by Joy Cameron
Remarkable
Exhilarating
Spectacular
Electricity sizzled through our fleet
As 100 plus rode through the street
Glow sticks
Monkey lights
Spokey dokes and more
Bicycles – art in their own right –
Became canvases in the dark night
Community ignited
Fear abated
Excitement swelled
Cyclists as far as you could peer
Our Critical Mass extinguished fear
Last weekend, I joined London’s 3rd Annual Glow Ride! The timing was significant for me – happening just a few days after the anniversary of a collision that continues to impact my life. Four years ago a driver hit me while when I was cycling at night. It took a long time to start feeling secure riding on the road during the day, and even longer to feel safe riding at night. This Glow Ride felt like the perfect way to confidently have fun biking at night, celebrate how far I’ve come in my recovery, and just to have a great time after what is sometimes a painful anniversary week for me.
The Glow Ride was all that and so much more! Pulling into our meeting spot, I was eager to see how many people had come. Blinged out bikes and cyclists were everywhere! With at least 120 cyclists, this was undoubtedly the biggest gathering I had ridden alongside. As we pulled out onto the street, my amazement continued, “There are so many cyclists!” Being part of a critical mass ride was incredible. All ages and skill levels were out having fun on their bikes!
I felt exhilarated the entire time and adrenaline pumped through me until after midnight. The last London ride of this size was the 2015 Tweed Ride. London, let’s not wait two years before we come together like this again!
Huge thanks to the volunteers from London Cycle Link who organized this great event, and to the London Bicycle Café for providing a secure spot for our bikes afterward during Nuit Blanche!
Joy Cameron enjoys cycling, painting, and tai chi. She deeply values community, and treasures time spent with loved ones. In 2014, she founded Bikes n’ Brains as a response to a collision she was in. Since then, she has enjoyed getting to know many individuals from London’s cycling community. She is excited to be pursuing a social work degree at King’s University College.
Photos by Steve MacDouell.
