In mid-November, while the rest of us are busy prepping pies and stuffing turkeys, local cyclists will take off with baskets and backpacks to search the city’s grocery stores for boxes of oatmeal, jars of peanut butter, cans of beans, and so on.

Now in its ninth year, Cranksgiving has become an annual tradition—and competition—that combines a bike race, scavenger hunt, and food drive, one that is now as synonymous with Thanksgiving in Baltimore as sauerkraut. For cyclists, at least.

“It’s an event filled with joy,” says Jed Weeks, interim executive director and policy director of Bikemore, the local nonprofit cycling advocacy group that hosts the event. “We found a way that Bikemore can give back to the community in a time of need and elevate other nonprofits in the city…It’s really a win-win.”

In 1999, the tradition began in New York City, with one generous bike messenger, Antonio Rodriges, who was in search of a unique way to give back to his community. He designed the event to resemble “alley cat races,” or unsanctioned bike races meant to mimic a messenger’s intense, fast-paced daily routine, and it took off.

Before long, Cranksgiving went nationwide, and in 2015, Baltimore caught on when Bikemore started its own competition, with gathered goods supporting two local food insecurity nonprofits, Moveable Feast and the Franciscan Center.

To date, there have been close to 500 participants and more than $5,000 worth of donations. But this is no ordinary food drive. With a list of groceries and locations, small teams depart from Charm City Meadworks and hit various designated stores throughout the city, with only two hours allotted for travel or shopping.

At the end of the race, donations are divided into bins, points are tallied based on their speed and haul, and awards are handed out during an after-party. Over the years, participants have established friendly rivalries and some don holiday-themed costumes aboard festively decorated bikes.

This month, Cranksgiving will take place on Saturday, Nov. 18, starting at 1 p.m. Registration is free, beyond at least $10 for groceries, encouraging ample participation. And in the years to come, Weeks hopes that the organization can entice even more participants, perhaps through the inclusion of e-scooters and other mobility devices, in an effort to accommodate those without bike access.

“It’s not just for bike messengers and roadie cyclists,” he says, as new bikers, kids, and families from across the city have participated in this one-of-a-kind ride. “It balances the competition spirit with pure fun. I don’t know how to describe it; it just feels very Baltimore.”

Throughout the past few weeks, everyone has heard the same advice on how to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus: wash your hands, practice social distancing, and sanitize all shared surfaces.

But as COVID-19 continues to impact practically every aspect of daily life—from bar and restaurant closures to scrambles at area hospitals—many Baltimoreans are looking for more ways to help their neighbors in need.

“Today, with statewide closures and increasing anxieties around COVID-19, the food-insecure Marylanders we serve need us now more than ever,” reads a statement from the Maryland Food Bank, which is offering grab-and-go meals for students at select sites, working with seniors to double distribution efforts, and creating “Back Up Boxes” of nutritious non-perishables for families, all while continuing its normal food programs.

And there are plenty of other local organizations doing their part to support the community while maintaining social distance. While this is by no means an exhaustive list, here are a few ways to give back to the Baltimore community during this time of need.

Things To Do

Start a Virtual Food Drive
While self-isolating, as recommended by the Center for Disease Control, the best and easiest way to donate nonperishable food items to Marylanders in need is through a virtual food drive. Here’s how it works: Start by creating a no-boxes-needed drive through Maryland Food Bank’s website, fill your “cart” with desired donations (examples include everything from canned vegetables and fruits to milk and brown rice), and then share your page with your friends, family, and social media circle. The Maryland Food Bank will fill your “shopping list” and provide all donations to local families that are food-insecure.

Donate Blood
As Gov. Larry Hogan emphasized during his press conference on Thursday, area hospitals are facing an emergency blood shortage and are in need of donations from healthy individuals. Visit the Red Cross website to check your eligibility, find a nearby blood drive location, and make an appointment to give back to patients in need.

Join a Neighborhood Quarantine Response Team
Amid the pandemic panic, Baltimoreans from all corners of the city have come together to support their neighbors with compromised immune systems by forming neighborhood quarantine response teams. Volunteers can sign up to buy groceries, pick up prescriptions, and walk dogs for in-need community members in 15 (and counting) Baltimore neighborhoods and districts. If you don’t see your area on the list, create your own response team using the COVID-19 Volunteer Support Pack.

Order Takeout or Delivery from Local Businesses
Although Gov. Larry Hogan mandated that all bars and restaurants close their doors to prevent the spread of COVID-19, as of now, takeout and delivery services are still fair game. Since then, dozens of Baltimore restaurants have pivoted to offering customers take-home options such as curbside pickup and home delivery. To help keep your favorite local eateries afloat during these uncertain times, order a meal (or two) using our Charm City carryout guide. Don’t forget to wash it down with libations from a Baltimore distillery or brewery, which are now allowed to offer carryout booze.

Make Donation Kits
In a time when supermarket aisles are empty and household items are in short supply, local donation centers are in need of provisions now more than ever. Check out the wishlists of area charities, such as the Jewish Volunteer Connection and Health Care for the Homeless, to prepare donation kits filled with everything from bagged lunches to blankets to distribute to at-risk communities.

Contribute to Little Free Pantries
We all know and love the little free libraries that are scattered throughout the city, but in recent days, locals have transformed the small wooden boxes into temporary food banks. Drop off any extra nonperishable food items at spotted locations in Hampden and Canton, or transition a close-by mini community library into a makeshift food drive to help passerbys in need.

Places to Donate

United Way of Central Maryland
This nonprofit organization has continued its dedication to helping families and individuals living in poverty by founding the COVID-19 Community Fund, which supports its helpline call specialists who operate on the frontlines of providing resources to people in need.

Moveable Feast
While Moveable Feast, the local nonprofit that delivers nutrient-rich meals to people living with chronic illnesses, suspended its volunteer program to avoid in-person contact, the 30-year-old organization will continue providing meals to its at-risk clients.

Baltimore Virtual Tip Jar
There’s no way around it: The city’s service industry and its fleet of servers, bartenders, baristas, and other staff members are taking a tremendous hit during the coronavirus crisis. To put tips directly in their pockets, scroll through the Baltimore Virtual Tip Jar, which now lists more than 1,200 hospitality professionals, and make a PayPal or Venmo donation.

Paul’s Place
For 38 years, Paul’s Place in Southwest Baltimore has been improving the community’s quality of life by supplying visitors with hot meals, clothing, support services, and health and wellness programs. During these uncertain times, Paul’s Place representatives continue to provide emergency food boxes, as well as shower and laundry services, to neighbors in need.

COVID-19 Emergency Fund for Artists and Freelancers
As more events, performances, and productions cancel their events in compliance with the CDC’s recent guidelines, Baltimore-based performers are struggling with the loss of work. To help support their efforts, Alanah Nichole has started an emergency fund that will distribute donations to individuals and families impacted by COVID-19-related cancellations.

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If you’re an organization helping the community during the ourbreak, let us know by completing the following form:

OPEN

LB Skybar: With warmer temperatures (thankfully) on the horizon, it’s a great time to celebrate the return of this rooftop hangout on the 19th floor of the Lord Baltimore Hotel downtown. LB Skybar will officially reopen for the season on Friday, April 27, offering a new indoor lounge and an expanded food and drink lineup. Now boasting an additional 75 seats, the bar with panoramic views of the city skyline is introducing a fresh menu of sophisticated snacks including corn and crab fritters, Korean pork belly bites, Wagyu beef sliders with bacon jam, lettuce wraps, and a shareable hummus platter with pita and veggies. The beverage program will highlight craft beers, local spirits, and happy hour deals Wednesday through Friday from 4-7 p.m. 20 W. Baltimore St., 410-539-8400.

COMING SOON

GDL Italian by Giada: Celebrity chef Giada de Laurentiis is putting the final touches on her new restaurant inside Horseshoe Casino Baltimore, which will serve its first tables on Tuesday, May 22. The 180-seat trattoria will draw inspiration from the chef’s Roman roots, while also making use of ingredients from local purveyors like Roseda Farms and Stone Mill Bakery. GDL will offer meatballs, prime cuts of beef, seafood dishes like crab arancini, and even a large antipasto workstation where diners can see their charcuterie, cheeses, and pastas being prepared. “I always want the food front and center,” De Laurentiis told us on a recent tour. “The best way to draw people in is smell and sight—I want them to be able to smell it from the casino floor.” The second-floor space, which previously housed Mexican concept Johnny Sanchez, will feature delicate fabrics, red and yellow hues, interior greenery, and rose gold countertops when it debuts next month. 1525 Russell St. 

Looney’s Pub Perry Hall: Looney’s owner Bill Larney has already gained a loyal following with four locations of his fan-favorite sports bar scattered everywhere from Canton to College Park. And now, Larney is bringing a new iteration to Perry Hall. Set to open this fall, the spot will take over the former home of The Harp on Belair Road and offer live music, a raw bar, 100 television screens, and an updated menu of its signature pub grub. Stay tuned for updates. 8706 Bel Air Rd.

Union Craft Brewing Sets Grand Opening Date: Union Collective will be gradually unveiling vendors of its 138,000-square-foot makerspace (including The Charmery, Vent Coffee Roasters, and Huckle’s Hot Sauce) throughout the spring. But the actual brewery announced an official grand opening date for Saturday, July 28. To celebrate the debut—as well as Union’s sixth birthday—the brewery is throwing an all-out bash featuring its favorite releases, eats from the collective’s vendors, and live music by local legends J. Roddy Walston and The Business. Tickets are on sale now. 1700 W. 41st St. 

EPICUREAN EVENTS

4/29: April in Paris
Petit Louis Bistro’s annual springtime festival returns to Roland Park this weekend with plenty of French flair. Guests can look forward to outdoor grilling, classic pastries, live music, and staff fittingly uniformed in striped shirts and Parisian berets. Admission to the all-ages festival includes two drinks, and a buffet-style spread showcasing charcuterie, grilled meats, poached shrimp, grilled zucchini, and a selection of cookies and cakes. 4800 Roland Ave., 410-366-9393, 12-3 p.m., $29-49

4/29: Brew for the Feast: Brunch Edition
Grab a group and head to Union Craft Brewing for this doughnut-themed beer brunch featuring treats from Donut Stop Believin’, Sundays, Full Circle Artisan Palace, Vent Coffee Roasters, Woodberry Kitchen, Wit & Wisdom, The Brewer’s Art, and more. Of course, there will also be plenty of beer and beer-mosas to go around. To make the deal even sweeter, all proceeds will benefit Moveable Feast—which provides home-delivered meals to Marylanders living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other life-threatening illnesses. Union Craft Brewing, 1700 Union Ave., Ste. D., 11 a.m.- 3 p.m., $25-30. 

SHUT

Ó Flynn’s Crab & Cask House: On the heels of the closures of Ryan’s Daughter in Belvedere Square and The Life of Reilly in Butchers Hill, yet another one of Baltimore’s Irish pubs is shutting its doors. Owner Liam Flynn, formerly of Liam Flynn’s Ale House in Station North, took to Facebook last week to announce that he would be closing Ó Flynn’s Crab & Cask House in the Brooklyn area of South Baltimore. “Yes my loves, sadly it is true,” the post reads. “We will be closing at the end of the month.” Flynn recently told The Sun that the bar wasn’t generating enough revenue to sustain the building’s rent. To celebrate its run, Ó Flynn’s will be hosting a handful of closing week events including its final drag brunch on Sunday, April 29 from 1-4 p.m. 3432 S. Hanover St., 410-355-9040.

For every box that a customer purchases, an additional two pounds of food gets donated to area nonprofits, like Moveable Feast or the Maryland Food Bank, or helps Hungry Harvest host free farmers’ markets in places like West Baltimore. To date, the company has 700 active subscribers.

“Our biggest hurdle is explaining what surplus produce is and convincing people that it’s fresh,” Lutz says. “In reality, it’s a lot of food that get rejected due to odd shape or size, or just at random. A lot of our produce is fresher than what you get at the grocery store because it hasn’t been sitting out.”

The company’s real test will come when Shark Tank stars decide if it’s investment-worthy. Lutz pitched them back in June and said that it was a nerve-wracking experience.

“I do press and talk to investors all the time, but this was a little different,” he says with a laugh. “You’re standing in front of five famous people, while 8 million more people are watching, trying to convince them to give you money. It’s not easy.”

Obviously Lutz could not reveal the outcome of his pitch, but he says he “nailed it.” “We’ll have to see what editing does. While it’s a real negotiation, it’s still reality TV. It’s their job to keep it dramatic.”

Watch all the dramatics unfold this Friday at 9 p.m. In the meantime, you can support Hungry Harvest, which, to date, has donated more than 100,000 pounds of food to those in need.