You’re sitting at home or in a restaurant, minding your own business. Suddenly, a few very excited people on bikes roll down the street. Then ten people. Then twenty people. Then, as happened last month, 400 people!
You’ve just seen the East Bay Bike Party.
The idea of bike parties is catching on across the Bay Area. The East Bay group, started in May 2010, got the idea from the San Jose Bike Party. San Francisco has one now, too.
It’s a simple enough idea. Make a Facebook page, pick a regular date, post a route, and watch the party ride up at the appointed time.
The East Bay Bike Party rolls every second Friday (like this Friday), and hundreds of people show up. People start to assemble at 7:30, and the group leaves at 8. Volunteers hang out at each turn to direct stragglers, so there’s no getting lost. Each one starts and ends near a BART station, to make it easier for participants to come from near and far.
Each month, organizers carefully pick, plan, and practice the ride route. Each ride is around 15 miles, with two planned breaks to keep it light. People bring trailers full of speakers and sound systems, so each stop turns into a bit of a dance party. The ride itself, of course, is a bike party.
Importantly, bike party is less a political statement like Critical Mass, and more of an actual party. Everything is done in a good, friendly spirit. Participants observe stop lights, and keep the party confined to one lane while letting cars pass. Helmets and lights are encouraged. Bike party is a fun opportunity to see your streets from the bike lane, with a few hundred of your closest friends.
And finally, each month’s ride has a theme. The last bike party to roll through Contra Costa County was the “Big Lebowski Ride”, and ended at the Albany bowl.
What will this month be? Check out their website closer to Friday, or follow them on Facebook.
All photos are from Neo Serafimidis on the Albany Patch.
whens the next ride