Route

From the FAQs:
The route is about 15 miles long. The riding pace is conversational. Most of of the course is slightly rolling to flat. However, there are a few steady uphill sections, and one steeper but very short hill in Lincoln Park just before the halfway rest point where the ride takes a short water and shade break. People with a wide range of athletic abilities should be able to complete this course.
We’ll ride on streets (or sometimes on one side of a street) that are closed to motor-vehicle traffic by the Jersey City Police Department. Police officers will escort us throughout the ride.
Start: Exchange Place, 1 Montgomery St.
Registration begins at 9am, roll out at 11am.
At the start there will be live music, coffee, lots of bikes, and great vibes!
Finish: Exchange Place, 1 Montgomery St.
Where the ride ends at Exchange Place, riders will find a bike parking area with Bike JC merch and many other vendors!
Bib Pickup
To avoid Sunday morning rush, pick your bibs up in advance! Bib pickup will be available on Friday, May 30th and Saturday, May 31st.
More details to be announced later - we'll email you!
Ride Info
All riders must wear helmets.
All riders should also be able to maintain a pace of approximately 8 mph. This is a fairly relaxed pace for an adult who bikes even occasionally. We also take some short breaks to catch a breath and to allow for smooth traffic control, and our one long break in Lincoln Park roughly at the halfway point, after the only steep uphill on the course (so you can just walk your bike up that hill if you want).
Please note that the Ward Tour is not timed, and it is not a race. In fact, we will strictly limit the front of the ride group to 10 mph.
But we must also emphasize: YOU MUST BE ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE GROUP, OR WE WILL HAVE TO ASK YOU TO CUT YOUR RIDE SHORT, as police re-open the streets to motor traffic behind us.
Also note, if you can’t keep up, if your bike quits on you, or if you simply want to drop out along the way, we will TRY to help you, but ultimately YOU are responsible for getting yourself home if need be. We will have marshals and others with mechanical skills in the pack.
We strongly recommend that you and everyone in your party do at least some bike riding in the weeks before the tour.
We do NOT rent or otherwise provide the bikes.
The tour rolls out at 11 a.m. SHARP, but you must have a bib number to ride. We encourage riders to pick up a bib prior to Sunday, but check-in will be available from 9am to 10:30am on the morning of the Tour.
We encourage you to dress up yourself and your bike colorfully, or in Bike JC merch!
Rain or Shine
PLEASE NOTE: The Ward Tour is officially a RAIN OR SHINE event. There is NO rain date.
We will ride even if it’s raining, in any weather that’s not dangerous. If the weather becomes dangerous (high winds, lightning, floods, etc), we will be forced to cancel the Tour. Unfortunately, we are not able to offer refunds in the unlikely event of a weather cancellation.
More Info
See the Ward Tour FAQs page for more info.
Bike JC is a volunteer-run advocacy organization that aims to make Jersey City streets welcoming for bicyclists and all active transportation modes by promoting bike-friendly policies like bike lanes, bike parking, and bicycle education.
Volunteer
We need your help making the event running smoothly: beforehand, at the start, during the ride, and at the finish.
Please sign up here to volunteer. After signing up, you will get a link to register for free on this page.
Sponsors
We are grateful for our 2025 Bike JC Ward Tour sponsors - they are instrumental to the work we do.
To learn more, or to join Bike JC as a sponsor, please see our website's sponsor page.