Bike the Drive (Car-Free, Care-Free)

Mike and I participated in Ride the Drive this past Sunday here in Madison. I wish I would have had my camera because we could have gotten some really awesome photos. Here's a link to Channel 3's photo page.

http://www.channel3000.com/slideshow/news/24805441/detail.html

Ride the Drive is a free community event that closes some of the city's most busy downtown streets and opens them up to bicyclists, skaters, walkers, strollers , etc.
Here's a link to the website and the route.

http://www.cityofmadison.com/transportation/ridethedrive/route.cfm">>

The closed streets make a 6 mile loop and you can join the loop at any place along the way. This is the third time the event has been held in Madison and we've been lucky enough to be in town for it every time. My favorite part of the stretch is John Nolen Drive and biking through the tunnel under the Monona Terrace. If you catch it at the right time you can be biking under the tunnel while a local musician is playing...and the acoustics are truly amazing!

Along the 6 mile loop you can stop and purchase drinks and food from vendors, get your bike tuned up, listen to music, and talk to people about biking or environmental issues. There's even a music stage purely powered by people peddling bikes. This year they also had hula hoop making, face painting, bike demo's and more. It's such a great way to get people out downtown on a Sunday!

This year was especially exciting because Lance Armstrong was in town to help promote the event! Over 50,000 people came out to join the fun! I didn't see Lance Armstrong specifically but I did see the two police escort motorcycles riding the loop with a huge group of bicycles following as everyone tried for a chance to "bike with Lance". So I saw the huge group of bicyclists and he was undoubtedly in the middle of that crowd. I'm not a huge cycling fan and I don't necessarily follow the Tour de France, but I did find myself getting a little excited at the thought of catching a glimpse.

There were a lot of people out to see Lance and praise him for all that he's done to promote cycling in this country as well as people who were excited to see him as a cancer survivor and someone who has made an impact personally on their lives. I saw a lot of LiveStrong jerseys buzzing by me, a lot of smiles but also some tears. It was very touching and not something I had expected as I biked along the loop.

I hope this event only grows in Madison and that it continues to help promote bike-commuting in downtown. My only complaint is that it was hard to find recycling bins along the route. It was a shame because a lot of vendors were selling Gatorade and water bottles.