Winnetka cycles from summer to fall in style

Winnetka ushered in fall with a bang on Sept. 25 with a full day of activities capped with a fireworks extravaganza near the lakefront.

The Saturday afternoon began with a local classic: Bike Winnetka, a multi-mile bike ride that park district officials say was the most popular version ever with more than 250 participants.

“It was awesome seeing everyone ride through Winnetka. We had the most participants ever,” said James Janesku, the district’s recreation supervisor, in a press release. “Thank you, Winnetka. With this year’s success, I’m excited to see how Bike Winnetka can grow in the future.”

After the competition, bikers were encouraged to join Fall Fest, a family event at Duke Childs Field that included music, food and drinks, and a pumpkin roll — for which participants rolled pumpkins down a hill.

The evening was punctuated with a 30-minute fireworks show originally set for the Fourth of July but postponed because of COVID-19 concerns.

“This year’s Fall Fest was one for the books,” said Toby Ross, the district’s recreation supervisor, in the release. “We were so thrilled to host such an awesome day for the community. It felt great to see so many people come out to kick off fall and stick around for our belated Fourth of July fireworks show.”

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