Tour de Fat, Minneapolis, Saturday July 18

New Belgium, the bicycle loving brewery, brings the Tour de Fat to Minneapolis on July 18. It takes it's name from the Tour de France and New Belgium's Fat Tire beer, but this event doesn't have any races. Instead there will be a bike parade at 10 a.m., followed by entertainment from Mucca Pazza, Sean Hayes, the Squirm Burpee Circus, the Daredevil Chicken Club and the Sprockettes. The lineup has comedy, music, marching bands, dancers, circus, vaudeville and cabaret, and some are inspired by, or performed with, bicycles.

Fat Tire beer will be for sale at the event, of course, and one person will win a sweet new commuter bike. The catch? To get the bike, the winner has to give away their car. The car will be given to a non-profit, and to be eligible to win, first tell New Belgium why you want to trade your bike for a car.

The event is free, although donations are invited, which will go to local bicycle-related non-profit organizations, off road cycling advocates MORC/MOCA, and the Midtown Greenway Coalition, developers of Minneapolis' Midtown Greenway bicycle path.