Riverwest 24 bike race returns after two-year pause for COVID-19

The Riverwest 24 — the city's annual around-the-clock, daylong bike race and neighborhood-wide party — returned in full swing this weekend, after a two-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The race got underway at 7 p.m. Friday, making it the first time since COVID-19 put a halt to all major events that the 24-hour celebration, known as "the people’s holiday," was held without any major changes to its design.

The race, which began in 2008, is more neighborhood block party than serious bike race, with Riverwest residents and friends gathering on lawns, sidewalks and driveways to cheer on riders and celebrate the neighborhood. Those who participate in the race ride laps around the neighborhood and earn points for every lap they complete.

"This is the best 24 hours of the year in Riverwest,” said Amelia Osterud, volunteer coordinator for the race. “The whole neighborhood comes out, everyone’s involved, everyone’s happy and hanging out. It’s the best part of the year.”

This year, the race was complicated by construction along Humboldt Boulevard, what had been a key part of the race route. Race organizers urged riders to stay off of Humboldt, where there is no room for vehicles to safely pass bicycles.

More: Riverwest 24 bike race this weekend faces extra challenge with Humboldt construction

More: Riverwest 24 is a daylong bike race that celebrates a community

For the most part, it didn't seem to faze riders, who were happy to be back.

"It didn't miss a beat," said Brent Mazurek, who rode as part of a team and felt the race had the same energy as before the pandemic. "Everyone's been excited to be back."

About 1,100 people signed up to ride this year, a smaller number than in pre-pandemic years, though not by much. In 2019, a peak year, about 1,500 registered, Osterud said. She added that around 600 people volunteered for jobs ranging from working at checkpoints along the route to directing traffic at intersections using pool noodles.

"The neighborhood comes alive for 24 hours," said Sarah Milnar, one of the volunteers directing traffic along the route. "I live in Minneapolis now, but come back. It is amazing that this is all volunteer-driven."

On Saturday morning, Riverwest residents sat outside their houses cheering riders on, handing out snacks and playing music. A man near the end of the route was playing salsa music over a speaker, including the song "Detalles" by Venezuelan musician Oscar D'León.

Further along the route, on Pierce Street, Christina Wright was dancing to Celine Dion's "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" on the lawn outside her home. She remembers a few years ago, shortly after moving in to her home, being blown away by the event and its sense of community.

"That's a reason I live in this neighborhood is to have this community," she said. "I don't know of anything like this anywhere else."

Down the street from Wright were Evan Barnes and Keith Lipski, eating breakfast outside their friend's house next to a tent set up in the street that served as a tunnel for riders. At the opening of the tent were balloons spelling out "Yay!" which riders yelled as they sped through the tent, Barnes and Lipski cheering.

Barnes said he starts counting down the days until Riverwest 24 months in advance. The night of the race is like one big neighborhood-wide party. Live bands set up in front of people's houses. Residents set up couches on the street. On Friday night, there was a dance party at one of the checkpoints, the Swing Park under the Holton Street bridge.

"It's truly my favorite day of the year," Barnes said.

The winner of the race is determined by who has the most points at the end of the 24 hours. Riders earn points by finishing laps of the nearly 5-mile route, but they can also earn bonus points by doing optional checkpoints, which can range from taking a class on how to use the overdose-reversing drug Narcan to getting a tattoo to doing a yoga session.

This year was the first regular race where non-riders could participate in the bonus checkpoints — 48 in all.

With names like "Belly Bustin' " and "Garage Hangs," it was not always clear what the bonus checkpoints would entail.

"You just never know what you’re going to get," said Emily Schultz, who was part of a team of riders and whose third time it was doing the race.

Last year, due to COVID-19, Riverwest 24 was modified to focus on the bonus checkpoints and did not consist of a race where riders competed for points and kept track of how many laps they completed. Unlike in previous year, the bonus checkpoints were open to everyone.

This year, race organizers decided to keep the bonus checkpoints open to everyone because of how popular it was.

They included checkpoints at neighborhood businesses, such as Yours Truly, a ceramics studio on Center Street, where anyone could mold a pot out of clay and take home one that had already been fired. Adventure Rock, at Commerce Street and North Avenue, had one with a rock-climbing challenge. The River Revitalization Foundation, a nonprofit on Riverboat Road, hosted a checkpoint with canoeing.

"It’s great exposure for them," said Osterud, the volunteer coordinator. "It’s also a really great opportunity for people who are riding to get to know the neighborhood a little bit better."

For many, Riverwest 24 is a time to reconnect with old friends and catch up.

"It just kind of feels like a family reunion," said Sarah Young, an active volunteer and a longtime participant.

Ebony Cox, of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel staff, contributed to this 

Sarah Volpenhein is a Report for America corps reporter who focuses on news of value to underserved communities for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Email her at svolpenhei@gannett.com. Please consider supporting journalism that informs our democracy with a tax-deductible gift to this reporting effort at JSOnline.com/RFA.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Riverwest 24 returns in 2022 to thrilled participants, volunteers