Celebrate Somerville’s 175th Anniversary with the Annual Historic Bike Ride, this coming Sunday,

By Kris Atienza

If you’ve been looking for a chance to enjoy the fall weather on your bicycle through the streets of Somerville – helmet up, there’s a perfect event coming up for you.

In honor of the city’s 175th anniversary, the Somerville Historic Preservation Commission, the Somerville Bicycle Committee and the Community Preservation Committee are teaming up for a city-wide bicycle tour to let people learn more about the city’s history.

This Sunday, October 8,  the bike ride kicks off beginning at City Hall at 93 Highland Avenue at 2:00 p.m. The route ends at Temple B’Nai Brith, running approximately until 5:00 p.m.

Helmets are a must, but riders of all ages and experiences are welcome. For those who might be worried about biking safely from destination to destination, the Somerville Police will also be escorting riders along the route.

“The one thing that’s really nice is the police escort,” said Executive Director Somerville Historic Preservation Commission Brandon Wilson. “I know some people might be leery about riding their bikes through Somerville. The idea is that the event falls on a Sunday when there’s less traffic and there’s the police escort as well as a number of people that makes it feel safer.”

During previous rides, there was a small fee for participants to pay, but this year, the ride is free of charge.

There are some planned stops for refreshments along the way for riders. Some of the locations that you might see on the ride include the Community Growing Center, the Grace Baptist Church and Blessing of the Bay Boathouse Park. The route will take people through areas like Union Square, East Somerville and Assembly Square to name a few.

“One of the purposes I chose a bike ride instead of a walking tour was so that people could cover more ground – literally,” said Wilson. “Also, a lot of people seem to think that you can’t reach Assembly Square by bike, so this ride also shows that you can get there by bike.”

However, the route will also be available on the City of Somerville’s website in the future for those who might want to see all the historical sights but are unable to attend the bike tour.

Traditionally, the ride takes place in May but due to other events, the ride was put off until the fall. However, Wilson is optimistic for a good turn-out.

“Usually we get about 75 people at these kinds of events, but I’d really love for people that just want to get out for the day and don’t ride their bicycles or even just want to learn more about their city to go.”

Any questions about the ride of about other Historic Preservation events, contact Brandon Wilson at bwilson@somervillema.gov or at (617) 625-6600 extension 2532. Advanced reservations for the ride are appreciated. The rain date is scheduled for October 15.