Cycling advocate Richard Fries, in town to serve as announcer for the Twilight Criterium, also led a slow ride highlighting bike infrastructure around Rochester.
Rochester’s Bike Week 2019 was a huge success! Thanks so much to the ride leaders and organizers for collaborating with us. Bike Week kicked off Friday, May 10th with the RCA’s annual Light Up The Night Ride. The weather was a little chilly but everyone had a good time decorating their bikes with glow sticks and riding around town. Saturday was area cyclists’ favorite day of the year: the MVP Twilight Criterium put on by Full Moon Vista. Kecia and Black Girls Do Bike went on a ROC Urban Slow Ride with announcer Richard Fries. At the same time, Jesse Peers led his first George Eastman Bike Tour of the year for George Eastman Museum. Families converged on downtown for the Criterium races in the evening.
Weather was awful for Mother’s Day so rides resumed Monday with Flower City Bike Party’s Welcome to Rochester Ride. On Tuesday, riders got their pick between the city’s Tuesday Guided Bike Tour and the Rochester Bike Kids’ Taco Tuesday Ride. The biggest ride of the week, the annual Ride of Silence, occurred on Wednesday as area cyclists rode for safer streets in solidarity with those harmed and killed while riding their bikes. The weekly Unity Rides resumed on Thursday, this time with a couple RPD bike patrol officers accompanying us.
Friday morning the RCA conducted a Bike To Work Day bagel & coffee giveaway beside the Union Street Cycle track to give commuters the chance to fuel up for their commutes. Deputy Mayor James Smith and many commuters from City Hall were present for Mayor Warren’s Bike Week proclamation. That evening, riders got to choose between the annual Beechwood Ride and the Tryon Bike Social Ride. Cyclists headed over to the Flower City Arts Center on Saturday for the free bike wash. Though the thundershowers postponed Sunday’s annual Seersucker Ride, 15 riders chose to ride anyway before the storm hit. Join us Sunday June 2nd at 10am at Abundance Food Co-op for the Seersucker Ride makeup date.