High Desert Yoga and The Duke City Wheelmen sponsored the annual "Can You See US now?" ride in honor of cyclists who were killed by cars. Since they have been keeping track, 114 cyclists have been killed in New Mexico alone! There are many
Ghost Bikes around town to honor these fallen cyclists.
Each cyclist was given a number for their back and on that number was the name of one of the cyclists who had been killed by an automobile. This is Cece's number and her name.
A crowd of over 600 cyclists gathered at High Desert Yoga to register and organize for the ride. While waiting, Cece met
a man named Abel who had a prosthetic leg. She watched him with interest as he put his cycling leg on and as he spoke to a man about how his bike was specially outfitted for the leg. Cece knew that if she did not go over and talk to him, she would regret it later, so over she went. It turned out that Able is a wounded warrior and cycles with a team called
"Amputees Across America" that is sponsored by Health South. They cycle across America doing various rides and bring attention to the fact that you can still be active and healthy and happy even if you have lost a leg with the help of a prosthesis. Abel told Cece that their goal is to get 2 more amputees on the team each year.
After an evening full of surprises and a grueling yoga class that morning at High Desert, Cece should have been soaking in a hot tub, but she was happily at this ride and looking forward to riding with 600+ cyclists down Rt 66 in Albuquerque.
The police support was outstanding! Yesterday a friend told Cece that the Duke City Wheelmen had requested 40 officers and Cece bets that there were probably that many cops present...on motorcycles, along the way and directing traffic to keep the cyclist safe. Thank you APD!
And...with much fanfare and flourish....we were off. The police guided us down Central Avenue (Rt. 66) and there were many spectators along the way clapping and cheering us on. We arrived at Tiguex Park without incident and proceeded to have a peaceful gathering that got quite emotional as the names of those killed were read one by one. There was a man who was dressed in white with a white face painted on... that symbolized the Ghost Bike and the cyclists who had been killed. He read the names.
This ride was meant to call attention to the fact that cyclists share the road with vehicles. The show of numbers and the phrase "Can you See US Now" was a powerful reminder of this fact and also that so many have died as a result of not being seen. Let us hope that not one more cyclist is killed by a vehicle.
