Turns out that this is the start of the Ride on Washington and all these folks were getting ready to start off to DC
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| Nicole, the Bike czar in orange jacket on left |
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| I like the idea that someone might do the whole ride on a hubway :) They're raising money for a good cause, but it's not my scene really, and I felt a bit out of place just wandering through. One of the security guards asked me jokingly if I were riding with the group. In my skirt and stockings and upright bike with basket I was obviously not going along. Although I read that they're going to get a bunch of people on bikeshare bikes to ride along with them for the final miles, which I personally think is a more effective advocacy message than just a bunch of guys in spandex. |
I've always liked the idea of charity & advocacy rides to generate interest and raise awareness. But I've always been a little dismayed by their reliance upon the kitted road cycling set, as if eh are the only ones able to ride a distance.
ReplyDeleteWhy can't we have a similar ride to raise the awareness of urban cyclists? If we took all day, riding casually and comfortably, we could cover 50-70 miles in a day with plenty of stops. This could be done on a three-speed, Dutch cruiser, Brompton, or even a Hubway bike. Take a full week, ride smack dab through the middle of the big cities. We could even take the commuter rail to shorten the total distance, which would illustrate how important multi-modal travel is for urban cyclists. Gee, this is sounding a lot like a Dutch or Danish biking vacation!
Brian,
DeleteI agree with you and think that tweed rides and other social rides like the Christmas Lights ride are good alternatives to spandex kitted events. This ride was a bit different in that it's 20 invited riders and I got the impression that they're really going to move fast.
But we should totally get a group together to ride the Bike the Hub in normal clothes- not tweed ride costumes or spandex kit, but just normal whatever you would wear on a Saturday running errands.
NO WAY!!!! One of our D.C. cycling buddies/commuters is in your set! How funny! I'm not a huge spandex kit person, but hey, to each their own. Wow, still can't believe you intersected with him.
ReplyDeleteAck. Forget the Spandex, shield my eyes from the Brutalist architecture. ;)
ReplyDeleteFor a second there I thought that was the J. Edgar Hoover building and I was confused, as that would have meant they were already in DC.