Fancy corporate chains and formerly leery suburbanites are reviving downtown Kansas City — or so goes the happy sales pitch since the opening of glitzy Power & Light District. But long before this fluorescent, commercial renaissance, intrepid residents found plenty of reasons to explore KC's urban core. To revel in the more offbeat sites, back-alley quirks and historic character that make this city more than the latest location for Ted's Montana Grill, check out the
Tour de Cowtown. For this cycling scavenger hunt, participants get a list of trivia questions and clues that send them wheeling across the city to find out how many painted panels adorn the Wyandotte Bridge or who was the first publisher of
The Call (hint: It's painted on the wall of the paper's Jazz District office). Organizers promise to challenge your Cowtown IQ, so search your couch cushions for a mere $12 and spin on over to Acme Bicycle Company (412 East 18th Street) before the race kicks off at 7 p.m. Trophies will be awarded to the cyclist who bags the most correct answers; the only losers will be the ones who don't stick around for the post-ride party, with food, music and booze. For more information, see
kcbikefed.org. — Carolyn Szczepanski
Sat., May 17, 7 p.m., 2008
