The Ride of Silence drew hundreds of cyclists to the northeast Alberta neighborhood tonight.
We met at the Community Cycling Center where Alison Hill welcomed us to the ride and introduced Commissioner Sam Adams. Adams said it’s important for Portlanders to remember that the right-of-way is for all modes and that we must all work together to share the road.
People attached “See & Be Seen” posters and memorial signs for fallen friends to their bikes.
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The ride had a full police escort and we were ferried along without worry of traffic. By the time we got rolling, the number of riders swelled. While riding north on 15th street I noticed an unbroken stream of cyclists than ran more than the entire length of NE 15th, from Killingsworth to Alberta.
It was my first Ride of Silence and it was strange to be in a bike parade where faces were somber, not smiling.
I had to leave the ride early and the battery in camera died so I only got a few photos.
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I have mixed feelings about the goals and intentions of this ride, but I won’t get into them now. It’d be great to hear some other perspectives. Several other cities across Oregon held similar rides tonight. If you did any one of them, I’d love to know how it went.