Friday Evening: Critical Mass

Just woke up from a great night. Last night was Critical Mass, a bike ride which occurs on the last Friday of the month in cities around the world. It's free to participate and there isn't an organizational structure to the Mass. If you want to lead, then you make a map, or get in front and lead the people. The Chicago Critical Mass is pretty popular and in warmer months attracts thousands of cyclists.

Many serious cyclists are anti-Critical Mass because they feel that it reinforces stereotypes that cyclists are fringe, law-breaking assholes who don't care about who they inconvenience and who have no problem fueling animosity between cyclists and non-cyclists and motorists. I totally get that and I myself feel a little conflicted.

I've thought it over and I feel a little differently about the matter. Critical Mass doesn't have a specific agenda. So you can make it whatever you want for it to be. I think it's a great way of showing that bikes are fun and they can get you anywhere you want to go. It's especially effective when we go to neighborhoods that I don't usually visit. The people there are always excited to see all the bikes ride by.

I definitely like to play up the fun factor. I decorate my helmet with balloons and it's really great fun. It brings a smile to people's faces and it really just looks cool. Bonus points for making yourself more visible and being able to find your group in a crowded area.

After work, I met my friend Lisa in Daley Plaza and set to work customizing her bike. I'll look for pictures of it later. It looked good. I then did my helmet and fulfilled my promised Bike Salute for Dubi Kaufmann for his Bike Salute project:

After customizing the helmets of Zach (my boyfriend) and his brother, it was time to take off from the plaza.

We were all in front for the first couple of miles or so. I saw my friends Colleen and Dana on the sidewalk. Lots of people got a kick out of our helmets. I wanted to fall back so we could see more people, so we did. I talked to some guys who were biking from LA to NYC. I was impressed.

I saw some more people whom I had met on previous rides including John Greenfield and Ellen and some other assorted people from The Chain Link.

We made it to the final destination: Garfield Park. After milling about a bit, we took off to Lisa's place and ordered a pizza. The way home was great. It's always fun to ride around with the balloon helmets without the mass.

What a great night!

Thursday Morning: No Scrubs

So, this morning I was thinking about the TLC song No Scrubs. You know:

I don't want no scrub
A scrub is a guy that can't get no love from me
Hanging out the passenger side
Of his best friend's ride
Trying to holler at me
I don't want no scrub
A scrub is a guy that can't get no love from me
Hanging out the passenger side
Of his best friend's ride
Trying to holler at me

Well, I wasn't being hollered at, but I sure got held up by some idiots cruising down the street yelling at girls on the sidewalk. I tried to pass them, but there was oncoming traffic...and I felt a little ogle coming my way. Come on! It's 8 am, save it for the evening guys!

Other sights: A dog going after a squirrel when his owner seemed a little unprepared for the morning walk; three uniformed school kids looking really sad at having to go back to school and one mom seeming pretty frustrating at having to get them going.

The ride was nice. I hit most of my lights, though I always feel like kind of a jerk when I pass faster riders who get to lights when they are still red. I always coast or slowly approach a red light so I can get going again without having to actually stop. Invariably I pass someone who went fast the entireway to the light, but then had to stop. I try to reason that they just need to learn the routes better. The lights are on timers people!

I saw one of my co-workers on the way in. I just said hi since i needed to get to work and shower and she was alreay dressed for work. Today was humid, and I was sweating buckets getting ready in my apartment...so I decided a shower was necessary today. I'm guesing that pretty soon it will be cool enough for me to do all my showering at home and skipping the at-work rinse.

Wednesday Morning

I'm really loving the cool weather that we are having this August. The wind wasn't bad this morning, which makes it easy.

I took my normal route, but I saw a couple of new characters.

One was an older gentleman who was quite the rider! He had a very good, fast cadence, which is something I'm working on developing. He said good morning at the light at Addison and then I breezed by him...but lo and behold! He caught up and we stayed together until Lincoln turned into Wells and he got kind of confused...it must have been a new commute for him. So I told him that it was in fact Wells and then I hurried up so I could make it through the light at North and didn't see him again for the rest of the ride.

So, I made it through the light and I'm enjoying the ride for a couple of blocks and I go up to pass a guy who was already dressed for work. I say "on your left" and pass and look back to make sure that I can safely take the bike lane and I see that it's actually someone I know! It's Chris.

Chris is a guy who's in my concert band. He had used to ride a lot, but then he said he was too old for it. It was so great to see him back on the bike. I slowed up and chatted a bit. However, I was running late and today was a day I planned to shower at work, so I had to take off. I'll be looking for him in the future.

Today was definitely an A+ ride.