Gear up for this tweed ride

By Adam Warner

Get out your 19th-century knickers, gloves and shirtwaists — it’s time for the Tweed Ride.

In May, organizers of the first throwback bike ride drew more than 100 riders, most gussied up in their old-school finery as they competed for “awards” such as “Most Distinguished Lad,” “Most Ravishing Lass,” and “Most Magnificent Steed” (a reference to the bike).

It was so successful that aficionados decided to bring it back, perfectly timed to catch the fin-de-siecle fall foliage.

“We’re like a moving time machine that is paying homage to a timeless period and having fun doing it,” said Tweed Ride organizer, Maude Delice — or, as some know her, Lady Gray.

The journey will begin in Grand Army Plaza and continue through Park Slope before finishing at Flatbush Farm, a restaurant at Sixth Avenue, where riders will be able to refuel with an Old English style brunch and live music.

It’s like a posh Halloween in November!

Tweed Bike Ride [meet in Grand Army Plaza, Union Street between Flatbush Avenue and Prospect Park West in Park Slope, (646) 263-4520], Nov. 21 at 11 am. $20 (suggested donation for House of Hope). For info, visit www.bigappletweed.com.

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Gates opened on Navy Yard

By Meredith Deliso

Hop on your fixie and explore one of the most exclusive spaces in Brooklyn this month.

On Sept. 26, Urban Oyster leads a bicycle tour of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, a historic naval shipping yard on the East River — an enticing, yet off-limits, paradise for cyclists.

The tour gives you a chance to explore the grounds, get a behind-the-scenes look at the Navy Yard’s transition from a prominent shipbuilding facility to a model of sustainable urban industrial parks, thanks to hosting the nation’s first multi-story green industrial building; solar- and wind-powered street lamps; building-mounted wind turbines; and other green features.

There are also some wonderful views of the waterfront.

The bike tour comes ahead of the Navy Yard’s visitors and community center slated to open next fall. At that point, the Yard won’t be as frustratingly exclusive, so get in while you still can’t.

Brooklyn Navy Yard Bicycle Tour [meet at Sands and Gate streets in Fort Greene, (347) 599-1842], Sept. 26 and Oct. 17 at 1:45 pm. Tickets $24, $20 for members of the Brooklyn Historical Society and the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative, advance purchase required, as is a helmet. For info, visit www.urbanoyster.com.

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Bike and roll

Don't have a bike but want to explore Prospect Park? No problem.

Bicycles are now available to rent at Grand Army Plaza. Now through Sept. 26, a Bike and Roll kiosk offering bicycle rentals for both adults and children will be on site just east of the Grand Army Plaza arch each Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Costs are $14 an hour, $39 for four hours, and $44 for the day for adults, $8 an hour, $20 for four hours, and $25 a day for kids.

Bike and Roll also has bikes available at the Brooklyn Bridge.

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Let's get ready to jumble

By Elizabeth Dana

Brooklyn is a borough of cyclists. Lucky for you, recession-friendly transportation is about to get a discount at a bicycle-themed flea market.

Used cycles will be rolling into Park Slope’s Washington Park on May 16 for the second annual Brooklyn Bike Jumble.

A “flea market for bicycles,” the Jumble will feature used bikes, parts and accessories as a one-stop shop for the borough’s cyclophiles.

Harry Schwartzman organized the event last year after realizing that bike-happy Brooklyn didn’t have a marketplace for two-wheelers.

“People need bikes, and people want to get rid of stuff, so we bring them together,” said Schwartzman.

The merchandise comes from East Coast retailers who restore bicycles to working condition, as well as people just looking to part with a used two-wheeler. The cycles usually run from $50 to about $200.

After last year’s inaugural event drew over 700 people, Schwartzman is expanding the jumble to include new vendors, a show of vintage bikes and an exhibit at the Old Stone House about the Coney Island Velodrome — a track that brought the thrills of bike racing to Brooklyn in the 1930s.

See, Brooklynites were hip to cycling even then.

Brooklyn Bike Jumble at Washington Park [Third Street at Fifth Avenue in Park Slope, (718) 768-3195], May 16 from 10 am-4 pm. For info, visit www.nybikejumble.com.

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Cycling celebrations

May is Bike Month in New York City, and on May 20, Williamburg's Brooklyn Brewery will have its own Bike Night to benefit Braking the Cycle's AIDS ride in support of the HIV/AIDS services of The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center .

Live entertainment will come from Roger Kuhn, Morry Campbell and Terry Christopher - three of the featured artists on the new “United for the Ride” CD; with a special appearance by The Manhattan Prairie Dogs.

As part of this event the Brewery will be offering drink specials including $1 draft beers. The event runs from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Brooklyn Brewery, located at 79 N. 11th St.

May 31 will see another event for bike enthusiasts when the first ever Brooklyn Bicycle Jumble comes to JJ Byrne Park, an outdoor bicycle flea market.

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., private, non-professional vendors will be on hand to sell bicycles, bicycle components, and clothing to the public.

The park is located on Fifth Avenue between 4th and 5th streets.

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Brooklyn by bicycle

Photo: Brooklyn Greenway Initiative

The Five Boro Bike Tour may be sold out, but the day before, on May 2, you can enjoy a leisurely pedal through Brooklyn with the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative.

The 7th Annual Future Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway Bike Tour kicks off at 10 a.m. in Greenpoint at the northern end of Manhattan Avenue, ending 10 miles later on the Red Hook waterfront.

The event is free (though donations are welcome), and includes updates on the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway, a 14-mile path along Brooklyn's western waterfront.

To RSVP, send your full name and contact information to ride2009(at)brooklyngreenway.org.

And, if you're not in the city-wide bike tour on May 3 but want to catch the sea of cyclists as they swarm through your neighborhood, you can find the tour route here.

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