This undated photo provided by Michael Pretti shows Alex J. Pretti, the man who was shot by a federal officer in Minneapolis on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (Michael Pretti via AP)

Lawrence bike shop Cycle Works will hold a “unity ride” on Saturday in support of one of the people in Minneapolis who was recently shot and killed by federal officers.

Keith Muller, an owner of Cycle Works, said that the idea was sparked by a Minneapolis cycle shop called Angry Catfish. Alex Pretti, the man who was shot and killed last week, was a customer of the store, so Muller said he reached out to the bike shop to express the interest in holding an event in Lawrence in solidarity.

Pretti, 37, was killed Saturday amid protests in Minnesota against the recent flooding of federal agents across the state, especially in the Minneapolis-area. Pretti was the second person who was shot and killed by federal agents this month, following the Jan. 7 killing of Renee Good, which set off a wave of widespread protests, as the Associated Press reported.

Muller said he was friends with the people at the Minnesota bike shop, and so far a large number of bike clubs and many people have expressed interest in being a part of the ride.

“We’ve had a great local response to it,” Muller said.

Cycle Works’ scheduled unity ride is one of 75 rides that have been scheduled across the world to memorialize and support Pretti, according to Cycling Weekly. Muller said the ride is what they call a “critical mass ride,” where all of the rides are expected to start at the same exact moment across different time zones. For Lawrence, that means the plan is to meet at the bike shop, 2121 Kasold Drive, at 1 p.m. before starting the ride at 1:30 p.m. Muller said the idea behind the ride would be to get a large group of riders together and “show (their) numbers” and general support of cyclists.

Jenny Trucano Muller, an owner and operations director of Cycle Works, said the ride will be a 13-mile loop and was designed to be as “inclusive as possible.” Trucano Muller said they also plan to have people at busy intersections to make sure it is safe and easy for everyone to cross.

Trucano Muller said along with the ride itself, the shop will be open afterward and have coffee and “light refreshments” for people to come together. She also said there will be a table at the shop that has information on how to send postcards to representatives in Congress, providing people the option “to take action” if they wanted to.

Muller said one reason for scheduling the ride was to serve as a way to bring the community together. He said that with the tragedy of the killing and other day-to-day concerns, it can feel “really hard to have hope.” Muller thinks bringing together a large group of people who share similar concerns is a way to bring hope to people by showing there are “other people out there who do care” and are experiencing the same frustrations or concerns.

“Being together with people is a very important thing,” Muller said. “We’re here to show support for our community and take care of everyone around us.”

photo by: Bremen Keasey/Journal-World

The Cycle Works bike shop in Lawrence, 2121 Kasold Dr. Its owners will host a “unity ride” on Saturday that will meet at the shop in support of Alex Pretti, the man who was recently shot and killed by federal officers during a protest in Minneapolis.