Critical Mass gets critical blast

I have been a participant in the Critical Mass event for several years now. For the first time in these years I have seen an incredible amount vitriolic nastiness spew forth from the Vancouver Sun pages on the subject of the CM = why all of a sudden ?

This week the Vancouver Sun posted a front page editorial on the evil's of people organising themselves in to a critical mass, in this case cyclists. The amount of anger and fear mongering this editorial has created is amazing. Yet on the CM this month [last night] we saw far less confrontations and far less people acting aggressively on the city streets. Where are the articles today about how peaceful the ride was ?

Reading many of the comments - it seems many simply are pissed off about inconvenience, many are pissed off about cyclists not abiding the law, some even suggest creating a critical mass of drivers - I think they already call it "rush-hour"!!!

Cyclists are fighting for their rights to be on the road - everyday we go out amongst the sleep deprived, radio tuning, cell phone calling automobile drivers. We dodge them, spank their hoods for inattention, shout our curses and still we get hit and taken to hospital. The bad habits of automobile drivers do far more damage to the insurance rates and general economy than a few errant cyclists. Yakking on the cell phone, whilst sipping a latte, slipping through a stop sign, first thing in a morning is an accident waiting to happen - pity the poor cyclist or pedestrian that ends up in hospital because of your inattention.



Once a month, for a few hours, cyclists get to claim the road as their own. Nothing can replace the freedom of riding down the middle of Burrard or Broadway with 1000's of other like minded people on bikes. YES at the expense of drivers, but you get to rule the road for the other 30 days of the month - once a month you get to turn off your engines and wait.

The Critical Mass is not responsible for how you feel in your car - the automobile environment is inherently designed to cut you off from the outside world, whereas the bicycle is the complete opposite, it reconnects you to the outside world. How many times have you screamed at other drivers for cutting you off ? Why do drivers assault each other, often fatally from road rage ? You never hear of cyclists doing the same thing to other cyclists.



Vancouver is still seeking its own a identity, it is still making the leap from hick logging town to urban pleasure dome. Cycling has much more of a prominence in the 21st century North American urban environment. Part of the responsibility lands on governments at all levels to create and fund infrastructure for bikes , however much of the responsibility lands on us as individuals to act appropriately to the inevitable changes that land on our doorstep. Like it or hate it we are moving away from an automobile oriented urban landscape - it is only in the last 70 years have we seen the rise of the automobile, people still remember the streets without them.


The Critical Mass bike ride that occurs in 300 cities around the world on the last Friday of the month is a statement to all those who continue to oppose it as much as it it is for those of us who support it. As the automobile is inherently designed to divide and conquer people - the bicycle is inherently designed to unify people - the mass will continue to grow until one day it will be the majority.

On a final note - as mentioned from my previous entry, my g/f bought herself a new bike from Dream Cycle on Commercial Drive. Her custom made bike suits her very well, she loves it and has been riding as much as she can; 25 years of not riding a bike can create quite a thirst for the road, on her 3 rd ride she completed 56km.