Ride of Silence

[Pedal Wench]

I rode for a little while with the Atlanta ride out of Chamblee. There were only about 6 riders, but when I saw them coming (I was out on my regular ride) I knew exactly what it was and dropped into the line. It was very powerful. I hope they get more publicity next year.

[skibum]

They definitely need more publicity next year. Apparently, there were two in Atlanta, one in Piedmont Park and the one out of Chamblee. I had heard about the Piedmont Park one but didn't hear about the Chamblee one until today. Piedmont Park isn't all that convenient for me to get to after work so I skipped it. Chamblee, on the other hand, is on my way home so I might have done the ride if I had known about it.

[Technotart]

Generally - the publicity is word of mouth. They don't spend any money to print flyers because wherever it is possible, no money is involved - nor should it be. This is the first year many cities have done the ROS - I think its an awesome and inspiring event - the news stations and such should be notified, community event calendars can be used, and I know they wont stop ANYone from spreading the word! Anybody can call a tip line though, the organizer may already have called, we can call again!

[KSH]

I am so upset that I didn't hear about it... until AFTER it started!

[profàvélo]

I was the only female rider in a group of about 12 in Greenville, SC.

Unfortunately, we did not go into Greenville proper, but into a 'suburb' where groups of 12 riders are a common sight.

I was also disappointed that the ride was not silent like it was supposed to be. It was quite chatty.

I'm going to suggest a different route to our ride leader for next year.

[Pedal Wench]

I was the only female rider in a group of about 12 in Greenville, SC.

Unfortunately, we did not go into Greenville proper, but into a 'suburb' where groups of 12 riders are a common sight.

I was also disappointed that the ride was not silent like it was supposed to be. It was quite chatty.

I'm going to suggest a different route to our ride leader for next year.

The Chamblee/Atlanta one was pretty quiet. I asked, in hushed tones, if this was the ride, and the leader whispered yes, hop in, so I did. We rode in complete silence until the stop where I was going to have to peel off to get home before dark. That's when I noticed the neatest bike. It was a regular bike, with a tandem attachement for one kid in the back, and a recumbent attachment for the other kid in the front of the bike. I had to say something when they caught up. They said it was okay to whisper, so I whispered, "Cool Bike." I know they don't pay for advertising, but it would be nice if the news covered it, so people would know why we're out riding that night. The local news covered 'bike to work' day, so they could easily cover this too.

[Bike Goddess]

Corsair- Thank you and Snap for all the info. Since I am doing the AIDS ride from SF to LA, I have decided to see if we can do a Ride of Silence sometime during our ride. Can you imagine the impact of 2000 riders going through town in silence to commemorate those who have AIDS, are HIV positive or have died from AIDS?

I'll let you know what happens. We have our own motorcycle group that support us, so I think they could be part of the procession.

I also will promote this for next year with my bike club. I am sure we will figure out something even if we combine a couple of cities.

I've told many people to look up the website so they too can participate next year.