CicLAvia - April 10, 2011 - Another fun day in the L.A. sun.

I was kind of bummed about missing the first CicLAvia last October, as all I heard for weeks was how great it was, and how sixty to a hundred thousand cyclists took over the streets of Los Angeles on a nice Sunday afternoon, and how this was the start of something great for cycling in Los Angeles, etc., etc., etc., etc.

So when they announced that there would be another one on April 10, 2011, I made sure I'd attend.

I was not alone in this. Most of the Bikerowave staff wanted to attend, so we decided to close up shop for the day, invite our friends and neighbors along and ride out as a group from Mar Vista to the start of the CicLAvia route, about 11 miles away.

 We could not have had a better day for it. The sun was out, the sky was blue, the weather was perfect - warm, but not too hot.

The ride out was pretty similar to the riding most of the day, mellow, fun, and fairly slow.

The official CicLAvia route began in East Hollywood, at the intersection of Melrose and Heliotrope, aka the Bicycle District, home to L.A.'s first bike co-op, the Bicycle Kitchen.

The roads that had been closed off to cars were PACKED with cyclists.

PACKED.

After hanging out near the start of the route for a while and just taking in the sea of people and bikes, we decided to ride, that being the whole point of the day and all.


As someone who's been part of the L.A. social cycling scene for a few years now, it's easy to forget how overwhelming riding in a group can be, especially if you've never done it before.


It was pretty funny to see cyclists, many of whom view stop signs and even red lights as optional, having to sit through even two or even three cycles of red light changes, because there was too much traffic ahead, and the traffic consisted entirely of other cyclists.

The scenery was beautiful though. From East Hollywood, through Koreatown, by Macarthur Park, to and through Downtown and Little Tokyo, out across the bridge to  the end of the route at Hollenbeck Park in Boyle Heights.

Sunshine and palm trees, friendly cyclists and smiling police officers, and with only a few minor injuries the whole day, it was L.A. at its best.

There will be more cycling fun to come.


Per the L.A. Times - "Two more CicLAvias are planned for July 10 and Oct. 9, and organizers hope to turn it into a monthly event in 2012."

Summer's coming. Get on your bike!