Changes in Five Boro Bike Tour

[fiamme red]

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/10/bike-tours-popularity-leads-to-changes/

...Last year, the registration period lasted all of 24 hours, freezing out many who had wanted to participate. And once the event began, about 3,000 riders were stranded for hours in a major bicyclist bottleneck on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

This year will be different, the organizers say, and it will start with a registration lottery.

“Last year there were challenges and there were difficulties, and I lost sleep over it,” said Ken Podziba, the president and chief executive of Bike New York, which organizes the 40-mile tour, to be held May 6. “We can do better than last year and we will do better.”

The lottery will open next Tuesday and run through Feb. 7. The 32,000 winners will be notified no later than March 1. Mr. Podziba said riders who do not get in through the lottery can raise $750 for a charity and get a spot.

Last year, with 32,120 applications in the first 24 hours, Bike New York’s computer system crashed, Mr. Podziba said. In 2010, it took 25 days for 31,465 registrations, and in 2009, more than a month for 30,097. Mr. Podziba added that the lottery system could attract riders from outside the area, and their spending would help the broader economy.

To avoid a bottleneck like last year’s on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, Mr. Podziba said, Bike New York will space out riders across three starting times. The route is also being changed, with riders taking the Gowanus Expressway instead of the Shore Parkway toward Staten Island...

[slowerthanyou]

I've done it twice, and it's always been more like the 5-Boro Walking in Cleated Shoes Tour. A lot of in-experienced (riding with a lot of other riders at the same time, at least) riders. Always a lot of wrecks in Central Park. Not fun, IMO.

[christian]

People riding BMX bikes with flattish tires will get lottery priority. :)

[rice rocket]

I'm not sure that a lottery system solves anything? It just means that people not dedicated enough to hammer the site will get a chance, which means more no-shows. Guess that means they have more bananas for themselves though. :p

Edit: I didn't read the whole article. Ignore the part I deleted. ;)

[Ahneida Ride]

Ride at your own risk ...

I almost got Killded as a guy rammed into me.
Helmets work !

Use a beater bike for sure, Luckily I was on one.

It goes from Paradise to creeping walk to madhouse and back again.

Expect the totally UN-expected.
This is NOT a normal event

[csm]

I've done it several times including last year. I don't think I will do it again. I didn't have the experience of crazy riders like others but I just don't feel motivated to enter a lottery. and sitting on the bridge last year for hours was not any fun either.
it is quite a ride if you approach it as a unique way to see the city. if you approach it as some sort of competition then you will be disappointed.
worth doing at least once I think.

[peanutgallery]

last year was the final straw, way more than 3000 were stranded on the BQE for a good 3 hours. saw women have to urinate on the Jersey barriers and saw people riding in traffic the other direction on the BQE, it was a little nuts. done with that for sure

[bambam]

I rode in I believe 2006.

Fun from a sight seeing perspective.
Memories:
1. Waiting to start with 30,000 people and some traveling companions were 10 blocks in front of you.
2. A pedestrians, oh crap!, expression walking across 6th ave with a cel phone and not 6 lanes of cars but 12-18 cyclists at different speeds comming at her.
3. Harlem,Bronx. Not where you typically picture a guy from Kentucky. Doesn't seem as bad a some movies portray (Death Wish et all. :) )
4. 20 minutes waiting to get in the park when traffic went from 6 to 2 lanes.
5. People scared of big hills in the park?
6. Riding on the freeway a few times
7. Walking with wall-2-wall people up the ramp on the Queensboro
8 The White Castle in Brooklyn?
9. coming around a corner and seeing the Brooklyn Bridge
10. 30 minute wait for on a overpass waiting for a one lane exit to get to the Veranzano.
11. Taking 9 hours to ride 42-49 miles
12. Friendly people
13. Unfriendly people
14. Variety of bikes.
15. Guy pulling a tagalong tamdem with 2 kids and a burly bay carird with a dog.

I rode an old fixie and used my rear view mirror a lot. I can't imagine a faster way to see so much so a big city.

I wish this would have been at the begining of my trip so I would know where I wanted to go and revisit.

Hope to do it again sometime,
Good Times,
BamBam

[AngryScientist]

ahh, the tour-de-fred. you wont find me anywhere near the city on that day.

[54ny77]

did this ride about 8 years ago (damn how time flies) and had time of my life. stayed in about the front couple thousand or so, no issues whatsoever. that day some riders from team saturn were doing the ride, chatted 'em up briefly at rest points. i went at easy pace overall, sometimes enjoyed a quick section of going fast if roads wide open, enjoyed the scenery, stopped to take pics and take it all in. spectacular to ride over verrazano. been on gwb gazillions of times which itself is beautiful views, but the verrazano...that's really something special.

sounds like things have gotten a lot nuttier since.

[rice rocket]

Riding from the front would be a lot different. Too bad only a handful of the 30,000 get that chance.

[yngpunk]

www.bikethedrive.org

Enjoy the striking skyline and the shimmering water of Lake Michigan as you cruise up and down the entire length of Lake Shore Drive for MB Financial Bank Bike the Drive.

The freedom of the road beckons on Sunday, May 29. Hop on your bike the one day a year when the length of Lake Shore Drive is open to cyclists and closed to auto traffic.

In 2011, they estimated 20,000 participated.

[merlinmurph]

...there weren't 30,000 others riding along. Ugh.

I can see where it would be a cool ride if it weren't so huge.

I avoid charity rides simply because I would go nuts with so many people riding together, many of which are a danger to themselves and others. Maybe I'm being anti-social, wimpy, selfish, or whatever, but no thanks.

Murph

[1happygirl]

as a way to see NYC in a more intimate way and WITH support. Its been on my list for a while, but after listening to you guys and reading the forum, I don't think so...I'm kinda disappointed to hear how rough and tumble it is.

[christian]

Oh, it's not that bad. It's worth doing once, if you consider it a slow tour of NYC, and not an "organized bike ride."

Heck, on a three speed Raleigh Sports (with alloy rims) it could be loads of fun.

[fuzzalow]

3. Harlem,Bronx. Not where you typically picture a guy from Kentucky. Doesn't seem as bad a some movies portray (Death Wish et all. :) )LOL, You were 30 years too late. NYC hasn't been like the inspiration for that caricature since the days Gerald Ford told the city to "drop dead". The good 'ol days, when Times Square & 42nd St. was actually seedy and a little dangerous.
Riding from the front would be a lot different. Too bad only a handful of the 30,000 get that chance.The times I've ridden the 5 Boro years ago, you could still make your way to the front. Ride Marshalls controlled the pace up front @ ~ 15mph. The ride in Bklyn down towards the VNB is a nice view.

It's much more chaotic now but if doing it is approached as a New York City experience rather than a bike ride, it is fantastic. If you haven't ridden it yet, do not be deterred, it is worth doing. Just leave the Walser at home.

[mistermo]

Oh, it's not that bad. It's worth doing once.

Yes, that was my rationale too and I did it last year. It sucked. Simply put, it was the worst organized athletic event (running, cycling, skiing), in which I've ever participated. As the others have said, we spent more time standing and walking, than riding. Don't be fooled by the picture. That was one of the few unimpeded riding moments.


To expand on what the others have said, there's an elevated stretch of highway, the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, where all riding came to a halt. Thousands stood for 2-3 hours without moving an inch. People were stranded on the elevated highway with no way off. People were urinating, kids crying, it was terrible. Fortunately, it was the first, nice sunny day of the year. Had it been raining, the 2-3hour jam on the BQE would've caused a riot. It's simply inexcusable for an event of this size to be so poorly organized.


I was astonished at the amount of people crashing solo, with no hazard in front of them. I've been riding for decades and still crashed. For reasons I still can't grasp, the rider in front of me couldn't navigate a corner at 3mph and collided into the curb. He went down and I had nowhere to go but to flop onto him into a pile. As others have said, don't wear cleats and bring a beater bike.


Last year, it sold out in 24hrs. So this year they've made the entry system a lottery. I don't get this idea so I emailed them about it. They said it was to give others a fair chance of admission "like the NY Marathon". Makes sense, except that unlike the NY Marathon, most people participate in the 5BBT to ride slowly, with friends. Most people run in the NY Marathon solo. And never mind that the NY Marathon is a superbely run event an the 5BBT is poorly run.


But if you're from somewhere non-New York, and feel the need to cross this off your bucket list (as I did), then have at it. Forewarned is forearmed.


(BTW, we parked near Ground Zero. The best part of the day was watching the celebration as it was announced that Osama bin Laden was killed that evening.)

[torquer]

Pardon the (sort-of) thread drift, but this is NYC cycling-related, and for some reason I cannot start a new thread:
http://cfa.aiany.org/index.php?section=calendar&evtid=3901
Here's a chance for locals to get a preview of the upcoming Bike Share program coming our way.
Plus, you can personally kwetch to DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan about how her bike lanes are ruining your life.
RSVP/registration probably not required (no secret architect's handshake, either), but given the emotional response the bike lanes have created, security may be tight. ;)

[christian]

Yes, that was my rationale too and I did it last year.Ok. Your experience is more recent than mine. I think I did it in 2006. And it was a mess, as expected. But the organization was ok, I thought.

[mistermo]

Last year, it sold out in 24hrs. So this year they've made the entry system a lottery.

I just received the email introducing the lotter system. It says, "There is a nonrefundable $6 lottery registration fee for each person entering the lottery." Huh?!?!

That's a deal killer for me. This could be a great event, but they've lost their minds. I'm sure they'll get their 30,000 riders and hopefully it will go more smoothly and become the great event it should be. But there's no way I'd pay $6 just for the privilege of a lottery ticket to ride their poorly organized event.

Sorry for the rant. Usually, I'm more tepid about these things.

[weaponsgrade]

I did this ride many years ago - I think maybe in '96? It was awesome to be riding major highways and bridges that are normally for cars, like the Verrazano. It was a zoo

[BumbleBeeDave]

I just received the email introducing the lotter system. It says, "There is a nonrefundable $6 lottery registration fee for each person entering the lottery." Huh?!?!

That's a deal killer for me. This could be a great event, but they've lost their minds. I'm sure they'll get their 30,000 riders and hopefully it will go more smoothly and become the great event it should be. But there's no way I'd pay $6 just for the privilege of a lottery ticket to ride their poorly organized event.

Sorry for the rant. Usually, I'm more tepid about these things.

. . . 40k people entering the lottery and clear close to a quarter million bucks before anybody even sign a registration form. Nice. Deal killer for me, too. Plenty of other places to go ride with no lotto necessary. I did this ride twice and was also less than impressed with the total organization. Hub on Wheels in Beantown was WAY better organized.

BBD

[comptechgsr]

I've done it twice, and it's always been more like the 5-Boro Walking in Cleated Shoes Tour. A lot of in-experienced (riding with a lot of other riders at the same time, at least) riders. Always a lot of wrecks in Central Park. Not fun, IMO.

Lots of wrecks in general...Just beware whenever there's a lot of bunching/stopping.