Charles City’s 2024 Bicycle Ride of Silence will be Wednesday, May 15

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

The 2024 Ride of Silence in Charles City is planned for next Wednesday evening, May 15.

Cycling enthusiast Bob Krueger, who helps organize the event each year, said the ride is held in memory of all bicyclists who have been injured or killed while riding, which includes Ellen Bengtson, Bob Phillips and Brian Lauterbach, who were each killed while riding in Floyd County.

The ride will begin at 7 p.m. outside the Pub on the Cedar, at the corner of Riverside Drive and North Jackson Street, and the distance will be about 8 miles, Krueger said.

The ride is an easy-paced, low-key event going about 10 to 12 mph so everyone can keep up. Anyone can participate just by showing up by the Pub, but riders are asked to wear helmets, obey all traffic rules and observe silence during the ride.

On past rides Krueger has emphasized the importance of being visible on the road, wearing brightly colored clothing and helmets, and having lights and reflectors or reflective material on the bike and on the rider.

The Ride of Silence began in 2003 in Dallas to honor a well-known local bicyclist who was killed while riding when he was struck by the mirror of a passing school bus. Originally intended as a one-time event, the news of the ride quickly spread and prompted similar silent rides in other communities.

Since then the annual ride has grown to include thousands of riders in hundreds of cities around the world, riding to raise awareness among motorists of bicyclists’ presence on the road and their right to share it.

The ride is usually held on the third Wednesday of May, during National Bike Month, which comes right after April, which is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.