50 Year Gala Info

Join us Friday, August 25th for the Wheel & Sprocket 50-Year Gala! We’re excited to share an evening celebrating all things bikes with our community.

Wheel & Sprocket Bay View, 6pm-10pm

Get your ticket today!

★ ★ ★ FAQs ★ ★ ★

☆ Meet your community, listen to storytellers, grab a drink and some grub while you mingle with friends…
☆ We’ll have live music, games, performers, plus; try your hand at a classic arcade favorite to see if you’re a winner!
☆ Our silent auction gathers experiences, bikes, bike-related goods, and more! We’ll be raffling off fun items, too…
☆ Explore the historic building and view cycling relics from the past and present.
☆ We’re bringing the fun, so get ready for a night you won’t forget!
☆ Entry to the party with excellent entertainment throughout the night!
☆ Unlimited food & drink
☆ FREE VIP package and registration to Chris’ Slow Roll on Sunday August 27th
☆ Thank you goodie bag
☆ All proceeds from the event go to the Chris Kegel Foundation to help with transformative bike related projects our community!
☆ 6:00pm Doors open, beverages flowing
☆ 6:30pm Food stations open… Come hungry!
☆ 7:15pm Official 50 Year Presentation
☆ 8:30pm Raffle Pulled, Silent Auction Closes
☆ 10:00pm Doors close
Parking inside the lot at Wheel & Sprocket is available with a $20 donation or free with ADA compliance. There is ample free parking along Robinson, Ward, as well as metered parking until 6pm on Bay View’s main street Kinnickinnic Ave. Please bring cash if you plan to park in the lot, or you can pay inside with parking voucher that will be given to you upon entering the lot.
You won’t need spandex for this party… Our suggested dress code lands within the realm of Cocktail Attire. Check this handy guide if you are uncertain of what to wear.

Over 50 years, we’ve learned of so many stories of how riding a bike has had meaning in people’s lives. At the 50-year Celebration Gala, we’ll hear five of these stories from the community.
Erick Cedeño

Erick Cedeño is a bicycling advocate, cyclo-tourist and the one-person-show behind Bicycle Nomad. Several years ago, Erick embarked on a bicycle tour from Vancouver, Canada to Tijuana, Mexico just to see if he could do it. The following year he traveled from Miami Beach, FL to New York City, NY. In 2014 and 2020 he rode from New Orleans to Niagara Falls, Canada which followed the historic path of the Underground Railroad. In the past 12 years he has traveled over 50,000 miles across the U.S on several bicycle tours.
Rae Hamilton-Vargo

Rae Hamilton-Vargo is a nonbinary actor who's been working for Wheel & Sprocket in the Chicagoland area for over eight years. You can see their work in the webseries Life of Harold or hear them on the fiction podcasts Monocyte and Lavender Scare. Their next adventure involves moving nine bikes and a rescue pitbull to Los Angeles. Though they’re looking forward to their journey to the West Coast, they’ll miss Wheel & Sprocket dearly and look forward to the day our bike paths cross again.
Frank Tamel

Frank Tamel founded Wheel & Sprocket in 1973 and served as president of the company until 1989. In the years since, he has published several novels and numerous short stories and over fifty op-eds.
Tonieh Welland

Tonieh Welland is an active Milwaukee native, UW-Madison alum, and mother of 3 who loves cycling and creating community. She founded the Milwaukee Black Girls Do Bike Chapter in 2015 to increase diversity and to support women of color in the cycling community. Tonieh has served as a non-profit leader, bilingual educator, community organizer, event planner, yoga teacher and group fitness instructor. In her free time, Tonieh is a practicing polyglot, avid traveler, and aspirational baker.
Greg Marshall

Greg Marshall is "Laura's husband" and Dad to four brave and intelligent girls. He is Chief Storyteller + Producer at CI Design, a creative marketing and branding agency in Milwaukee's Third Ward. Greg loves Milwaukee and is a huge fan of Wheel & Sprocket. In his extremely limited free time, he loves to write and share stories on his podcast (The PegLeg Podcast) and on stages.