Leah and Tori with Felix Wong the Cat... er, chicken.

Tour de Coop

“I thought it was the Tour de Coop?” I asked Tori, who mistakenly tweeted about the ‘Tour de Coup.’ “Unless you were planning some sort of coup on poor chickens?”

“Yes… bring a backpack,” she replied. “We are liberating the hens from their imprisonment.”

It was good that Tori was joking because if she did have some sort of chicken freedom agenda, she should have brought a bigger backpack. (Reminds me of my dad who—25 years ago—kidnapped a rooster from a home under construction next door because it kept waking him up at 5:00 in the morning, and “liberated” it in walnut acres four miles away.) This is because the third annual (legal) Tour de Coop included visits to no less than eight urban chicken coops during the six-mile bike ride.

Eight chicken coops meant a lot of chickens because per Fort Collins law, each coop is allowed to have up to six chickens. Most of the coops we visited had at least three cluckers, so we saw close to 40 of them. This is not even counting the stuffed chickens Charis and her son Aidan had on their handlebars, or the Felix the Cat wearing a chicken outfit on my bike. You could call him Felix the Chicken Impostor.

Of course, we just didn’t gawk at a lot of chickens. There were other interesting things to look at as well, including the coops themselves. These pens were of different shapes and sizes, and ranged from professionally built that resembled miniature models of the owners’ own homes, to the cobbled together from reclaimed materials, to particularly creative ones such as the coops whose roofs were made from donated, sawed-off skis. The owner of the Ski Chicken Coop even built a wheeled chicken pen that he could tow with his bicycle.

Other highlights of the tour included the dazzling bicycles participants rode. Many were newish cruisers including at least half-a-dozen New Belgium bikes (of the bicycle-loving brewery that is headquartered in Fort Collins), but there were also older ones such as a pair of Schwinns that a guy named Ted lovingly restored for him and his wife. A couple bicycles were loaned out from the Fort Collins library that sported front “wheelbarrow” seats that were perfect for infants.

At the end of the tour there was a large spread of healthy salads, pickled vegetables, quiches, etc., much of which was donated by Grant Farms CSA. In sum, it was a fun little bicycle tour even if no coups were staged or hens were kidnapped.

Video

Here is a video from this year’s Tour de Coop!

YouTube
Chris was riding for three (Zoe in the sidecar and Aidan on the attached bike to the rear) with Elizabeth on one of Chris' bikes.
Chris was riding for three (Zoe in the sidecar and Aidan on the attached bike to the rear) with Elizabeth on one of Chris' bikes.
Leah and Tori with Felix Wong the Cat... er, chicken.
Leah and Tori with Felix Wong the Cat... er, chicken.
Felix Wong with Felix.
Photo by Tori
Felix Wong with Felix.
I was talking with Ted (a participant in the tour) about Honda Dreams ("the best selling vehicle of all time"), and by coincidence, at the next chicken coop was this Sym Symba—a Honda Dream knockoff.
I was talking with Ted (a participant in the tour) about Honda Dreams ("the best selling vehicle of all time"), and by coincidence, at the next chicken coop was this Sym Symba—a Honda Dream knockoff.
Chicken art at the second chicken coop we visited.
Chicken art at the second chicken coop we visited.
Julie (in the white shirt) owned this property which was absolutely gorgeous.  It also had the greenest lawn I've ever seen.
Julie (in the white shirt) owned this property which was absolutely gorgeous. It also had the greenest lawn I've ever seen.
Leah and Faith pedaling in the bike tour.
Leah and Faith pedaling in the bike tour.
There were many New Belgium cruiser bikes such as these.
There were many New Belgium cruiser bikes such as these.
Chickens.
Chickens.
The chickens even ate the weeds!
The chickens even ate the weeds!
One of the loaner bikes from the Fort Collins bicycle library.  An infant can ride in the front.
One of the loaner bikes from the Fort Collins bicycle library. An infant can ride in the front.
"Chicken that way" sign.
"Chicken that way" sign.
The fourth or fifth chicken coop we visited.
The fourth or fifth chicken coop we visited.
"Home Sweet Home"
"Home Sweet Home"
"Goat xing."  There were no goats around but perhaps the chicken owner had plans for goats in the future.
"Goat xing." There were no goats around but perhaps the chicken owner had plans for goats in the future.
Felt is famous for triathlon and road bikes, but apparently the company makes cruisers as well.
Felt is famous for triathlon and road bikes, but apparently the company makes cruisers as well.
Treehouse at one of the chicken coops.
Treehouse at one of the chicken coops.
Girl holding a chicken.
Girl holding a chicken.
A mobile chicken coop!
A mobile chicken coop!
Bikes in the alley at one of the chicken coop stops.
Bikes in the alley at one of the chicken coop stops.
Felix's chicken outfit even matched my bike!
Felix's chicken outfit even matched my bike!
"Buzz off" says the green panther.
"Buzz off" says the green panther.
The folks who lived here had some serious garden greenhouses.
The folks who lived here had some serious garden greenhouses.
A chicken named Lulu.
A chicken named Lulu.
The owner of the mobile chicken coop also had a permanent one at his home, using recycled skis for the roof.  This is "Lulu's Lair."
The owner of the mobile chicken coop also had a permanent one at his home, using recycled skis for the roof. This is "Lulu's Lair."
The owner of this house had a friend build a chicken coop that matched the house exactly.
The owner of this house had a friend build a chicken coop that matched the house exactly.
Puppy...
Puppy...
This guy provided live music at lunch!
This guy provided live music at lunch!
We had quite a spread for lunch thanks to Grant Farms and others.
We had quite a spread for lunch thanks to Grant Farms and others.