Reporter Name – Kate W.
Ride Date – Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Ride Description
Ride Report
Approximately 18 intrepid, um, “soles” participated in the ride, including two barefoot, one Vibram Five Fingers, a Brompton cyclist wearing vintage pink leather mary janes, the raddest tweenager I’ve ever met in my life on a BMX, and one dachsund.
We also picked up two skateboarders at the start site, who skated with us barefoot in solidarity. Prize for most extreme footwear went to the woman wearing the tallest, most exquisite lucite heels I’ve ever seen. She had to remove her toe cages in order to ride–now that’s dedication to footwear!
If I were to lead the ride again, I think I would make the hour-long loop a bit shorter…not only did we lose a few riders halfway through (hopefully not due to foot fatigue!!) but also we rode along fashionable NW 23rd Ave for a bit, and the folks dining al fresco must have serious Pedalpalooza ennui by this point, because they hardly blinked an eye at us.
Still, we got lots of shout-outs, complimented several pedestrians in fine footwear, and spotted two other cyclists ferrying canines (Pet Ride next year, anyone??). Eight riders (counting the two skateboarders) finished the route.
Thanks for participating everyone!! You made my day!
Thanks for reading.
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I thought this idea was really fun, but the pace of the ride was way too slow for me to enjoy it.
Thanks so much for the feedback! I intentionally made this a ride for newbies, and was worried about people’s ability to keep up, but it turned out that mostly more experienced riders showed up. I think a couple of shorter, faster loops, maybe timed a little later in the day beyond the downtown rush hour, would improve a future High Heels Ride. See you on the streets!