The meetup before the 2012 Ride of Silence in Philadelphia.
Over the last month, two Philly bicyclists have been involved in severe crashes with motor vehicles. One of them, Rachel Hall, was hit by a licenseless driver on Diamond Street in North Philadelphia, which left her in critical condition, where she currently remains, according to the most recent media reports.
The other, Vijay Mohan, was killed while crossing Girard Ave. last weekend.
Both these cyclists will be honored on Wednesday, when organizers hold the annual Ride of Silence in Philadelphia, an international event which invites anyone to come out and remember the lives of those lost in traffic violence over the past year. Since its inception in 2003, the Ride of Silence has grown to an event held on seven continents, in 22 countries, and 49 states.
There are three main goals of the Ride of Silence: Honor the memory of all bicyclists killed in traffic, honor those injured by drivers, and raise awareness of drivers to the presence of bicyclists on the road—and educate them on sharing the road.
This year in Philadelphia, riders will remember six Delaware Valley bicyclists lost over the past 12 months: Benjamin Fox, Arthur Joseff Teitsort-Birog, Michael Andrew Sloan, Walter Smith and Vijay Mohan.
Beginning at 6:45pm on May 20, Ride of Silence organizers will speak at the Art Museum steps about the cyclists in the Delaware Valley lost this year. The ride will go a slow eight miles with a police escort.
For more information and to participate, simply come to the Art Museum tomorrow night at 6:45pm. Or, contact the organizers directly:
Ray Scheinfeld, erayben@bellatlantic.net, 215-906-7604
John Siemiarowski,tandemdad@gmail.com, 215-837-0101