Every year the city organizes a ride that follows the River to Sea Bikeway from downtown Wilmington to Wrightsville Beach. Its a fun social ride for people of all ages and riding abilitsie. The River to Sea bike route needs improvement near the beach, but for this ride its deficiencies are remedied with traffic cones that provide a bike lane on the nasty sections of the main arterial roads. Ride starts at the Bailey Theatre Park downtown (across the street from Port City Java on Front between Market and Princess) and heads 11 miles to Wrightsville Beach, where everyone regroups, food is served, and the local bike shops give away schwag. After about a half hour groups start riding back downtown. On the way back, the police don’t cork the intersections (which the do on the way out) but the groups are large enough that the dicey bits on roads with fast traffic (confined to the three miles in between Greenville Ave. and the beach) won’t be scary, even for families with children.

If you don’t feel up to riding back downtown, there are shuttle buses that will bring riders back, but you’ll have to lock up your bike at the beach and get it another time. Doesn’t sound like a good time to me (not the bus ride, but having to pick up my bike later), but I think the good intention is to help out those who hardly every ride and will certainly be gassed after 11 miles. I’ve assisted as a pre-ride mechanic every year since we moved to Wilmington and the ride is always a good time. There are groups going at different speeds leaving between 8:30 and 9am (leave earlier the slower you ride) and the whole thing is like big city-sponsored Critical Mass with the cops controlling the intersections. Its always fun to see so many people on bikes, and plenty of people who rarely ride on the roads participate.

I’ll be at the ride starting point at 8am with a workstand and basic repair items for last minute mechanical fixes. Usually I end up repairing a couple of flat tires and mostly stand around, drink coffee, and talk. Come out if you can. Riders are asked to register, but registration is free.

The first bicycle boulevard in the Southeast officially opens Saturday with an opening celebration at the Martin Luther King Center at 10am. The Ann St. Bicycle Boulevard terminates at the riverfront, and the grand opening celebration is timed to coincide with the Spring opening of the riverfront farmer’s market. I’m sure many of my local readers plan to walk or ride to the farmer’s market, boulevard, fanfare or not, but attendance at the opening of the boulevard will impress upon the mayor and others in attendance that bicycle facilities in the city are needed and welcome.  After the celebration (I have an inside tip that some bike locks and complete bicycles will be given away) their will be the shortest group ride in history to the farmer’s market.  The eastern end of the boulevard doesn’t extend out of downtown, but is  a part of the the  River to Sea Bikeway that will be improved in the next few years to eliminate the harrowing sections (on Oleander across Bradley’s Creek, Wrightsville Ave, etc) and provide a worry free route from downtown to the beach, and vice versa.