This weekend, part of downtown Boise will transform into a race track. Professional cyclists from around the world will saddle up & race at ridiculously fast speeds around three city blocks. Spectators will cheers, scream, and ring cowbells from the sidewalks. It will be hot as hell & fun as barrel of monkeys.

Yep, the Boise Twilight Criterium is back.

If you have no idea what I’m talking about, this one is for you. And if you do know what I'm talking about but are wondering what the dealio is with this year's event, this one is also for you.

What is the Twilight Criterium

According to Merriam-Webster, a criterium is “a bicycle race of a specified number of laps on a closed course over public roads closed to normal traffic.” It's also known as a "crit" in cycling world.

The Boise Twilight Criterium is a high speed, high-stakes cycling race that starts and ends in front of the Capitol building. For one full day, professional cyclists race around a three-block course for a set number of laps. The fastest racer wins. Racers are quite literally inches from one another, and locals get to be right up in it all as sideline spectators. It’s been a beloved downtown Boise event for 34 years and counting.

Why it’s cool

1. When else do you get to stand on the sidelines of a professional bike race? And it’s not just like bleachers off to the side. It’s the side of the actual race track, like a few feet from the racers, cheering them on.
2. How often does your city become a cycling race track? Well, I guess for Boise you could say once a year, but most other cities can’t say the same. It's pretty neat.
3. The speed is crazy. Some racers top 30mph, for a whole hour. Can you imagine riding around in a circle at 30mph with dozens of people riding right next to you? Scary lol.
4. It’s free! And kiddo-friendly.

How it works

The majority of races take place on Saturday, July 10, but there are a handful of other events going on the days before and after. There is a lot packed into one weekend, so this is the run of show:

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2021

9:00am-12:00pm - 2021 US Paralympics Cycling National Championship Time Trials at Glenns Ferry High School. This is the only professional event of this caliber happening in the nation this year.

12:00-5:00pm - Adaptive Cycling Clinic is happening at Boise State University Health Sciences Riverside, hosted by CAF-Idaho.

4:00-7:00pm - Twilight Trifecta Cycling Celebration Community Event at JUMP Boise. This is the official kick off for the Crit. There will be opportunities to meet professional athletes, get autographs and photos, listen to live music & explore JUMP.

At 5:00pm the Paralympics Cycling National Championship Time Trials Award Ceremony will begin, which will award the winners of the race happening earlier in the day (see above).

SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 2021

5:00am - Streets being closing. Jefferson Street at N 6th Street and Capitol Blvd & 8th Street at Idaho Street will close at 5am. By 10am, all streets of the three blocks that will be the race track will be closed to traffic and will remain closed all day.

11:00am - Races & events begin. All races start and end in front of the Idaho State Capitol.

11:00am-12:00pm - US Paralympics Cycling National Championship Crit. The kick off race for the 2021 Twilight Crit and the one of the last domestic Para Cycling championship events before the Summer Paralympic Games in Tokyo. Aka, these athletes are showing up to win.

11:30am-12:15pm - Kids’ Ride registration & autograph session with Olympians Muffy Davis and Kristin Armstrong. Head over to the Mission43 tent, which will be near the intersection of Bannock Street and Capitol Blvd.

12:15-1:00pm - Kids’ Ride. The course is a three-block loop. You can check out the map here. It's very cute and very fun for the littles!

1:00pm - Expo area in Capitol Park opens to the public. Go there for food trucks, drinks, vendors and booths. This is one of the best places to watch from.

1:30-2:15pm - Cat 4/5 (45 min). While I wish this was racing kitties, cat means “category” and is the rider's level. Men start at cat 5 and continue up to 1. Women start at cat 4 and continue up to 1. Basically the lower the number, the faster the rider.

2:30-3:15pm - Masters 40+ (1/2/3) & Men 3 (45 min). This is for racers over age 40 who have a category of 1, 2 or 3, and men in category 3. So this one will be fast af.

3:30-4:00pm - Women 2/3/4 (30 min). This race is women only, who have a category of 2, 3 or 4. It will be super fast too.

4:15-5:15pm - Men 1/2/3 (60 min). All men in category 1, 2 or 3 are competing against one another. It's incredible how fast and hard they ride in circles for a full hour.

6:00-6:30pm - Paralympics Cycling Relay (30 min). One of the final events for the US Paralympics Cycling Championships. The winners of this race will be on their way to Tokyo!

6:45-7:00pm - Opening Ceremony for the pro races.

7:00-8:00pm - Women’s Pro 1/2 (60 min). The best of the best. If you are going to watch any of them, go to these.

8:15-9:30pm - Men’s Pro/Cat 1 (75 min). Ditto ^

9:45-10:00pm - Awards Ceremony takes place on the Capitol steps for the top 3 finishers in each category.

How to watch

Get up reeeal close. Grab a spot on the sidelines in the 3-block area and you'll have a good view. The start/finish line may seem like the best, but actually the turns are where the action is at.

Watch & entertain kids. Go to Cecil D. Andrus Park and watch from the sidelines. You'll get all the action here & it's fenced so you don't have to worry about your kid running out into the middle of a race. Here you can watch athletes warm up, have a front row seat for every race, and have access to food and drinks (and some shade) in the Expo Area.

Watch with provisions. This does take place in downtown Boise, meaning you are very close to lots of restaurants and bars. Probably one of the best seats in the house in 10 Barrel, as it is on a corner of the race. Other great places to post up & watch: St. Lawrence Gridiron, The Funky Taco, Cupbop (where Thomas Hammer was), Meriwether Cider, Even Stevens Sandwiches, and Water Bear Bar.

Swing by. Another great thing about the location is you can swing by at your leisure. Got dinner plans? Go watch a race afterwards. Going to a show? Go see a race before hand. You know the schedule (it's above) so just plan to swing by when races are happening & prepare to be amazed.

A few more fun facts & tips

• This is the 34th Twilight Criterium. It started in 1987 as a way to put Boise on the map as a cycling community.
• There are four Idaho-based adaptive athletes are competing this year:
  • Josh Sweeney, a double leg amputee, U.S. National Sled Hockey gold medalist, Pat Tillman Award recipient and Purple Heart recipient. We interviewed him a few months ago.
  • Will Groulx, a three-time member of the U.S. Paralympic Wheelchair Rugby Team and three-time U.S. Paralympics Cycling medalist, racing with quadriplegia.
  • Craig Cornwall, a father of five and top competitive hand cyclist racing with paraplegia, who has worked for NASA’s Langley Research Center and the Johnson Space Center.
  • Ellie Kennedy, the oldest classified female para-cyclist at the National Championship events, racing with neurological injuries as a result of exposure to sarin during the Gulf War.
• The nation's first all-female adaptive hand cycling team, sponsored by CAF, will be competing too.
• You should bike or walk downtown, if possible. With streets closed & a bunch of people all in one area, it's going to be tough to find a parking spot.
• Bring water. Maybe wear a hat. Sunscreen - use it! It's going to be over 100 degrees by the time the final races are going on. Don't be the spectator that passes out lol.

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Alright that's all I've got for ya. Are you going to check out the Twilight Crit this weekend? Have you ever been before? What other questions do you have? Let me know -> marissa@fromboise.com

Have fun out there! Thanks for reading.

With love from Boise,

-Marissa