btw, a bit late I confirm myself plus two.

This is going to be awesome.

I think using Twitter is a good idea, if only 'cause it's so easy.

I will be there, with one guest, and we will be riding our bikes!

germuska wrote:btw, a bit late I confirm myself plus two.

JermAngela wrote:I will be there, with one guest, and we will be riding our bikes!

Yay and yay!

not sure if I'll be able to go at this point - minor bike accident has rendered the next month of biking uncertain. i'll let you know.

i dont want to be a wet blanket, but riding in a group takes real skill, even for seasoned bikers. i hope everyone will wear a helmet, carry a spare tube, know how to change a tire, and take the ride itself very seriously. Unless a group is as large as, say, Critical Mass, and can stop traffic by its very size, it is extremely difficult to stay together and to safely cross intersections. eating gelato will be the easy part of the journey. i know whereof i speak, please ride DEFENSIVELY AND CAREFULLY. justjoan

justjoan wrote:i dont want to be a wet blanket, but riding in a group takes real skill, even for seasoned bikers. i hope everyone will wear a helmet, carry a spare tube, know how to change a tire, and take the ride itself very seriously. Unless a group is as large as, say, Critical Mass, and can stop traffic by its very size, it is extremely difficult to stay together and to safely cross intersections. eating gelato will be the easy part of the journey. i know whereof i speak, please ride DEFENSIVELY AND CAREFULLY. justjoan

Thank you, justjoan, for your words of caution. Both Hellodali and I are self-professed bike safety geeks and have experience riding in groups interstate. We'll be giving everyone a refresher on the essentials of safe urban riding on the day of the event. In addition to my appetite for gelato, I will also be carrying spare tubes, a pump, my Allen keys and a first aid kit.

I am so freakin' out of shape.

I says to myself, Pie, you best get some practice rides in if you plan on going 30 miles! But I didn't get half a mile before my thighs were burning, and then I think I got a flat (the back wheel kept going bump...bump...bump...)

What was I thinking????

But dammit, I like gelato, and it will taste just as dandy if I have to drive from place to place. And if I get there before the rest of the group, I'll take a long walk to make up for missing out on the ride. Have a good time, riders! Meet you there!

Giro Update:

Dimitra and I rode the Giro route today. The tentative schedule we posted above turned out to be pretty accurate, with no leg of the ride taking much more than an hour.

11:00-11:15 am -- Meet at Canady
11:15-11:45am -- @ Canaday
11:45-12:15pm -- Commute to Caffe Gelato
12:15-12:45pm -- @ Caffe Gelato
12:45-1:45pm -- Commute to Freddy's
1:45-2:45pm -- @ Freddy's/Lunch
2:45-3:30pm -- Commute to Bellezza Gelato
3:30-4:00pm -- @ Bellezza Gelato
4:00-5:00pm -- Commute to Pasticceria Natalina
5:00-5:30pm -- @ Pasticceria Natalina

We tweaked our initial directions for ourselves to maximize use of the city's bike lanes and roomier, less trafficked streets. We're going to do a little more tweaking in the next week to detour around some sticky spots we encountered around Harlem & Iriving Plaza and Lawrence through Albany Park. We will post the final route in the next week along with some safety tips for riding in groups.

Some other lessons we learned today: Think about sharing gelato. Five stops for gelato plus lunch at Freddy's is going to be a lot of food (and sugar)! For gelato alone, plan to spend $3-$5 at each stop, maybe less depending on how much sharing we do.

Overall, I feel really good about the ride. It will no doubt be a full day, but the Giro will take us through a really neat variety of Chicago neighborhoods. So, to recap, look for the following posts from me and Hellodali to come:

In the next week or so:
--The final route with notes on road conditions
--Safety tips for riding in groups

In the days before the ride:
--A post with the weather forecast and any final reminders
--For folks who've confirmed that they'll be joining us, a PM from me or Dimitra with our cell phone #s

We're very excited about the Giro and are now just hoping for a warm, sunny day and a tail wind!

Giro del Gelato: Final Route

Hi everyone,

The Giro is fast approaching! The fun begins this Saturday at 11am at Canady, 824 S. Wabash. Below is (we hope) everything you wanted to know about the Giro route. Try to review this information before Saturday so that you have a general idea of how we're traveling, but we'll also have printed copies of this information to share with everyone on the day of the event. Please post with any questions. Watch for our final posts on safety and the weather. We'll PM our cell phone numbers shortly. See you Saturday!

Getting to Canady
For anyone who would like to take public transportation to get to the first stop of the Giro (or to get home after the last stop), CTA, Pace and Metra welcome bicycles on board on the weekends. Here are links to their specific bike policies:

CTA
http://www.transitchicago.com/welcome/biketran.txt

Pace
http://www.pacebus.com/sub/bus_system/bicycle_racks.asp

Metra
http://www.metrarail.com/general.html#Bikes

The Giro Route
I have also updated the Giro Google map to reflect the final route.

I. From Canady to Caffe Gelato
a. Go north on Wabash to Harrison (2 blocks)
b. Left on Harrison (~1 mile)
*Street portion of bridge on Harrison closed; cross bridge on sidewalk. Caution: Sidewalk uneven.*
c. Right on Halsted (~1 mile)
d. Left on Milwaukee Ave. (~1.25 miles)
e. Left on Division (~0.7 mile)
TOTAL= ~4 miles or 30 minutes

II. From Caffe Gelato to Freddy's
a. Go west on Division to Leavitt (2 blocks)
b. Left on Leavitt to Augusta (4 blocks)
c. Right on Augusta (~ 4 miles)
*Bike lane ends after Cicero. Use extra caution; drivers not accustomed to cyclists.*
d. Left on Laramie to Jackson (~1.25 miles)
e. Right on Jackson to Austin
f. Left on Austin to 16th (~1.7 miles)
g. Right on 16th to 61st (0.1 miles)
h. Left on 61st
TOTAL= ~8 miles or 1 hour

III. From Freddy's to Bellezza
a. Go west on 16th St. to Oak Park Ave (0.8 miles)
b. Right on Oak Park Ave (~6 miles)
c. Left on Addison (~0.5 mile)
d. Right on Harlem
TOTAL= ~7.5 miles or 1 hour, 5 minutes (with traffic)

IV. From Bellezza to Natalina's
a. South on Harlem to Addison
b. Left on Addison (~0.5 miles)
c. Right on Oak Park (2 blocks)
d. Left on Roscoe (~3.25 miles)
e. Left on Keeler (4 blocks)
f. Right on Addison (~1.25 miles)
*Careful around the Elston/Kedzie/Addison intersection.*
g. Left on Kedzie (~1.25 miles)
h. Right on Wilson (~1.75 miles)
i. Left on Ravenswood (~1 mile)
j. Right on Balmoral (4 blocks)
k. Stop at Balmoral and Clark and go left up the street to Natalina
TOTAL: ~9.5 miles or 1 hour, 10 minutes

Addresses & Phone #s
Canady
824 S Wabash
Chicago IL 60605
312-212-1270

Caffe Gelato
2034 W Division St
Chicago IL 60622
773-227-7333

Freddy's
1600 S 61st Ave
Cicero IL 60804
708-863-9289

Bellezza Gelato
3637 N Harlem Ave
Chicago IL 60634
773-545-1239

Pasticceria Natalina
5406 N Clark St
Chicago IL 60640
773-989-0662

Does anyone know if there is parking to be found near Canady's? I want to check out the Congress Hotel while I'm down there, so somewhere between those areas is best, and I can walk about a mile if there's none in the immediate vicinity.

yes, there are meters. i'd suggest going west one block to state st. for metered parking . justjoan

Put me down for tentative. I'll be on my motorcycle so Giro sort of

tentatively count me and boyfriend in by bike. we live right by canady but may head home before the conclusion of the ride.

Hello riders:

As noted further up the thread Sharon and I are both veterans of two AIDS Rides each during which we biked 400-500 miles in a week and logged in thousands of miles in training rides to prepare. So we've had bike safety beaten into us but good. Hence, we are sticklers for obeying traffic laws and riding safely. So giro riders, please familiarize yourself with:

THE SAFETY GEEK’S GUIDE TO RIDING IN GROUPS
*Stay alert – Much as you would like to be mentally savoring that last taste of gelato or thinking ahead to the next flavor you will try, pay attention to everything going on around you and try not to let your mind wander.

*Be predictable - Other riders will expect you to continue straight ahead at a constant speed unless you let them know otherwise. Avoid sudden turns, stops, or erratic moves.

*Use hand signals - Use hand and verbal signals to communicate with riders and other traffic: Left turn - left arm straight out to the side; Right turn, left arm out and bent at the elbow pointing up; stopping or slowing: left arm pointing down with your palm to the rear, or call out “slowing” or “stopping.”

*Only pass other riders on the left – When passing another cyclist or pedestrian, call out "on your left" to warn them that you are passing.

*Announce hazards – Riders behind you may not have a good view of the road ahead, so point out and loudly announce potholes, glass, gravel, grates, and other hazards. Also, if a parked car looks like it’s about to make a move (turn signal on to merge into traffic, driver looking like they might be about to open the door), point them out to riders behind you.

*Be super careful at intersections - When approaching intersections requiring vehicles to yield or stop, call out "slowing" or "stopping" to alert those behind you. When passing through an intersection, look to your left and right and loudly warn the cyclists behind you if there is a car near the intersection by yelling “car left” or “car right”. If there is no car visible, you may yell “clear.” However, everyone is responsible for making sure they are clear to go through the intersection. Even if someone ahead of you yells “clear”, that doesn’t mean you should just breeze through. You should still slow down and look both ways before crossing the intersection.

*Move off the road when you stop - Whether you are stopping because of mechanical problems or to regroup with fellow riders, move well off the road so you don't interfere with traffic.

*Ride single file – Most of the streets we will be riding will have pretty consistent traffic so you want to stay single file and not weave back and forth between riding single or double. The only exception to this is when we are merging as a group into the left hand lane in order to make a left hand turn. We can then bunch up a bit to “take the lane.”

*And lastly, don’t forget your helmet!

Again, it's not that we're fussbudgets trying to restrict your freedom and fun on the ride. It's just that after logging so many miles over the years, we've seen many a close call (and had a few ourselves) and so appreciate that following the rules for riding safely will make it more likely that we'll all finish the ride safely. Again, don't hesitate to post with any questions. Look for a PM from Sharon with our cell phones and a weather update later in the week. I am so looking forward to our adventure on Saturday!

This is great, I can't join, but I'll have to try some of the places

I've always heard great things of Caffe Gelato, that's next on my list. I haven't tried a ton around Chicago, never made it a priority, but my favorite has always been at Massa on North Avenue in Elmwood Park. Again, I can't compare, but from what I've had, easily my favorite. Perfect for me in terms of how they maintain the temperature and all that. I like to keep it simple with a straticiatella, or maybe just a vanilla topped with espresso (you can get whatever flavor, I'm not as big on coffee/their coffee individually, but this combo makes is orgasmic imo), but family who tries all the other flavors love it too.

Just a suggestion to add to the list if anyone is out looking for some on a nice summer night

Sharon,

I'll meet you guys at Freddy's for lunch! I would have a stroke if I tried to ride my bicycle there, but I'll be on 2 wheels like Octarine -- motorcycle or scooter, whichever one runs that day

grace

Octarine wrote:Put me down for tentative. I'll be on my motorcycle so Giro sort of

swine dining wrote:I'll meet you guys at Freddy's for lunch! I would have a stroke if I tried to ride my bicycle there, but I'll be on 2 wheels like Octarine -- motorcycle or scooter, whichever one runs that day

Cool. We could pretend that we have a team motorcade, like in the real Giro d'Italia.

Yes, I know I'm a bike nerd.

Right now I'm on the motorcycle but I'm trying to borrow my buddy's Honda scooter, it's more fitting for the day.

Does anyone know if there is parking to be found near Canady's?

There's metered street parking but you'll need the luck of the Irish to find a place. There's a couple of lots on Wabash (at 9th and between 9th and 10th) and a couple on State (one at 9th and one at Harrison).

Will some folks be bringing cameras? I can bring mine but am horribly slow about posting pictures as I haven't read the instructions on how to do it yet And the weather calls for 77 and mostly sunny so it looks like perfect riding weather. Though there might be a bit of wind. Let's hope it's at our backs.

I'll bring a camera.

nr706 wrote:I'll bring a camera.

Thanks, Tom.

Also, Giro people, please bring a lock for your bike if you have one--just makes things a little easier at our stops. If you don't have one, don't fret, we'll figure something out.

I'll bring a camera as well.

For anyone watching or waiting for updates on closed circuit, the giro riders are right on schedule and handling the ride and the eating like true professionals. Hellodali and happy_stomach couldn't have done a better job with organization, including texting us non-riding cheerers-on, and I hear that Octarine has been pacing the pack expertly.

Germuska and friends also did us Oak Parkers (and the board a large) a huge favor by establishing that the taqueria across the street from Freddy's is not, in fact, GNR-worthy.

Cuisine at Freddy's was spot-on as usual; Katie and I shared a pepperoni roll, macaroni pie with ham and peas, penne with prosciutto, red pepper, sweet sausage, and marvelous fresh tomato sauce, and some Oreo gelato. We passed around 1/2 pound of their homemade hot sopressata (they were out of the hot capicola, my usual favorite). Others were enjoying octopus salad, gnocchi, spinach pizza, and much more.

Two more stops to go for the intrepid riders. Brava!

Hi all:

Everyone finished the giro safe and satiated yesterday, arriving at Natalina's safely at 5:30 - right on schedule. Thanks to everyone for riding so well, for their enthusiasm, great spirits and terrific company. It was great, great fun. A very special shout out to Mike (Octarine) for serving as motorcycle safety patrol. He made sure we got safely through intersections as a group throughout the ride. Big thanks Mike!

The gelato purveyors were all very friendly, welcoming and helpful, and patient with our large group. Mr. Canady gave us many, many tastes as well as free chocolates to try, and Natalina had a batch of nougatine (is that what it was - I can't remember what she called it exactly) ready for us when we arrived.

As for the gelato, I'm not sure a clear winner emerged, as I believe they were all very, very good. There wasn't a clunker in the bunch and some folks had their favorites. I think for me the best were Freddy's and Caffe Gelato, as they came closest to the texture and consistency of what I remember having in Italy. I think Canady had the greatest depth of flavor, especially the excellent pistachio. Though the flavors were unusual and very tasty (I had a peanut butter cup and a roasted Turkish coffee), I thought the texture at Bellezza wasn't quite as smooth as the others. This was my first taste of Freddy's food at lunch and I see many trips on my bike for lunch ahead, now that I know the way there.

A few hardy souls finished with some good beers and OK food (except for the excellent onion rings) at the Edgewater Lounge. I had such fun with this that I am already starting to think about Tour de France - LTH Style to coincide with the ending of the Tour de France in July. Look for details to come on the events board.

Thanks again to all the fellow riders and gelato enthusiasts for being such troopers and to Sharon for being the best co-planner.

Pictures and more posts to come, I'm sure.

I want to thank Sharon and Dimitra first and foremost. Besides the great company and great gelato, it was a fun bike tour of greater Chicagoland. My favorite moment was passing David Hammond's daughter in Oak Park. Waiting at the red light and a young woman going into Caribou says "Are you guys with LTH? Do you know David Hammond? THAT'S MY DAD!"

I think my favorite new discovery (I love Pasticceria Natalina, but was very familiar with it before this trip) was Canady because of the chocolates. I can't wait to go back to pick up a selection. I also thought of all the gelatos all day the flavor of his pistachio just popped. He was also a great guy. I'm also looking forward to returning to Freddy's for the food.

And another shout out to Mike for being our motorbike enforcer. It sure made it easier for a large group of bikes to get through intersections where people coming the other way are just dying to make that left turn.

I need to recharge my camera before I can get the pictures off, but hopefully I'll have a few to add later. For now, though, I want to effusively thank Sharon and Dmitra for their brilliant planning work and steadfast leadership.

I must admit that the conclusion at the end of the day seemed to be "yes, maybe there is such a thing as 'too much gelato'" although I thought Natalina's mango sorbetto was excellent. The apricot gelato we had there was very delicately flavored, and especially by that time, was probably hard to fully appreciate.

I think Canady's mascarpone gelato deserves recognition for it's nice tart bite. Cheesecake fans will definitely appreciate it.

We really lucked into a gorgeous day and had a really fun group of fellow travellers. It was also fun to interact with folks in cars and on the street ("Go for the gold!") I would gladly participate in more rides like this while the summer permits...

I've been remiss in not yet adding my thanks to our organizers/guides. Their prayers to the weather gods for a beautiful day were definitely answered.

Dimitra, aka Hellodali, and Sharon, aka Happy Stomach

And as mentioned above, Mike and his electric-powered motorcycle did a great job of defending us from all those big bad cars that wanted to run us over.

Mike, aka Octarine, in his alternate persona as "Frank the bowler"

The ride was well planned - each stop had its own personality. I was especially impressed by the depth of flavor of the gelato at Canady, as well as the exquisite chocolates and friendliness of the owner. For atmosphere, I liked Freddy's - probably the least slick of our stops, but with a nice assortment of foods, which made for a good lunch stop. And Natalina, welcoming us with samples of pistachio nougatine, made for a great way to end the trip. (That is, if you don't count the beers at the Edgewater later.)

Gelatos at Pasticceria Natalina

Great day, great idea, abd I'm looking forward to the Tour de France.

Glad I could meet up with everyone at Freddy's. You guys are crazy. I mean that in the best possible way I'll do the 2-wheeled thing only if a motor is involved.

Freddy's: I had the tiramisu gelato, a slice of sausage pizza, fried calamari, and samples of the gnocchi, arancini, and sopprassaaattaaa. I live pretty close, and was wondering why I don't stop by more often. Their house-cured meats are great, particularly the proscuitto.

grace

nr706 wrote:I've been remiss in not yet adding my thanks to our organizers/guides. Their prayers to the weather gods for a beautiful day were definitely answered.

Thanks for posting that very flattering picture, Tom...

Thank you to everyone who came out on Saturday. Bikes, sun, sweets, Chicago and friends--it was a glorious day! Everyone was such good sports, and, Dimitra, the final route you tweaked was perfect. I don't think I'll be having gelato for a very long time, but I was happy that the gelato at each stop we made was pretty distinct in choices and depth of flavors and then texture. None was disappointing. Before the Giro, my knowledge of gelato in Chicago was pretty limited. I feel like I have much better sense of the range of Chicago's offerings, which--for this mighty city really shouldn't surprise me--isn't too shabby at all.

Looking forward to the Tour de France LTH-style!