Welcome
Greetings,
October just wrapped up, and with it, so did our Fiscal Year. We just finished up our biggest month of October ever with 5 biking events, including our first ever Indigenous People’s Day Family Bike Camping Overnight, two Where the Wild Things Grow rides, and an Adult Day ride. Not to mention, the 8th annual Sun Harvest Ride which got over 80 folks riding up to Illinois Beach State Park.
Read on to hear a bit more about these awesome events and a couple of final events we have coming up to close out the year, including our last Monthly Hang of the year, tomorrow, Tusday, November 5 at Exchequer in the loop.
Upcoming Events and Adventure
Monthly Hang at Exchequer Pub (Loop)
Tuesday, November 5 (last one of the year)!
We bring it indoors for the last hang of the year to Exchequer Restaurant and Pub (226 S. Wabash). We'll be in the front bar right when you enter. Come on out and celebrate a great season with all your OOFD pals. The 2025 Ride Line-up will be announced at this event so we can all get hyped for next year’s rides. New folks very much welcome. More details and registration here.
Volunteer Appreciation Party
Thursday, November 14th at Sketchbook Brewing in Skokie
This one is just for the OOFD volunteers which includes everyone that has ever filled out a volunteer form, even if you haven’t volunteered yet, but have expressed interest in volunteering. If you are one of these people, you get the Volunteer Newsletter every month which has the RSVP form and more details. If you want to be one of those people, you can fill out a Volunteer Form here.
2025 Rides Live for Registration on Eventbrite
Early December
Keep your eyes open for the ride dates coming later this week and registration opening in early December.
Decemberg Bike Cabining at Camp Reinberg
December 7-8
This is it! Won’t be bike camping for at least a few months after this one. So if you like that winter, cold weather riding, this one is for you. It's about a 45 mile ride out to Camp Reinberg. This one is filling up fast. More details and registration here.
Ride Recap: Sun Harvest
Goodness, what an incredible Sun Harvest. We had 75 participants on this one with about 15 of them being OOFD guides that led other rides this year and earned a free spot for themselves on this ride. The biggest Sun Harvest to date. Huge props to all 12 OOFD guides, especially lead guide Aly, who all brought the welcoming and fun vibes to the beautiful weekend of bike camping. So many good pictures and none of them can really capture the loveliness of that weekend and the 100 miles round trip that the riders completed along various bike trails winding through some epic fall colors. Thank you so much to everyone that came out, especially all of y’all that were bike camping for your first time.
What We Did in October
Where the Wild Things Grow Ride to Emily Oaks Nature Center
Sunday, October 6
We had around 10 folks ride out from Horner Park to do service at this amazing nature center and partner to OOFD, Emily Oaks Nature Center in Skokie. After the service, the crew got a beverage afterwards at Sketchbook Brewery.
Adult Day Ride for Indigenous Peoples’ Day to the Mitchell Museum
Saturday, October 12
We had about 10 folks wrap up a hugely successful year for the Adult Day Ride Program with a ride up to the Mitchell Museum in Evanston to celebrate Indigenous People's Day by learning about the local tribes, past and present, of Chicagoland.
Family Overnight for Indigenous Peoples’ Day at Camp Sullivan
October 12-14
We had about 20 folks complete our first ever fall Family Overnight to celebrate Indigenous People's Day. This was a 20 mile ride from Beverly out to Camp Sullivan. The weather was great, and we were able to mostly sleep in tents though the heated bunkhouse came in clutch as a place to cook and for kid dance parties:) We carved pumpkins and ate most indigenous inspired meals with some of the ingredients sources directly from local tribes.
Autumn Sun Harvest Adult Overnight at IL Beach State Park
October 19-20
More on this above. Such a freaking blast. The ride sold out, and it was a reunion of sorts with many folks that rode with OOFD this year returning on this ride. Plus, all guides that led two or more overnights this year got a free ticket on this ride and we had 15 volunteers ride this one for free. That many OOFD volunteers on a bike adventure?! Great times guaranteed.
Tabling at Salt Shed (Andre 3000)
Monday, October 21
The last of 3 events tabling at the Salt Shed with Working Bikes, and OOFD folks got to dip in and see some of Andre 3000’s experimental jazz concert.
Where the Wild Things Grow Ride to Calumet Beach
Saturday, October 26
We had 8 folks ride out to this litter clean up day. Major thanks to our partners at the Shedd Aquarium and their Conservation Action Program for putting this event together.
OOFD Board of Directors Annual Retreat
November 2-4
Every year, the board gets together for a weekend of reflection, high level planning, and recentering on our mission/vision/values. This year we went up to Fox Lake for some big conversations and lots of fun. More details on some of the major outcomes and big plans for 2024 coming in future newsletters.
Volunteer Gratitude - Courtney Lee
As a new OOFD guide and volunteer this year, Courtney has been simply amazing. She has guided rides in three of our six programs, from the Adult Overnight Train O' Lakes, to the Family Overnight to Shabonna, and even an Adult Day ride out to Fermi Lab. She also helped scout out a potential new ride out to Kankakee State Park with some other volunteers. She's tabled a number of times this year too. She always brings a very welcoming, helpful, and adventurous spirit to any ride she is on. OOFD is so lucky to have her as part of the crew.
In her own words, she "moved to Chicagoland in Fall 2022 after living their entire life in California up until that point. She shortly got a bicycle thereafter and started pedaling all around town, mostly by commuting. After getting lost in the suburbs by taking the incorrect Metra train, Courtney decided that distance riding was fun and wanted to do more of it while exploring local waterways and prairie ecosystems. Outside of cycling, Courtney may be found climbing (indoors and outdoors), cooking their next meal, or plotting her next adventure. Feel free to ask about books she has read."
A Couple Other Cool Events
Arc’teryx Winter Film Tour: Chicago
Thursday, November 7th 2024 from 6:30PM-9:00PM
Location: Music Box Theatre
Screening a selection of snowsport-themed Arc’teryx films that capture the thrill of winter sports. Whether you love skiing, snowboarding, or just watching the pros in action, these movies will take you on an unforgettable ride through powder-covered landscapes. More details and tickets here. 100% of proceeds will support Sending in Color.
Bikes N' Roses Re-Opening Party - Goldsprint Edition
November 15th from 430-930pm
At their shop on 4600 West Palmer Street
Come out for night of fun, music, and celebration as BNR reopens their doors to all bike enthusiasts. Whether you're a seasoned rider or just love the biking community, this event is for you. Get ready for music, casual racing, light refreshments, and maybe even a few surprises along the way. Help BNR kick off this new chapter and make some memories. This is a free event with a suggested donation of $5-$10. More info and sign-up here.
Phew! What a month of October. Plenty of warm pleasant days mixed in with some raw rainy and especially windy weather. The OOFD crew of volunteers made it the best October yet in 9 seasons of leading bike adventures and helped us "close out" our ride season on a huge wave of momentum that we've been riding on all year. Major thanks to everyone out there that has been a part of this incredible year, from guides to participants to partners to donors. You all give us a platform to live out our mission of leading bike adventures that deepen our own and our neighbors' reverence for our region.
I pretty much just live with the book Braiding Sweetgrass open next to me on my desk. So I know that you, oh so sweet humans who read these loooong newsletters each month and get to this fun little quote that usually closes out the newsletter, have seen plenty of Kimmerer's quotes. But in my opinion, this book can't be quoted enough.
"Cultures of gratitude must also be cultures of reciprocity. Each person, human or no, is bound to every other in a reciprocal relationship. Just as all beings have a duty to me, I have a duty to them. If an animal gives its life to feed me, I am in turn bound to support its life. . . . An integral part of a human's education is to know those duties and how to perform them."
Hope to see some of y'all at the hang tomorrow night at Exchequer. And keep an eye out for our Giving Tuesday donation drive which will be coming soon with some very exciting aspects to it.
Much love,
Glenn and the whole OOFD crew
