Downtown Fresno Family Fun Bike Ride
Who: ATG – BikeForHopeWhat: Downtown Fresno Family Fun Bike Ride
When: Saturday June 6, 2009
Time: Meet by 9:45 am; Ride Starts Sharp at 10:00 am.
Where: Begins and ends at the Clock Tower on Fulton Mall at Mariposa Street.
Why: Explore Historical sites in Downtown Fresno, along the same road that Saroyan once rode his bike.
Registration: Free. To encourage family participation the $30 registration fee is waived.
More Info: Contact 559-224-1000.
View a map of the bike route.
Download an application form.
Bring your family and friends to Downtown Fresno to enjoy a leisurely 5-mile ride, at a relaxing speed of 5 to 8 miles per hour, and explore some of Fresno's historic buildings and cultural sites. This family event will start at the Fulton Mall Clock Tower and take you through some of the streets that are the heart and soul of old time Fresno. To encourage family participation the $30 registration fee is waived.
Enjoy the art displayed at the Mall and witness the wonderful multicultural fabric of our community at the Courthouse Park, including the David of Sassoun Statue on the corner of "M" and Tulare St. The ride will take you through the Cultural Arts District on Van Ness, cycling between the Old Fresno Bee Building/Renovated Fresno Metropolitan Museum, Artes Americas, KVPT Channel 18 Public TV Station, and the African American Museum.
You will feel the splendor of downtown coming alive when you ride by the completely renovated Historic Virginia Hotel on Kern Street and through the heart of the beautiful Civic Center along side the new, magnificent Federal Building and Court House.
The ride will also pass by the century-old St. John's Cathedral, the Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church (commonly known the "Red Brick Church"), and the First Presbyterian Church.
The Old Santa Fe/Fresno Amtrak Train Station, the nearby Basque Hotel, the historic Warner's Theater, the Memorial Auditorium and the iconic Fresno Water Tower converted to Visitors Center, the Meux Home Museum and the City Hall are some of the other sites on the itinerary.
Cyclists will ride along the same road that one of Fresno's most well-known sons, author William Saroyan, once peddled his bicycle on "M" street by the Convention Center and the New Exhibit Hall, and the Theater that now bears his name. Do not miss the plaque on Broadway Street indicating where Saroyan was born. Your ride will take you by Inyo and "L" St where at the age of ten Saroyan used to sell the Morning Herald newspaper, competing for sales across the street from young John Garabedian, whose Foundation now generously funds numerous cultural programs annually in Fresno. Your ride will not be complete if you do not experience the aroma of freshly baked breads at the local bakeries, the Valley Lavash Bakery on the corner of Santa Clara and "M" street, and the Hye Quality Bakery on "L" street. Saroyan often visited there to taste centuries old traditional bread that moved him to write "Valley Bakery where the best bread in the World is baked…"
The Chukchansi Baseball Park, the new grand Fifth District Court of Appeal, and the new housing development at the corner of Divisadero and Fulton Street in Downtown Fresno are wonderful sites to see as well.
The Downtown Fresno Family Fun Ride is an exciting event that should not be missed. After the ride, you and your family will have a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the HyeFest Festival taking place at the Fulton Mall (Friday and Saturday) and taste delicious ethnic Armenian food.
