MAR '06 RIDE: The Biggest Ever

The last ride before Daylight Savings! Got there at 7:15 pm. In the dim light I saw Brian. There was a guy w/ blinking Christmas lights on his bike, so I went up to him and it was Drew! Brad showed up a bit later, equipped with a camcorder. He said next time he'll show up with a helmet-cam to record the whole ride.

I never stopped -- just went right into circling the fountain. By 7:30 most riders were up and circling, then with a single yell we poured down the main promenade towards Laurel Street Bridge. People were very conscientious about keeping it together.

We went up 5th to Hillcrest, down University to North Park, then down 30th to Golden Hill. Shooting down the steep section of Broadway just east of the I-5 was cool. But scary. Lots of people shouting and cheering in support. Rode past many police cars. One policeman said through his window, "Hey won't anyone stop and talk to me?" Another was invited to join us, and he replied, "I gotta work. I gotta get paid!"

The fun began in Gaslamp. Circling in intersections, sometimes with cars trapped in the center. Once right in the middle of Gaslamp circling began, with two cars trapped in the middle. Two cops on foot patrol happened to be near. At first they looked amused, then within 30 seconds they walked over to the circle and told people to get out of the intersection, and seemed to grab at a couple of the bicycles. The bikers got away.

We went through Little Italy (where there is always good cheering from bystanders). I had a chance there to count the number of riders: we were 60, exactly. That's the biggest group I've seen there. And this is after we had already lost a few.

Instead of turning up Hawthorn or Grape, some genius led us to Laurel St., where we had to bike up one of the steepest roads in San Diego. What goes around comes around.