Ride of Silence - Nashville
A special ride is taking place at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, May 21st in downtown Nashville that all bicyclists should plan to attend. The national Ride of Silence honors all bicyclists who have been injured or killed while riding their bike. This will mark the third year in a row that Nashville has participated in this nationwide event. Bicyclists of all ages and abilities are strongly encouraged to come out and support bicycling in Middle Tennessee.
This year our starting venue has changed to take advantage of a unique opportunity. The ride will begin and end at LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans. The starting point will be in the parking lots located between the football stadium and interstate; lots A/B/C/D. There will be plenty of parking in the area, but please pay attention to the cones that mark a racing course. We encourage participants to arrive shortly before 7:00 PM to park, get bikes ready, and to meet for brief comments prior to riding the 8 mile course through downtown Nashville.
The Nashville Ride of Silence is being held in conjunction with the first race of the NashvilleCyclist.com Criterium Race Series of 2008. The races begin at 5:45 PM with the last race starting at 7:00 PM, but we will halt racing for just a few minutes to gather Ride of Silence riders for their departure. Our goal is to maximize the number of riders who participate, and we strongly encourage all racers of the early races to stick around and join our Ride of Silence peloton. This means that all women, Cat 5 and Cat 4 racers should support this memorial ride. By combining all recreational riders with the racers we should be able to attract approximately 100 riders or more!
There are a couple of important aspects everyone must adhere to out of respect for the organizers of the Ride of Silence and those we are honoring. First, all riders MUST wear a helmet. Riders not wearing a helmet will be asked and expected not to participate. Second, the ride literally is a ride of silence. Once the ride begins there is no talking, so think of it as a funeral procession through town. Communication will take place through hand signals. We ask that everyone participating please respect these two requests in order to properly honor the ride.
We have also contacted the bicycling division of the Metro Police Department. They are very much interested in having a couple of bicycle cops ride with us, but their ability to ride will depend on the needs of the police force at that specific time. Having the police ride with us would certainly add a higher level of respect we have not had in the past, and would provide the proper escort as we rode through downtown Nashville.
In years past we have had great support from the Harpeth Bike Club, Harpeth Bicycles and Cumberland Transit team members as well as a few others. However, Nashville is a big city with greater depth of riders across town. This year we'd like to see more clubs and teams encourage their members to join this endeavor of cycling solidarity. Our goal is to increase awareness of bicyclists on the road and to raise the level of respect between bicyclists and vehicle drivers. Bicyclists must be just as responsible and cautious as vehicles, and through the Ride of Silence we hope to take another step forward in shaping a safer future for us all.
WHO: you, and anyone else on two wheels!!
WHAT: Ride of Silence - Nashville
WHERE: @ LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans
WHEN: Wednesday, May 21st rollout @ 7:00 PM
WHY: to support riders injured or killed while bicycling!
DISTANCE: 8 miles
COURSE: view ride route HERE
This year our starting venue has changed to take advantage of a unique opportunity. The ride will begin and end at LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans. The starting point will be in the parking lots located between the football stadium and interstate; lots A/B/C/D. There will be plenty of parking in the area, but please pay attention to the cones that mark a racing course. We encourage participants to arrive shortly before 7:00 PM to park, get bikes ready, and to meet for brief comments prior to riding the 8 mile course through downtown Nashville.
The Nashville Ride of Silence is being held in conjunction with the first race of the NashvilleCyclist.com Criterium Race Series of 2008. The races begin at 5:45 PM with the last race starting at 7:00 PM, but we will halt racing for just a few minutes to gather Ride of Silence riders for their departure. Our goal is to maximize the number of riders who participate, and we strongly encourage all racers of the early races to stick around and join our Ride of Silence peloton. This means that all women, Cat 5 and Cat 4 racers should support this memorial ride. By combining all recreational riders with the racers we should be able to attract approximately 100 riders or more!
There are a couple of important aspects everyone must adhere to out of respect for the organizers of the Ride of Silence and those we are honoring. First, all riders MUST wear a helmet. Riders not wearing a helmet will be asked and expected not to participate. Second, the ride literally is a ride of silence. Once the ride begins there is no talking, so think of it as a funeral procession through town. Communication will take place through hand signals. We ask that everyone participating please respect these two requests in order to properly honor the ride.
We have also contacted the bicycling division of the Metro Police Department. They are very much interested in having a couple of bicycle cops ride with us, but their ability to ride will depend on the needs of the police force at that specific time. Having the police ride with us would certainly add a higher level of respect we have not had in the past, and would provide the proper escort as we rode through downtown Nashville.
In years past we have had great support from the Harpeth Bike Club, Harpeth Bicycles and Cumberland Transit team members as well as a few others. However, Nashville is a big city with greater depth of riders across town. This year we'd like to see more clubs and teams encourage their members to join this endeavor of cycling solidarity. Our goal is to increase awareness of bicyclists on the road and to raise the level of respect between bicyclists and vehicle drivers. Bicyclists must be just as responsible and cautious as vehicles, and through the Ride of Silence we hope to take another step forward in shaping a safer future for us all.
WHO: you, and anyone else on two wheels!!
WHAT: Ride of Silence - Nashville
WHERE: @ LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans
WHEN: Wednesday, May 21st rollout @ 7:00 PM
WHY: to support riders injured or killed while bicycling!
DISTANCE: 8 miles
COURSE: view ride route HERE
posted by NashvilleCyclist.com at 5/16/2008 09:31:00 AM
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