Le Cirque du Cyclisme World Tour Report
Originally posted on June 15, 2009 at 23:55 pm
Last weekend was the 12th annual Cirque du Cyclisme in Leesburg, VA. With events planned for Friday through Sunday, we made plans arrive early Friday morning. The wife and kids decided to make the trip with me, and the four of us loaded up the family sedan very early Friday and drove south to meet up with Maurice and the Dirt Rag/Bicycle Times van.
A few relatively pleasant hours later we arrived and walked into the hotel lobby which was already filling up with vintage bikes. Friday’s events consisted of registration, the Sheldon Brown Memorial Fixie Ride and a Charity Auction in the evening. A mid-afternoon downpour kept some but not all fixed riders under cover, and about half a dozen intrepid souls set out, all sans fenders to ride and remember a founding father of the modern day fixed movement.
The auction was a busy evening, with everything from toeclips to complete bikes auctioned off, with the proceeds going to Bikes for the World and the US Bicycling Hall of Fame.
Saturday morning was sunny and clear, and some of those classic bikes went out for a spin.
Dave Wages, Jan Heine, and Peter Weigle presented afternoon seminars, which rolled into an evening of meeting the builders and awards reception.
Sunday morning had more riding, followed by a trip down the road to the county fair grounds for the bike swap and vintage bike show. Quite a few vendors were on hand, selling parts to put the finishing touch on your latest classic restoration, or a bike on which to base your next restoration.
The vintage bikes were grouped together by time period, and awards were presented for each era. There was also a large contingent of modern builders represented with modern interpretations of classic styles. See the list of winners here.
Parked outside the venue was this great traveling museum.
Next year is already in planning stages for an early June event. Those of you with an appreciation for vintage bikes will be pleased with the both the bikes presented and the knowledge of the attendees. Lots more info and pics are linked here.
On the way home we found this pretty incredible coffee shop in a converted church , Beans in the Belfry. A perfect ending to a long weekend of vintage bike goodness.
