This coming Sunday morning is Bike The Drive. This is a very cool event where the City of Chicago closes Lake Shore Drive to cars so that 25,000 people and their bikes can take it over.
Having grown up in Chicago, this is a real trip. Lake Shore Drive is a 15-mile (or so) stretch of road that offers an unobstructed view of the lake on the east and a view of the city on the west. It’s very scenic (it’s featured in a lot of movies), but most of the time you miss the view because (a) if you’re driving you have to look out for the other insane drivers; and/or (b) if you’re a passenger it can pass by too quickly. Riding on this road at an average of 14 mph at 6:00 on a Sunday morning in May on a bicycle gives you a completely different perspective.
This will be the third year for the event, and also my third year doing it. Some of the members of the Bitems team will be there, warming up for the MS150 next month. My riding partner will be a very cool chick named Becky.
I’ll have the camera with me, so expect some photos on Sunday.