The Fairbanks Cycle Club will be holding a Matt Glover Memorial Ride on June 27 to honor the memory of Matt Glover and all people who have been hurt or killed while cycling on roads.
WHAT AND WHY
A ride to remember Matt Glover, an extremely dedicated cyclist and all-around great guy who died after being hit by a vehicle while cycling to work from his home in North Pole. (See more about Matt below.) We will meet at the start of the Matt Glover Bike Path and share a few memories about Matt. People are free to offer their memories of Matt if they wish. Then we will ride.
The ride is an out-and-back, so people can ride as far as they like. The path runs between the Fort Wainwright main gate and Badger Road. The total path distance is 5.2 miles, so the full route is 10.4 miles (not including getting to and from the start; see more below). It is mostly flat.
WHO IS INVITED
Anyone who would like to honor Matt’s memory and anyone concerned about cyclist safety on the roads.
WHEN
Saturday, June 27. Ride start is at 11 am.
WHERE
The ride will begin at the start of the Matt Glover Bike Path.
See the ride route on Ride with GPS HERE.
There is no place to park at the ride start, but there are a couple of good places to park that are within a short bike ride or walk away.
Getting to the ride start:
Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitor Center
This is only a mile from the ride start. You can park at a variety of places here.
- The visitor center parking lot (Please park away from the building to reserve those spots for center patrons).
- Along Noble Street nearby. (It is for juror parking, but there will be no trials happening on a Saturday.)
- The parking lot near the Antler Arch.
From here, you can just follow the Chena Riverwalk to the ride start. See a Ride with GPS route HERE.
This is about a half mile from the ride start. The parking lot has a lot of slots for Visitor Parking and will be fairly empty on a Saturday.
See a Ride with GPS route HERE.
MORE ABOUT MATT
Matt was a dedicated cyclist who regularly commuted to work at the Alaska Railroad, more than a dozen miles each way. Weather rarely deterred him. As one admirer put it: "Rain, snow, hot, cold… the man was a monster rider!"
Even more inspirational, Matt would cycle to rides and races that started in Fairbanks, cycle the event, then ride back home. He even did this for the Nenana-Rama, a 100-mile ride on its own. He participated in many local rides including the Chena Hot Springs Bicycle Classic, the Tour of Fairbanks, the Brown Leaf Classic series, the Tanana River Challenge, SCUM rides, and the annual Women on Wheels “Butterfly Ride.”
Besides his dedication to cycling, he will be remembered for being kind, caring, quiet, a good listener, and fun to be around. As one admirer said, “His smile was absolutely contagious.” He is sorely missed.
In 2025, the newly finished bike/ped path between the Fort Wainwright main gate and Badger Road was named in Matt's memory. A dedication ceremony and ride was held on May 24. Thank you to Senator Robert Myers and his office for introducing legislation for the path name and shepherding it through the Alaska Legislature.