¡Viva! Streets highlights Denver business community
¡Viva! Streets Denver is a 3 ½ mile street festival happening four times this summer. It's happening for the second time on Sunday.
Part of ¡Viva! Streets Denver is getting to see what some of our local Colorado businesses are up to. The Gates Corporation is among many businesses that will have a booth at ¡Viva! Streets Denver. At the Gates booth you can check out their carbon fiber belt drive technology for bicycles. These belts replace the traditional bike chain.
"It's cleaner, quieter, smoother, and stronger than chain," said Jonathan Weinert, Director of Strategic Marketing at the Gates Corporation.
For the last 16-years, Gates has been working with more than 1,000 brands around the world to bring this technology to bikes and e-bikes.
"I'm inspired by our founder Charles Gates, who way back in the day, he ushered in this technology revolution from leather… leather retreads on tires to rubber, " Weinert told CBS News Colorado.
The belts are made of polyurethane with carbon fiber, making it stronger and more durable than a chain.
"It's very hard for a belt to come off because one thing you'll notice is that the front sprocket and the back sprocket are perfectly aligned," Weinert explained as he showed the belt on a bike.
The gears are tucked away in an internal gear hub. Cyclists can't just change out their chain for a carbon fiber belt drive, they have to buy a bike designed for it.
"We would love people to throw a leg over a bike that we have on a trainer to experience that advantage of belt…how smooth it is," Weinert said.
LINK: Check out ¡Viva! Streets Denver
Gates will have a booth set up with the trainer during ¡Viva! Streets Denver, which is on Broadway from Alameda Ave. to 20th St., and Welton St., from 20th St. to Downing. It will be closed from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the huge street festival. Everyone in the city is invited to walk, stroll, roll, cycle, skate, or dance along the corridor and enjoy food, drinks, and a wide range of entertainments.
"It's amazing to ride the opposite way up Broadway at a slower pace," Weinert said. "It's just a magical way to experience Downtown Denver."
RELATED: Denver taking the party to the streets with ¡Viva! Streets
One of the many magical experiences that is a part of ¡Viva! Streets Denver.