Let’s take a quick photographic tour of a few outstanding moments from Sunday’s CicLAvia on Wilshire Blvd.
Only in LA — Cyclists at the Fairfax hub get to ride the red carpet.
Evidently, bikes really are good for business.
A boy on a bike circles the moving memorial to Robert F. Kennedy in front of the former Ambassador Hotel.
A homeless man sleeping behind the memorial shows we still have a long way to go to live up to RFK’s ideals.
Long time LA residents might not recognize the new, pristine and junkie-free MacArthur park, where cakes no longer melt in the rain.
Just a small fraction of the crowd walking through the Dismount Zone at the DTLA hub. And one guy riding anyway.
There were a lot of very cool ridden on the route. This classic Sting Ray reproduction was one of my favorites.
This was my first chance to ride the new Wilshire Blvd Bus — and bike — Only Lanes.
As promised, much of the architecture was beautiful. And too often goes unnoticed from behind the wheel of a car.
This little guy was very winded after riding up a small hill. And deservedly very proud of what he’d accomplished.
Children and adults took advantage of the opportunity to add their artwork to this van.
One final reminder that bikes are good for business. And if restaurants and other business owners work for safe bike access, they’l be rewarded.
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Just a few other notes.
Just like last year along the same route, this was one of the most relaxed of the eight CicLAvias I’ve attended.
This was also the first time I didn’t witness a single downed rider. That’s not to say no one was injured, but I saw a lot of very bored people in the First Aid booths.
There were a lot of very young children riding on training wheels and small bikes, which spoke volumes about how comfortable their parents felt in letting them ride. And sets the stage for a new generation of bike riders.
There were also more people walking than I’ve seen in years past. Maybe the message is finally getting out that CicLAvia is for everyone, regardless of how you choose to travel. As long as it’s without a motor.
Businesses that reached out to CicLAvia participants in some way were richly rewarded. Those that remained closed or ignored what was happening on the street in front of them were largely ignored in turn.
If bike riders had a safe way to get to those shops and restaurants, proprietors could enjoy a boost in business more than once a year.
Twelve miles an hour isn’t fast. Except when everyone else is doing eight. If you find yourself alone in weaving in and out of other bike traffic, you’re the problem. Note: In response to a comment from Chuck below, I am not suggesting any kind of speed limit for anyone. What I’m saying is that when the traffic around you slows down and bunches up, it is both rude and dangerous to try to force your way through at a higher speed. Slow down and wait until it is safe to pass, just like we expect drivers to do.
And if you find yourself bombing downhill in a dismount zone, or weaving uphill when everyone else observing the requirement to walk, you’re more than just the problem. You’re a danger to everyone else on the street — which is putting it mildly.
More still needs to be done to keep motor vehicles off the CicLAvia route. I saw many drivers pull up to the barricades and turn around after realizing the road was closed. I saw others try to inch their way past despite the walkers and riders in their way; evidently, the idea that a street could be closed to motor vehicle traffic is incomprehensible to some.
An online acquaintance set out looking for me in the massive crowd, and vice versa. Instead she met Conan O’Brian. I’d call that a significant trade-up.
Finally, after one of the most exceptionally pleasant CicLAvias yet, the October return to Downtown LA seems a very long way off, indeed.
