It was an enjoyable ride in the beginning as I was caught in the middle of a stream of bicyclists flying down Colorado Avenue. It was the first time that I had truly felt safe as a bicyclist out on a street. I figured a car would have to hit a few cyclists before it would reach me.
But then the ride took an erratic course, starting right after 13th Street when a Santa Monica Police Department squad car pulled up with its red and blue lights on. CM’ers decided it was time to turn left onto 14th Street, giving the cyclists short notice. It was a little nerve-racking to not only have a police officer observing my every move, perhaps watching for a mistake, but to be in the dark about the route, standing on my toes for every abrupt left and right turn. I’m not big on surprises and I like knowing where I’m going.
By the time we got to a liquor store on Wilshire Boulevard to allow the lagging group to catch up, I was tired, exasperated and ready to call it a night.
The ride was fun while it lasted, but I did-n’t want to risk getting a costly ticket.
The conversation among cyclists, chipper in the beginning, talks of whether one saw the latest episode of “Grey’s Anatomy”, turned sour as the ride progressed and the tickets added up.
“They do whatever the f-ck they want whenever the f-ck they want,” one cyclist noted as he eyed a passing police car.
Another compared the police to a sheep-dog.
“They’re neither escorting us nor patrolling us, they’re herding us,” a female cyclist said.
The fact that I’m not the free-spirited, parading and hollering type will keep me from jumping on my bike with Critical Mass in the future, though it was an interesting experience to be out of my element. I’m still regaining my hearing after I was deafened by the hoots and hollers and constant whistling and “clever” commentary via the bull horn.
Thanks for teaching me that it’s OK to ride my bike, Critical Mass, but no thanks to any future “Mass” rides.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 15, 2007. Read the original PDF.