I'd suggest going to the site of the ticket, and taking a few pictures of the sign designating fourth street as a bike route, the lack of a bike lane, and any obstructions (gravel, broken glass, potholes, parked cars) in the right hand side of the lane.

The officer that gave you the ticket, if he even shows up to court, will likely present no evidence besides his own testimony.  If you play it cool, the ticket will be dismissed, the officer will look like a fool, and the DPD will refrain from issuing ridiculous citations like this in the future.

On the other hand, if you show up to court with a raucous mob of bikers who tied up traffic from Leif Erickson to the Civic Center. . .

I am a cyclist who rides to my job in downtown Duluth year round. Although I sympathize with the cited riders, I am a bit torn. 
I agree that they did nothing illegal, but they were doing something inconsiderate, and that was riding two abreast. I would never ride two wide on a street as they were; legal or not. Single file will still piss off motorists, but at least you are doing "the best you can" to not impede traffic. If they felt "unsafe" in single file (for some reason beyond me) then perhaps they should take an alternate route, even if it isn't as direct. 
You also can't take the nobility of their effort into account because they could just as easily take the food the 8 blocks to the Damiano in wagons on the sidewalk.
The whole "take back the streets" mentality does more harm than good. There are countless situations where someone is allowed to do something within their rights, but it still makes them an asshole. If these riders say this isn't at least partially about that, then they are lying and have zero credibility.
As for the police, I think a dialogue would have been better than a ticket. If you could cite the police officer for having no tact, then he is guilty (an may very well have his own axe to grind). It still doesn't make the cyclists 100% innocent victims though.
Respect for cyclists is as much of a PR issue as a legal one, and this is not good PR.
Better hope the judge doesn't have an axe to grind too, because they will be arguing something very subjective.

E.

P.S. I think that everybody should have to pass a bicycle law test as an adjunct part of the driver's exam.

Stupid cops...imagine that!

I think we should outlaw bikes and make everyone use cars ALL of the time. It would be illegal to be in public if you weren't in a car.

I seriously wonder if those "Designated Bike Route" signs have much meaning, beyond something someone stuck up years past. I've seen some awfully busy streets with little to no shoulder be designated a bike route.  

I don't bike a lot, but am in the camp that wishes for separated (from cars and pedestrians) bike paths. The Munger/Lakewalk connection sounds like a good idea

Seems there are a couple of Minnesota statues that may fit the situation, depending upon one's interpretation.  

One is:

169.18, Minnesota Statutes 2007 

Subd. 10. Slow-moving vehicle. Upon all roadways any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions then existing shall be driven 
in the right-hand lane then available for traffic, or as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway, except when overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction, or when preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway, or when a specific lane is designated and posted for a specific type of traffic.

Common courtesy would be: Get out of the way and let the cars pass. However, if one is an idealistic college student/recent college graduate who has not found a real job yet and who does not live in the real world, your opinion may differ.

I totally agree, Shane.  Many people who haven't been on public bike "rides" are unaware of the term "car back!", which is a nice euphemism that basically means "let the car by immediately or suffer the consequences."  This job is usually delegated to the rear of the urban-peloton.

I do my fair share of holding up traffic, but it's pretty rare.

To be honest, Duluth sucks when it comes to cycling, but that's coming from a person that's very persnickety about such things.

I am an enthusiastic cyclists and well as an enthusiastic driver. I used to commute to school on my bike and I loved it. Biking is a great way to travel. I believe we would have a healthier population and planet if more people biked for transportation. 

I find myself in complete agreement with E. As a cyclist, I do my best to stay out of the way of traffic. I use turn signals, especially in high-traffic areas. When I drive I do my best to give cyclists plenty of room. 

This story sucks in a lot of ways. It sucks because it points out how biker-unfriendly this town is. It also sucks because if these kids were 2 abreast with trailers, they probably were blocking traffic, and I, as a driver, would have been ticked off, too.

As for critical mass, E. had it right. No one is going to be more sympathetic to the plight of cyclists when they have been held up for 20 minutes due to a rally. That's just antagonizing. 

The reason this is interesting for me is that I spent the first week of August in Chicago and the second week of August in the Twin Cities. In both places I used my bike both for transportation and recreation. Both cities (for the most part) were extremely biker friendly. There were bike maps that showed all the bike routes and bike paths. When I returned to Duluth I became depressed at the lack of the infrastructure for bicyclists. For such a "liberal" or "progressive" town as Duluth is, there is not one street with a bike lane painted on it, as far as I know. Its enough to make me move to a bicycle friendly city. That and I can't find a job in Duluth, but that's another story...

I don't live in Duluth. I drive, and ride. I notice that many bikers are not following traffic laws. Blowing red lights, riding between cars in 4 lane traffic, even blowing through intersections with 4 - way stop signs. 

Yes, Duluth is not cycle friendly. But I don't see cyclists paying license fees either. Snowmobiles, ATVs, motorcycles, and trailers, all require a license. Heck, I even have to pay a fee to cross country ski. But no-one has required me to purchase a license for my bicycle. 

I'd pay that fee too, if I knew that money would be used to paint bike lanes, install bike racks, bike storage in parking ramps, and most important of all. Education campaigns informing drivers on bicycle safety and rules. 

We're living in a pay to play world, and right now, there's no money coming in from the bicycle crowd. Did you know the the Gitchi-Gami Bicycle Trail up the North Shore is being created with one time general fund money? They have not identified a funding source for maintaining the trail. This can't continue. We need to find a way to fund the infrastructure required to achieve the cyclist utopia.

I hope they get a judge who rides a bike to work. All it takes to be sympathetic to the bicyclers is to try it yourself. Not all Duluth drivers are horrible about bikes, but there are enough ignorant people out there to make it scary. Years ago, I rode my bike six miles through the streets of Chicago to college, and I not once had a "raging" incident. Too many Duluth drivers expect the road before them to be empty; they can't take it if something is "in their way."

Even the Cities are relatively new to bike friendliness...I rode year round when i lived down there and may times I encountered more than a few less than courteous drivers who failed to understand both the ramifications of pedestrian/cyclist encounters as well as the legal penalties for riding on the sidewalk.

A couple of those encounters ended in physical altercations with individuals who looked as though they could stand to spend a few hours a day in the saddle, for health reasons.

Still, by and large the midwest has a long way to go in terms of changing their views of cycle commuters. Fortunately, in the last few years (albeit after my departure) Mpls and St. P. have become models for the rest of the country to follow with regard to the changing attitudes and fair use of otherwise unused city land.

As to the trio in question, there are specifics regarding distance and lane occupation that I believe the issuing officer was concerned with...it IS illegal to ride a cycle on city sidewalks (same goes for skateboards and motorized scooters)...and the conditions of many of Duluth's paved "bike route" streets, roads and avenues make it difficult at best to adhere to traffic laws without incurring damage to the bikes themselves.

Instead of picking a fight which will most likely turn a molehill into a mountain, these characters should at the very least go to court. They'll still have to pay the fine, but it'll most likely be reduced...and probably get more people to listen, rather than hating on the cause.

the uninformed and opinionated masses in this city are few, but they scream loud enough and cry long enough to make their voices heard, generally because they're not getting anything out of the deal (reverse entitlement?). They still believe that cyclists are akin to godless commies and the almighty auto is the only thing that'll save anyone...so what the cyclists are being forced into is a war of attrition, which never solves anything.

Lobby for fair use. The skateboarders did it, and got themselves a new park. Lobby for bike lanes. Lobby for paths.

Two abreast is indeed an impedance to traffic, though I think a simple warning by the issuing officer should have sufficed. 

Were warnings issued prior to ticketing? How many?

Good luck to you Greg.  You live your values, and aren't afraid to stand up for them.  If I were still in Duluth I'd gladly ride to the courts with you and help you with the food run.  Thanks for teaching me about my bike.  Get free everyone, get free.

cjl-  What would be the fine if one were caught biking without a license?  Does this logically extend to pedestrians since the current sidewalk infrastructure is unfunded by users?  Your idea is intriguing but me thinks undo-able.