La Crosse, WI

Group Bike Rides

If you enjoy biking with company as much as we do you’ll definitely want to try some of the group rides featured below.  Scroll further below to see the groups you can join to get notifications about rides and events.

Helmets are required for all of our group rides.
Helmets are strongly encouraged for every ride you go on. You may be a great rider but you might not be able to avoid that distracted driver behind you. You only have one brain. Protect it.

Recurring Bike Rides

Smith's Women's Road | Monday 5:30pm

This women’s only road bike ride (A-ride) occurs during the summer months, usually starting in May. It is strictly a road bike ride for women who are comfortable riding in the road at a average speed of 16 mph (17-20 mph on flats) and comfortable with drafting. We will meet at the bike shop at 5:30pm. Routes and distances will vary.

**New 2022** The Monday group has evolved to be a steady women’s ride, which means riders are comfortable riding in a group at a steady pace. We recognize there is a growing interest in road riding and women continue to be a minority in the sport. We want to provide an option for those who want to learn, practice riding in a group, or meet other riders, so we are offering two options: a longer route for more experienced riders (drop ride) and a shorter route for all riders (no drop ride), with the objective of teaching road riding skills. All riders are welcome to learn and teach. For this shorter ride, riders should be able to maintain an average speed of 14 mph. Let’s build the biggest network of women cyclists in the area!

During the winter months and inclement weather, we will hold Zwift rides starting at 6:30pm. Send us an email if you are interested in joining us.

Wednesday Night World C-Team (WNWC) | Wednesday 5:30 - 6:00pm (start time varies)
The world’s averagest cyclists in town meet for a group road ride every Wednesday night at 5:30 PM at the southeast corner of Weigent Park. The rides typically involve one bluff climb, the distance is usually 25-35 miles, and the average speed is 14-15 MPH. There is often an option to join the group 4 miles in at 5:50 PM for a shorter ride. Roads bikes recommended. All genders welcome. Follow the Facebook page for updates (see Bike Groups to Join for information).
EMAG | Tuesday & Friday 5:30am

Road ride Tuesday and Friday leaving at 5:30am from the dog park near Myrick park. It is a 19 mile or so loop through Barre Mills, up FO and down Bliss. Same route for over 30 years. The rides are vigorous with regrouping after climbs.

TNWC | Tuesday 5:30pm

TNWC stands for Tuesday Night World Championships.  This is a road ride typically leaving at 5:30pm on Tuesdays from Smith’s Bike Shop.  Departure time and location depends on route.  Follow Lax Cycling or La Crosse Rides | Community Hub for MTB, Gravel, and Road Cyclists’ Facebook group (see Bike Groups to Join for more information).  This ride is intense and is considered training for many of the local bike racers.

EMAG | Wednesday Road | 5:15am

Road ride at 5:15am on Wednesdays, departing from First Congregational Church.  The Wednesday road ride is less intense and more conversational than the Tuesday/Friday rides. Route goes up Cty Rd MM, to 14/61, to Ober Rd, to K, back to La Crosse on 35.

EMAG | Wednesday MTB | 5:15am

Trail ride for intermediate to advanced MTB riders. Starts at La Crosse St and Losey Blvd in the entrance of the golf course parking lot. Ride typically goes up Vista, to Quarry, to Stinkys, to Still Hill, to Bob, to Dotta/Golnick, to Twister then down through the Gateway trails. Ride is approximately 1 hour 15 mins. To stay with the group, it is recommended you are at an intermediate to advanced skill level with good aerobic fitness. (As with all MTB rides, ride is only on when trails are open.)

Women's Wednesday MTB | 5:30pm/6:00pm
Ride departs at 5:30pm at the Lower Hixon parking lot. From there, we’ll head up Vista and meet others at the Weather Ball/Upper Hixon at 6pm. Or, meet us at any point along the way. (As with all MTB rides, ride is only on when trails are open.)
LaxCycling | Thursday 3:30pm

This is a road ride typically leaving at 3:30pm on Thursday from Kwik Trip on State Road.  Follow Lax Cycling or La Crosse Rides | Community Hub for MTB, Gravel, and Road Cyclists’ Facebook group (see below) for more info.   This ride is medium intensity with routes that are generally 30-50 miles.

Smith's MTB | Friday 5:30pm

This group mountain bike ride occurs during the summer and is open to all ages and skill levels. Meet at the bike shop at 5:30pm and ride to Hixon, up Vista, and to the HPT trails. Or, meet up with us at any point along the way. (As with all MTB rides, ride is only on when trails are open.)

Bike Groups To Join

La Crosse Rides | Community Hub for MTB, Gravel & Road Cyclists

This Facebook group is a diverse group of local cyclists who actively posts about group rides and events year round including road cycling, gravel rides, mountain biking, winter fatbiking and everything in-between.

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Lax Cycling

This is a Google group that posts primarily road bike rides on Tuesday and Thursday and some weekends.  To join, you’ll need to request to join by sending an email to randi@smithsbikes.com.

Coulee Region Ladies Rides

This is a Google Group for La Crosse Area Women. It is a place to share any type of ride (road, gravel, mountain bike, cruise and etc). To join, you can search for coulee-region-ladies-rides on Google Groups or send an email to randi@smithsbikes.com.

EMAG

EMAG stands for Early Morning Anaerobic Group.  This is a Google Group that posts early morning rides on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and sometimes weekends; this group is primarily road rides however they do have a Wednesday mountain bike ride as well.  To join, you’ll need to request to join by sending an email to beestie3@gmail.com.

BBBB

Beer By Bike Brigade is a once-a-month summer bar hop for responsible and fun-loving adults. The group is nearly 5,000 members strong and each event generally has 300-400 cyclists.

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Slow Bicycle Movement

Slow Bicycle Movement La Crosse is about enjoying the ride no matter how far or fast you ride or why you are riding i.e., recreation, commuting or otherwise.

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Women and Bicycles

This Facebook group was designed to encourage women to ride bicycles. Click the button below and join in on the fun.

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Coulee Region Ladies Rides
Join this Facebook group to share cycling rides and events both formal and informal and to connect the active and adventurous ladies to the Coulee Region.
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Wednesday Night World C-Team (WNWC)
The purpose of this Facebook group is for C-level cyclists to stay in communication with each other. The WNWC group can be used to make last-minute suggestions for your own rides to find a friend or two to join you. Or you can post if you are participating in a cycling event or race and want to find some friends to join you.
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Hixon/Gateway Trail Conditions
This group is a two-way communication tool that allows trail users to post their trail observations and for visitors to know if the trails are ready to be ridden, hiked or used. You can still find an official trail status on the ORA Trails website, but trail users are the ears and eyes of ORA.
This page also lets trail advocates know when work is needed on a trail, a tree is down, or any other relevant information. This only works if people: (1) post their observations, good or bad, on the group on a regular basis….we’ll call this the Ride/Report step of the process and (2) heed the advice of those who have posted…. we’ll call this the Read/Heed step. It’s really that simple.
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