OBSERVER Photo by M.J. Stafford Participants in the inaugural Central Connection Bike Ride on June 19 cycle through Fredonia. There are nine of the rides connecting Dunkirk, Fredonia and SUNY Fredonia set for this year.

The Central Avenue bicycle rides are cruising back into Dunkirk and Fredonia.

The Dunkirk Common Council approved a request on April 5 from organizer Lucas Natali for nine bike rides centered around the street that connects the two municipalities. The scheduled dates are Tuesday, May 14, June 2, June 17, July 5, July 23, Aug. 11, Aug. 27 and Sept. 12.

The ride series is sponsored by Central Connection, the shared services collaboration between the city, village and SUNY Fredonia. The series started in 2021 with three rides.

The excursions are meant to be “slow roll,” non-competitive rides for all ages and skill levels. Natali and other volunteers act as chaperones.

The Fredonia and Dunkirk police departments provided patrol cars last year to escort the riders. The Common Council’s approval last week specifically asked the city police to provide a car to lead each ride when it is in Dunkirk.

“I can’t guarantee we will have a lead car for every single one of them, depending on call volume…that’s a lot of them to do,” Police Chief David Ortolano said during the council’s April 5 workshop.

Mayor Wilfred Rosas replied that, as the rides are a collaboration with the village of Fredonia and SUNY Fredonia, their police departments will be asked to provide escort vehicles if necessary.

The Fredonia Board of Trustees hasn’t done a resolution on the rides this year, though Mayor Douglas Essek informed it of the 2022 ride dates. Essek is one of the organizers of the ride series, working closely with Natali and Rosas.

The routes of the rides will vary. Seven of the nine will start in Fredonia or at SUNY Fredonia.