Critical Mass Chicago: One Less Car

Photo of the Silver Steed by yours truly. What a beauty, eh? This was her first long ride, and boy, was it lovely!

Picture this: shards of the setting sun are bouncing around the square. The gathering crowd squints from the glinting light off of the fountain's water, from the reflection of skyscraper windows, from the sliver of a glowing orb they spot in the distance. The sun is setting on Daley Plaza, downtown Chicago, on the last Friday evening in August.

Who are all these people gathered? Passersby stare out their open car windows with confused looks. And why all those bikes?

Those of us who are here know what's about to happen. The ride. A journey around the city where we can take over the streets. We call out around every corner, safe within the ebb and flow of The Mass. The sound of gears clicking and brake handles pumping -- it falls like rain in the place of what would be the indistinguishable, hushed roar of traffic. Instead, the warm night air is filled with the sound of vuvuzuelas hounding the neighborhood, the shouts of riders awakening their onlookers with enthusiastic "Happy Friday!"s and fist pumps.

We all wave as we fly by. We smile at the people who gather to stare, bewildered, in wonderment.

We're the bikers. The Critical Mass.

On Friday night, I participated in Chicago's last summer ride for Critical Mass, a group that organizes large biking events throughout the city. Basically what happens is a huge, well, mass of people gets together at Daley Plaza, starts circling the block until everybody's joined the pack, and then they launch off on an adventure throughout city streets. Generally the mapped plan moves either north or south and then loops back toward The Loop.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a marathon but by no means is it a quick trip. It makes a difference if you've got a decent bike, a helmet (of course!) and comfortable clothes, but I'd say any enthusiastic environmentalist (or outdoorsman) would certainly enjoy this adventure.

Here are some of the best moments

I experienced during the ride:

1. Screaming under any tunnel/ overpass, just to hear the echo.
2. Waving to bikers across the water riding over not one, but TWO other bridges crossing the Chicago River.
3. Getting high-fives from strangers along the sidewalk who were beaming ear-to-ear at our antics. One was from an old lady with gray hair who exclaimed, "What the hell are you doing?" when some riders in front of me left her hangin'. It was hilarious.
4. My friend Shiana yells "Happy Friday!" at some workers at a restaurant. They don't react and sort of grimace and scowl in our direction. "Come on, look a little happier, it's Friday!" she countered. Then they smiled. :)
5. As we rode by the big Harpo Building where The Oprah Show is filmed, another biker exclaimed in a high-pitch voice, "Helloooooo, Ooooooprah! It's Critical Mass! Happy Friday, Ooooprah!" The best. Thanks, crazy guy!
6. Meeting crazy peeps: a guy who I helped hook on a fake plush tail to his belt loop; the little girl on a tandem with her Dad who was wearing a neon sparkly skirt; everyone there who had beautiful tattoos (inspiring me/ making me jealous about the one I'm hoping to get!); the Old Pros who rode with stereos attached to their bikes; The Veteran Man who used a blow whistle to direct bikers, stop traffic, and generally keep order on the ride; and, of course, every Chicago PD officer who helped support our safe integration into the streets.
7. The bike pump that saved my friend Shuling's tire so she could ride on and enjoy the open road. On a completely different note, she writes an awesome blog about social media and documentaries and films, and she's super talented. I recommend you check it out, plus she's going to post about our journey soon, too!
8. The Jamba Juice we enjoyed post-ride. Yum, yum, yum. Yay protein + matcha green tea!
9. Managing not to lose our bikes to gravity on the L ride back. Feeling super bad ass while standing there in our sweat and biker gloves. Also feeling pretty BAMFy while waiting around at the Ogilvy station before we set off for Daley Plaza. That's right, we got kicked out for blocking traffic. So we decided to ride all night, blocking traffic...
10. Experiencing the beauty of The Mass -- surrounded by bikers, warm summer air, the buzz of traffic on the other side of the road, the shouts of strangers staring and honking their horns, the pride of the little green pin I stuck to my shirt and now wear to remember that fantastic night. It was all groovy, baby!

Do you bike? Do you do other activities to complement your yoga practice? Sometimes we need a little break from the heat. Sometimes we need the open road, or the pleasure of company while working out. Sometimes we just need to bike it out, and Critical Mass is there for us. I highly recommend you participate in another ride next month in your city, whether it's Chicago or elsewhere. (Those hills in San Francisco: what?! Astonishing.) Write me about the crazy awesome time you have!