The fourth annual New Haven Grand Prix, held on Friday night, solidified the event not only as a bike race, but as a downtown block party for all ages.
The race itself, as in years past, was a criterium, which found cyclists from as close as the Elm City and as far as the West Coast doing multiple laps around a short course that started at the intersection of Chapel and College, headed west to turn onto High Street, north to turn onto Elm Street, east to turn onto Temple, and then south to turn onto Chapel and complete a lap.
Near the grandstand marking the start and finish was a place where cyclists could pull over if their bikes needed quick repairs. Matthew Feiner of The Devil’s Gear Bike Shop was on duty all evening, helping cyclists attend to their rides and get back into the race.
Meanwhile, the festivities surrounding the race — particularly the Apizza Feast — kicked into gear a little earlier than last year, which made the event even more of a street festival than before, and made it more family friendly.
The Town Green District made itself more visible by turning the space in front of the Shubert Theater, and College Street itself, into a place for games. In addition to the climbing wall that had appeared on College Street in years past, the Town Green District added a ping pong table, a video game station, and places to play giant versions of Connect Four and Jenga.
College Street became the right place for people looking to play cornhole, as patrons of the restaurants and bars lining College Street, from Elm City Social to the Owl Shop to the Anchor Spa, took the outdoor seating to look on.
And the festivities spilled over much more to College Street than in previous years, as food trucks ranging from Zuppardi’s and Abate’s to Reggae Vybz, the Jitter Bus, and Bull & Swine, which set up a smoker for their barbecued meats.
As the races continued into the evening and the sky darkened, the families started taking their kids home.
But the street festival only got bigger.
