On Saturday, September 26th, the Massachusetts Avenue Project (MAP) will be holding the 2009 Buffalo Tour de Farms Ride, a community bike ride through Buffalo and Western New York which will visit some local farms. All proceeds from the event will go to the Massachusetts Avenue Project and its efforts to help local farms.
The ride this year will be 40 miles long, starting in the Top’s parking lot on Grant Street, and ending at the Oles Family Farm, located at 2112 County Line Road in Alden. At the Oles Farm a community celebration will take place, with BBQ from Donnie Smokehouse and lots of other local foods, and music by the Outer Circle Orchestra. There will also be farm tours and fun stuff for the kids. More information about the Oles Family Farm can be found on their website.
There will be an optional excursion before the start of the ride that will take people over to MAP’s urban youth farm located at 389 Massachusetts Avenue. The urban farm is the site of MAP’s Growing Green Program, which MAP’s website describes as “a youth development and urban agriculture program about increasing healthy food access and revitalizing the Buffalo community through urban farming, healthy nutrition, environmental stewardship and social enterprise.” There will be a stop along the bike ride at Greg’s You-Pick farm in Clarence, where riders will be able to stop for a breather and pick some of the produce for themselves.
Tickets for individual bike riders are $45, and couples will be $80. Buffalo Blue Bikes Members can ride for $35 a ticket. Those who aren’t interested in the bike ride, but still want to enjoy the food and music at Oles Farm, can purchase tickets just for the BBQ and celebration. Those tickets will be $25 for adults and $10 for children under 12. Incidentally, Daemen College is holding its 5th annual environmental summit at the Wick Center on the morning of the 26th, and Daemen has agreed to provide a shuttle from the summit to the Oles Farm for the post-ride celebration. More information on the Daemen summit can be found here.
The following is the event schedule for the bike ride and festival from MAP’s website:
8:30-9:30AM MAP Farm Tour- Meets @ Ride Check-In
9:30AM Welcome & Rider Prep
10:00AM Rider Send-Off
1:30-2:00PM Riders Arrive at Ole’s Farm
2:00-2:30PM Welcome & Local Food Event
2:30-4:00PM Barbecue Lunch Served & Music
4:00-4:15PM Buffalo Tour De Farms Mission
4:15-4:45PM Final Notes by Outer Circle Orchestra
5:00PM Program Close & Bus Return to TOPS
MAP is an organization dedicated to increasing awareness about food and health issues and increasing access to locally grown, healthier produce. In addition to their Growing Green Program and their urban farm, MAP also has a Farm to School program which aims to help bring healthy food from local growers to the cafeterias of Buffalo Public Schools. They also run a Mobile Market with local produce that operates in Western New York. To learn more about MAP and this event, please visit their website. Sponsors for the Tour de Farms include edibleBuffalo.com, Amy’s Place, Urban Roots, Jaeckle, Fleischmann & Mugel, LLP, and Sargent & Collins, LLP.