WHEELS OF THE REVOLUTION Vernon Hills Grand Prix cyclists fill their need for speed.

Photo: Voytek Glinkowski

“I love speed, and Chicago is all about speed,” says local racer Shane Winn, who notes that racing in the Windy City focuses on criterium (laps around a closed course on city streets) and track (riding single-speed, fixed-gear cycles around a velodrome). “It’s a gladiator phenomenon,” Winn says. If velocity turns your crank, there are more than 30 teams in the area, many of them geared toward newbies. But if you’d rather kick back with a beer and a brat while watching chiseled folks in Lycra zoom past, it’s going to be a great summer.

XXX Racing-AthletiCo (xxxracing.org) is one of the biggest, most inclusive local outfits. Rookies are encouraged to simply show up for one of its Saturday training rides, leaving at 7am from Wicker Park for a 50-mile round trip to Highland Park. There’s a “no drop” policy (where the ride moves only as fast as the slowest among the group) for the first half; ride home at your pace.

For a taste of track racing, head to Northbrook’s Ed Rudolph Velodrome. Established racers compete on Thursday nights, but on Fridays beginning June 13 (through August 15) from 6 to 10pm, all ages and ability levels can participate in the Developmental Bike Racing Series.

The big news this year is the debut of the Chicago Criterium on July 27. Part of Mayor Richard Daley’s campaign to bank the 2016 Olympics, this showcase will be the first Loop crit since 1987. Races will begin at 7am when, it’s hoped, thousands of people will flood Grant Park to watch riders compete for $40,000 in prize money.

The races take place on a mile-long circuit of streets: Jackson, Columbus, Balbo and a rare closure of the northbound lanes of Michigan Avenue.“It’s going to be a great event for fans: high-intensity with lots of turns, which makes for very exciting racing,” says Anne Davis from the Mayor’s Office of Special Events.

Two other crits are coming to the city’s South Side this summer. XXX-Racing hosts the Sherman Park Criterium on June 14, with races starting at 8am and going till 4:40pm. Spectators are invited to bring barbecue fixins while a live DJ will spin at the park in the Back of the Yards neighborhood.

There’s also a great excuse to trek down to the Irish neighborhood of Beverly and take in its historic mansions and surprisingly hilly terrain: The Beverly Hills Cycling Classic (bapa.org) on July 11, a 100K, 50-lap crit. The race kicks off with a 6pm family-friendly festival (107th St and Longwood Dr).

Cyclists looking to bite off a bit more might want to jump into the waters of the multisport scene with a triathlon. A good way to get your feet wet is the monthly happy hour and clinic hosted by the Chicago Tri Club, taking place the first Wednesday of the month at the North Side watering hole Fizz (3220 N Lincoln Ave, chicagotriclub.com) with a 6pm start time.

The area’s most popular tri is the Accenture Chicago Triathlon, which logs about 6,500 competitors in the main race on August 24. Triathletes will max out beginning with the 1.5K swim at Monroe Harbor before tackling the 40K bike ride and 10K run.

Toward the end of summer, PBR supplies will be in peril as the Chicago Couriers Union and other messengers bring the 11th annual North American Cycle Courier Championship to town with city-sanctioned, closed-course races in Garfield Park (3400 W Washington St, chicagonaccc.com) on August 30 and 31 from 10am–4pm.

Although the main races, which simulate a day of delivery work, will be messenger-only, “civilians” are welcome to compete in the sprint, track-stand, skid and bike-polo competitions. Says organizer Augie Montes, “There’ll be all the jack-assery you might expect.”

Check weekly listings and chicagobikeracing.com for more info on bike races all summer long.