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this is great. just registered... sounds like a real fun ride and gathering.

some quick "unofficial" responses -

- there will be a police motorcycle escort

- my recommendation, good for kids 10 and over

- an adult should be ok

- re- city bike way system, based on RBA study and plan. Rutgers' study preceded. Bike JC will be reviewing both prior studies and current plan, and make recomendations. get involved!

- if you do not think you (or your kids) can do the Ward Tour, stop by Exchange Pl for the festival.

- Bike Rodeo is like an obstacle course.

- post tour/festival party will be at the Iron Monkey from 3pm to 5 or 6pm and on.

- lastly, my wife and I (now with kids) have biked literally everywhere in JC over the past 20+ years and have never had a problem anywhere. our kids bike to Bergen Lafayette to visit friends, me to Booker T. for meetings, relax, its the best way to get around! traffic is the safety risk, not people.

Dan

Just remember to let people know that riding by yourself through some JC wards on bike is not the best idea in the world...

So the cops will be riding along to help with traffic control........I'll force myself to swallow that pill !

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You're connecting dots that aren't there. This is not about safety due to crime, this is about cyclists coming together for a festive ride. Think less "Critical Mass" and more "5boro tour" in NYC. Same concept.

what does that really say about JC when the general public need a police escort through certain wards ?

Crime is down and JC is in the running for one of the safest cities awards in the U.S............I think not!

you can go at your own pace and there will be a police escort, so don't be discouraged.

Spread the news and join the ride... it's Chilltown's version of the 5 boro tour!

the bike way system, to my understanding, was study done through Rutgers University. The bike rodeo is a set-up for kids to be able to try various cycles in a fun course!

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...coming from which direction?

psych!

what a relief, without the police escort I was gonna have to call it quits after grand st!

I just got my first bike in ages a couple days ago, and I'm curious how intense a ride this will be. It says kids are welcome, but what about still-out-of-shape grown-ups? Will I be able to keep up?

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I live in the Heights, and can attest - biking on JFK Boulevard can get pretty hairy! In it's favor, though - and we will find is NOT the case on Griffith Street or Palisade Avenue, which makes them even WORSE - is that JFK is wide and cars (if they are so inclined or are in the hands of someone with a modicum of driving skills) can more easily pass around you. Which leads me to my other question for BikeJC - who came up with the Jersey City bike way map? I have tried most of the routes in the Heights, some of them are nearly impossible to try to navigate, given how narrow the streets are and everyone drives minivans.

That said, I am very excited about this ride, and am looking forward to networking with people who are interested in making Jersey City more bicycle friendly!

Just heard that it is a police escorted ride with streets closed a long the way.

So I will bring the kids!


Robin.

JFK Boulevard was the best route you could find? That's a dangerous road for cycling with kids and family.

Or will the streets be closed for this ride?

Robin.

Sounds like fun! What is a "bike rodeo"?

BikeJC.org

Jersey City Ward Tour, May 23, 11 am, Exchange Place. Rain date June 6.

Bike JC announces its inaugural Jersey City Ward Tour, a ten-mile bike ride through five of the six wards of Jersey City, to be held May 23. The Tour starts and finishes at Exchange Place, leaving at 11 am sharp. The festival at Tour?s End features a bike rodeo hosted by the Jersey City Police Department; a BMX demonstration hosted by Grove Street Bicycles; food from Made with Love Caf?; music, and more. Registration is free online at www.bikejc.org

Bike JC is a citizen-based advocacy organization that aims to make Jersey City streets welcoming for bicyclists, by promoting bike-friendly policies, bicycle education, and traffic law enforcement. The Jersey City Ward Tour (JCWT), our first major initiative, brings together recreational, avid, and first-time urban cyclists on a festive group ride to cap off five days of Bike-to-Work Week events, sponsored by the City of Jersey City. The tour has multiple goals: to demonstrate to novice bicyclists and the general population that Jersey City streets can be bike-friendly; to provide camaraderie and community for long-time urban bicyclists; to demonstrate how cyclists, cars, and pedestrians can share the road; and to promote Bike JC and its goals.

The Tour starts downtown and winds up Grand Street to Ocean Ave in Greenville, where it hooks back through Lincoln Park and north along Kennedy Blvd to Summit and Palisade Avenues in the Heights, eventually coming down Newark Ave to end up back downtown at Exchange Place.

Composed entirely of cyclist-volunteers, Bike JC came together December 2009 and now counts more than fifty members. Since forming, we have launched our web site, participated in the St. Patrick?s Day Parade, promoted the existing bike routes established by the city of Jersey City via the web site and on postcards distributed through local businesses, worked with the city of Jersey City to plan Bike-to-Work Week (May 17-22), scheduled group rides, and organized the Jersey City Ward Tour.