Cyclists to Ride in Silence to Raise Awareness

For the fifth year in a row, Doylestown area bikers will ride in honor of those who can’t join them.

The annual Ride of Silence, which is Wednesday, is a slow, quiet ride through Doylestown that honors cyclists who were injured or killed while biking.

The ride starts out at the Central Bucks West High School parking lot at 6:30 p.m. and will go six miles through Doylestown. Riders will be escorted by police.

The goal of the ride, according to organizers, is to raise awareness that bicycles and motorists must share the road safely.  Doylestown’s ride is co-sponsored by the Central Bucks Bicycle Club and Doylestown Borough. 

Ride organizer and Doylestown Councilman Don Berk said he’s not sure exactly how many bikers will attend this year; the ride is free and open to the public.

“I’d hoped for 30 to 50 the first year and got more than 200 riders. Weather is a big factor,” he said. According to weather.com, Wednesday’s forecast calls for a chance of p.m. thunderstorms.

Doylestown’s Ride of Silence is not the only event of its kind. In fact, the local riders join others throughout the globe—from as far away as New Zealand. In 2012, 322 locations in 24 countries, including representation from seven continents, had rides.