoying the fun camaraderie of fellow cyclists. 

Start time and location 11:00am

North Shore Century – September 10, 2023 – Join others in a Skokie Bike Network contingent riding in the 2023 North Shore Century. We will be determining which route we are riding and an agreed upon start time to meet up and ride together. All riders will register for the event individually and we will ride as an informal group. Check back during the summer for further details and updates.

The ride will start at Dawes Park in downtown Evanston at a time TBD

Holiday Lights Ride – December 2023

Past Rides

Ride of Silence – Wednesday May 17, 2023 – In cooperation with the Evanston Bike Club and Wheel & Sprocket of Evanston, we will again participate in the International Ride of Silence www.rideofsilence.org. On this date riders all over the world will ride in silence to remember riders who have been injured or killed on the roads and to support cyclists and cycling. Starts at: Wheel & Sprocket 1027 Davis Evanston. Please be at Wheel and Sprocket before 7pm so we can all talk before we silently leave on the 11 mile ride. 

Memorial Day Ride – Murals of Hubbard Street – Sunday May 28, 2023 – The Skokie Bike Network joins with the Evanston Bike Club to lead this ride to the Hubbard St. Murals between Elizabeth (1300) and Peoria (830) on Hubbard in downtown Chicago. A half mile of art!!

It will start at Panera in Wilmette but will eventually take the Channel Trail to where it ends at the boat house near Lane Tech and then get to Clybourn and Damen down to Hubbard. We will come back via the Lakefront trail. It will be about 34 miles round trip from Panera in Wilmette. We plan to stop at Mindy’s on Damen on the way to the murals. When we get there we will get off our bikes and walk the bikes looking at murals for likely an hour before we ride back north.

Scout the route on RideWithGPS – https://ridewithgps.com/routes/42234030

For more information on the murals, visit https://www.thenotsoinnocentsabroad.com/…/hubbard….

Brew Pub Ride – Sunday, August 28, 2022 – 10:30am – Panera in Wilmette – Organized with the Evanston Bike Club we will ride 21 miles from Panera to Sketchbook in Skokie.  We will go to Half Acre, Dovetail, Alarmist and perhaps a taste at Spiteful before heading back north to Sketchbook. We strongly encourage small  portions at each stop so you can complete the ride. Take a 5 oz or 10 oz sip at each location until we get to Sketchbook in Skokie where the  ride will  end.  Come ride, taste and practice a little moderation!

Central Skokie – Places, Parks & Parkways – Saturday, August 13, 2022 – 10:30am – Emily Oaks Nature Center – Starting on the Skokie Valley Trail we will visit the historic places, parks and parkways in central Skokie along calm residential streets, bike lanes and the Skokie Valley Trail. This casual family friendly 6.8 mile ride through central Skokie will be along calm streets through neighborhoods and past local landmarks. After the ride we will venture to a local eatery and enjoy some lunch and fun conversation.

Sauganash Lights Tour – December 18, 2021 – 4:00pm – Join the Skokie Bike Network at the Sketchbook brewery in Skokie for a revival of the Evanston Bike Club’s holiday lights tour. We will take the Valley line trail to Pratt and then to Longmeadow and the neighborhood where all the light displays will be. The total distance will be 7 miles. It is about 2.5 each way to the start with a mile or two milling around the lights. The ride is a manageable distance and are much better from a bike than from a car. When we get back to Sketchbook we can debate which display was the best over a local beverage. If you know you can make it – let us know at skokiebikenet@gmail.com. Showing up at Sketchbook or joining along the way is cool too.

Evanston Skokie Brewery Ride – August 14, 2021 – 3:00pm – Join our neighbors at the Evanston Transit Alliance for a ride between the Sketchbooks this Saturday August 14th, 3:00pm starting at the Sketchbook Brewery – 821 Chicago Ave, Evanston. The ride will feature Evanston’s pilot “shared street” along Greenleaf Ave. and explore some potential bike infrastructure along the UPN rail line and a remnant of the “Weber Spur” before heading west on Skokie’s Main Street bike lane to the Sketchbook Brewery along the Skokie Valley Trail.

Skokie Sweets ‘n Treats – July 10, 2021 – With the arrival of summer and the waning of pandemic restrictions we took this modest opportunity to indulge in some of Skokie’s favorite food fare and treats. Riding a low stress, family friendly route (Skokie Sweets ‘n Treats route) we enjoyed a casual ride, relaxed conversation and some tasty treats.

Evanston Ride of Silence – In cooperation with the Evanston Bike Club and Evanston Wheel & Sprocket bike shop a small group (due to Covid restrictions) of us rode and recorded the annual Ride of Silence in Evanston. A sober and heartfelt tribute to fellow riders who experienced tragedy while riding their bicycles.