SAN DIEGO, California (March 14, 2024) — Monuments of Cycling (MoC), the renowned producer of the iconic Belgian Waffle Ride (BWR), unveiled its partnership with PeopleForBikes (PFB) as the Official Charitable Partner of the Belgian Waffle Ride California. PeopleForBikes, the U.S. bicycle industry’s trade association and a national bicycle advocacy organization, has a mission to make the U.S. the best place in the world to ride a bike.
PeopleForBikes is making biking better for everyone by uniting millions of Americans, thousands of businesses, and hundreds of communities to make every bike ride safer, more accessible, and more fun. The PeopleForBikes Coalition has more than 325 supplier members and 1.4 million supporters in its grassroots network. Their motto is, “When people ride bikes, great things happen,” and Monuments of Cycling couldn’t agree more, and this new partnership will launch with the Tripel Crown of Gravel Series finale at North City in San Marcos, California on April 27 – 28, 2024.
PeopleForBikes will leverage the opportunity presented by the grandaddy of unroad events, the BWR CA, to showcase its range of programs and campaigns like the Great Bike Infrastructure Project, taking a bold step to build more livable communities by advancing thousands of bike and active transportation projects and pro-bike legislation in all 50 states. PeopleForBikes will enjoy speaking to a very diverse group of BWR CA riders who come from all categories—road, MTB, Cyclocross, Triathletes, e-bikers, and Gravel racers. Monuments of Cycling will work with PFB to further its messaging and raise funds through sweepstakes to win a Canyon bike!
Our nation desperately needs immediate action to mitigate the detrimental effects of climate change. Thankfully, the simple act of riding a bike, even just a couple of times a week, can play a meaningful part in climate action.
Here’s a bit of knowledge that hits home with us – according to a recent study by Portland State University, if we convert just 15% of car trips to trips made by electric bicycle, we could reduce transportation-related carbon emissions by 12%. We don’t need everyone to ride a bike — just a small portion can achieve huge carbon reduction goals.
“We believe in the power of the bike,” said PeopleForBikes Vice President of Business Network Ravi Rajcoomar. We believe the bike is a real solution to improving Americans’ health, connecting their communities, boosting state and local economies, strengthening our nation, and protecting our planet.”
Monuments of Cycling will host PFB at the BWR CA, where the Tripel Crown of Gravel Series will culminate in full Spring Classic style, Americana style, with a grand party unfolding with the 13th Annual BWR California (April 28).
Crafted to provide both professional and amateur riders with the opportunity to compete in three distinct environments over a short timeframe, the Tripel Crown strikes a perfect balance between recovery and fitness gains for early-season competition. The series is being contested in a points-based omnium format, including both Waffle and Wafer distances for professionals and age-group riders. Participants vying for Tripel Crown honors, and the prize purse (for pros only) will accumulate points based on their performance across the three races, with the BWR CA carrying extra weighted points to conclude the series at North City in San Marcos, CA, on April 28, 2024.
“We are genuinely excited to commence our partnership in California with PeopleForBikes to include in our reimagined Gravel Series in North America,” remarked Michael Marckx, CEO of Monuments of Cycling, and creator of BWR. He added, “This partnership underscores our shared belief in the power of the bike to bring people and communities together. At the BWR, we have a unique way of celebrating the joy of cycling through training for and competing in our events, which are designed to enrich people’s lives through the prism of extreme cycling challenges. Today, training for the BWRs has taken on an even greater importance, providing opportunities for physical and mental health, adventure, time outside, camaraderie, and lessons in perseverance. This is an acknowledgment of our shared dedication to building community, increasing access to new places and improving lives, and look forward to what we can achieve together in the years to come.”
The Belgian Waffle Ride was initially conceived as an extremely challenging race in the spirit of the great European one-day Spring Classics and has evolved into a collection of the most unique cycling events globally. The races are renowned for their dynamic, multi-surface unroad parcourses featuring single track, gravel, sand, rocks, double track, water crossings, cyclocross features, and asphalt. The 2024 Tripel Crown of Gravel finale is anticipated to host the deepest field of professional riders in the series’ history, along with a diverse group of amateur riders eager to race alongside cycling icons, including Canyon pro riders such as Heather Jackson, Carolin Schiff, Pete Stetina, Tiffany Cromwell, Jasper Ockeloen, Jeremiah Bishop, Andrew Jackson, Griffin and Cullen Easter, and Tyler Pearce, the Vegan Cyclist.
The BWR Unroad Expo during the race weekend promises to be a significant attraction, offering the largest cycling parties of the year at North City. Festivities kick off on Saturday, April 27, at North City in San Marcos, featuring a large brand activation by Canyon and all the other BWR partners. The BWR CA Unroad Expo will run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and on Saturday, April 28, from 5:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., for all the BWR festivities until the beers, jeers, and awards are distributed for heroic efforts, age-group podiums, and category victories.
Three different distances are offered in California – The longest is the Waffle (~130 miles), the Wafer (~73 miles), and the Wanna (~40 miles). Registration for this final stop of the Tripel Crown of Gravel is HERE. Interested participants interested in more information can visit BelgianWaffleRide.Bike or Facebook.
