Through our rides and events, WCCC strives to serve the LGBTQA cycling community and the greater community-at-large. It does so by offering rides for the many types of cyclists, including road, mountain, or recreational cyclists, encouraging bicycling advocacy, providing a resource for education, and finally always remembering to take time away from our busy lives for celebration!
Our club is run exclusively by its members and relies on their participation. Ride Leaders are one of our most important assets. They are members who take it upon themselves to research, organize, and create the rides or events that we list on our calendar. Look in our Calendar and you'll see what our ride leaders have organized. We encourage all members to get involved.
Road Rides
Fitness is a big part of why many members cycle. The majority of WCCC rides are on paved surfaces (we are based in Chicago after all). But we accommodate the varying skill levels of our members with a variety of road rides . WCCC organizes trips to participate in the invitational rides hosted by various Chicago area bicycle clubs. We also have training rides and faster versions of our social rides for those who want to "make it a workout". We also have relationships with other clubs, such as the Chicago Smelts and Chicago Frontrunners for those interested in training for triathlons or other endurance events.
Recreation Rides
WCCC also realizes that a lot of people aren't serious cyclists but greatly enjoy the sport for recreation. For those people we host events that take advantage of the resources this great city has to offer. We also provide recreational rides on our "destination" week-ends (see the calendar for Madison Week-end in July or Saugatuck in August) so that everyone can from different abilities can come together.
Offroad Rides
We may live in Chicago, but that doesn't inhibit our mountain biking spirit. There are lots of great areas to mountain bike around Chicago. All it takes is serene woods , wind rustling through the trees, a rabbit or even a fox darting across the trail, the occasional root or other forest obstacle to make things interesting, and a long ribbon of winding dirt singletrack. Some of the many destinations near Chicago include Kettle Moraine, Palos Forest Preserve, Deer Grove Forest Preserve, Des Plaines River, and that's just for starters. There are many skill levels to choose from, from beginner to advanced. But however you cut it, Chicago has some great offroad riding.
Membership
Like many clubs, WCCC has a membership. Those interested in joining may do so any time throughout the year. Membership privileges include a copy of the membership directory and inclusion on the club e-mail list, which provides changes to the calendar and impromptu social events that may not be listed on our calendar. Member or not, everyone is welcome to join us on our rides and the events listed on the calendar.
Advocacy
WCCC believes that bicycling as a means of transportation benefits our environment, our health, our pocketbook, our neighborhoods, and alleviates our reliance on foreign oil. We have a very close and active working relationship with the Active Trans Alliance, a non-profit cycling advocacy organization that works hard to keep Chicago a bike friendly city in the United States. We encourage our members to participate in Critical Mass events for community building and empowerment .
We also encourage our members to attend city hearings on important bike related proposals and e-mail action alerts, including information on how to impact bike related legislation and funding. WCCC is a member of the League of Illinois Bicyclists and the League of American Bicyclists both of which work at different levels ensuring bicyclists are represented in state and Federal governments. To learn more about WCCC take a look at our Club History!
Education
We'll include workshops and ideas to become better cyclists on our Facebook and calendar as we find or support the in the Chicago community.
Celebration
Each year WCCC hosts two major parties: the Spring Kick Off and the End-of-Season Party. The Spring Kick Off, open to everyone, is a chance to meet club members and ask questions about the club. Usually scheduled in late March or early April, it's a great chance to give the club a spin. The End-of-Season Party is for members and their guests. We take a chance to look back at the year of rides and events and look forward to the new ones. We also thank our Ride leaders for the hard work they did the past year because... without them we're nothing! We hope you’ll take a chance to check it out and give us a try. Happy riding!