NORWICH – A group of cyclists have set their sights on organizing a winter fat bike race, dubbed Fatnango Fat Bike Extravaganza, to take place in Norwich on February 16.

Jason Miller presented the idea to the City of Norwich joint committees on Tuesday, December 4, before committee members unanimously passed a motion to consider approving the event at December 18's common council meeting.

"We're trying to host a community supported, family-friendly cycling event," Miller told the joint committees last Tuesday. "We're trying to expose our parks, as well as our Greenway [Trails], and promote some of our outdoor activities regarding fitness, adventure, and some of the businesses in town. The ultimate aspiration is to become an annual event, such as the Turkey Troy or Allegro Run."

A fat bike, Miller explained, is essentially a mountain bike with 3.5 to 5 inch tires, ridden primarily in the snow, slush, or mud. Miller, along with Rob Baker of the Galena Growlers Mountain Bike team, Dan Sepello and Sara Behrmann of Action Cyclery LLC, and Kevin Cruz of the Greenway Trails committee, have formed a race committee to bring the Fatnango Fat Bike Extravaganza to fruition this February.

"The city and city council and youth bureau and the parks committee have all asked a bunch of great questions and have been very supportive of us getting this organized and off the ground in such a quick fashion," said Miller. "It's one of the awesome things about living in a small community, that we can come together quickly and make something happen for each other and for the community."

The race would start and finish in Weiler Park and would take place on the Greenway Trails of Norwich across a 1.75 mile to 2.5 mile track, depending on weather conditions. Miller said anyone ages 18 and under can race for free, and those over 18 can participate for $20, in a number of classes including beginner, intermediate, and advanced. For those who don't own a fat bike, Miller said there will be some demo bikes available for people to use, but added that people are invited to bring down their mountain or mid-set bikes as well.

"Cycling is a healthy activity that lasts a lifetime and it's something that families can do forever together outside," said Miller. "Mountain biking has been transforming economically challenged and rural communities in the last year or so. We're not really doing it for the money, we're doing it to highlight the healthy things you can do in our parks, exposing our trails, and really just having fun in the winter and snow."

Norwich Outdoor Power Equipment has offered its SnowDog to groom the trails for the event, Miller said, to provide ideal conditions so long as the weather permits. He said FoJo Beans has also committed to the event and will be providing coffee to attendees. As long as ice conditions permit, the Borden Avenue Skating Facility will also be open for use during the race. Organizers are inviting any community businesses or volunteers who are interested to take part to in the event in any way they see fit.

"We're optimistic things will work out and we'll have a lot of people, a lot of community businesses involved in helping to make this event a success and make it a regular thing," said Miller. "We're just trying to put on a good, fun bike race. It would be great if we had a bunch of community support. When people come from out of town and they see what we've done, they're going to go back and tell all of their friends for weeks about how great of a time they had in Norwich."

If you're interested in volunteering for the event or learning how your business can take part, search 'Fatnango Fat Bike Extravaganza' on Facebook or visit www.facebook.com/events/302577373692369/.

If you'd like to register to participate in the race, visit www.bikereg.com/fatnango.