Group hops on bikes for ‘Respect Ride,’ stressing safety

Silence will be rollin’ around the world Wednesday evening to speak volumes about increased safety awareness for riders on bicycles.

Locally, the annual “Ride of Silence,” also known by its participants and proponents as “The Respect Ride,” will cover about 9 miles round trip in Myrtle Beach, from the former Myrtle Square Mall site, on Oak Street, between 21st and 29th avenues North, to Ocean Boulevard southward to the city’s Hurl Rock Park, at 20th Avenue South.

Everyone is invited to bring his or her a bike of any type for a group departure at 6:30 p.m. and, with helmets on, to pedal no faster than 12 miles per hour, all in silence, to commemorate cyclists killed or injured while riding on public streets, and to raise awareness among motorists for improved safety in sharing the road. It’s free, and no registration is required.

This 12th year of the “Ride of Silence,” an observance that began in Dallas in 2003, includes confirmed rides spanning six continents: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China and Hong Kong, Cyprus, Germany, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Mexico, Philippines, Romania, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden and Ukraine.

Andre Pope said this annual Myrtle Beach ride was begun earlier this decade after he and a group of local riders heard about the national Ride for Silence and because several people have been in collisions with motorists. He also said he understands why other people are afraid to hop on bikes “here at the beach,” yet with more folks getting more comfortable in sharing the roads, and by showing city and county officials and planners the value and need for more dedicated bike lanes, riders and motorists can share in increased mutual safety.

A member of the Waccamaw Trail Blazers Mountain Bike Club (www.waccamawtrailblazers.com), Pope also spoke of this overall effort as helping to build a community.

Question | What are biggest safety factors on which bicycle riders and drivers each need to improve?

Answer | Know the rules of the road. … There is a difference between cyclists and bicyclists. Most cyclists understand the law. The casual, every-day bicyclist might not. In Myrtle Beach, we have a lot of foreign students, who grew up … riding on the sidewalk, and they might think that you would ride against traffic, just as you would walk against traffic, Unfortunately, that’s not true.

Q. | For bicycle riders harassed by a passing motorist, how easy or difficult is the process to report a violation of that state law (Article 27, Section 56-5-3445) that upon conviction, carries a minimum $250 fine and maximum 30 days imprisonment? Is it as simple as the Litter Busters hot line?

A. | It is a little cumbersome. With new technology, it’s making it a little bit easier. I know of fellow cyclists who ride with cameras on themselves; that way, when they get buzzed, they have proof, and they can the license plate number to report to police. …

When someone dies, not only do bicyclists and car drivers not know the law, we have found that some police officers don’t understand the law as well, so it does become a little cumbersome, but we’re working to change that. There needs to more education all the way around, and a lot more respect. … Everybody’s human, and there should be no reason to get angry or run somebody off the road. We’re asking everybody to have more respect all the way around.

Q. | Who makes up your circle of bicycle riders?

A. | We’re a group … enthusiastic about riding at the beach. We put on all kinds of different rides. … We just love to ride bicycles. Some ride for fun and socializing, and some ride for exercise. … We’re just a unique bunch of individuals. … This weekend, some guys from here and Charleston are going to Georgia, doing a bike packing trip where we’re carrying our tents and stuff. We’ll pedal 75 miles to camp, and 75 miles the next day. We have fun.

Q. | How much more magnified are the importance and potential to spread the good word about safety on two wheels, across the Grand Strand, a place for bicycling year round?

A. | That’s a good thing about the beach: We do have this beautiful weather, and we want to promote the area as a year-round bicycling destination, and part of that is awareness. … We’re still promoting the lifestyle, and it should be accepted. We want to have respect, and we want to give respect. … It’s a mutual thing; we’re trying to break down stereotypes so that everybody can get along. We have a local term the Ride of Silence: “The Respect Ride.”

Q. | How far do you like to ride in a year?

A. | Last year, it was 2,400 miles.

Q. | Just how open is the invitation for anyone of any speed to join the Ride of Silence/Respect Ride, and what ranges of ages have turned out in prior years?

A. | If you like riding bikes, let’s go. It doesn’t matter what type of bike you have, fast or slow. I consider myself a leisurely rider, with a 14 mph average, and I like road bikes, mountain bikes and beach cruisers. I enjoy the bike culture. …

We just want to bring the community together, and we’re trying to show it doesn’t matter why type of bike you ride or how fast you go. …

We’ve had people about 65-70 years old come out on beach cruisers, and I’ve even toted my 3-year-old with me on a bike carrier just so I can show we go bicycling together, and set a good example.

This story was originally published May 17, 2015 at 8:00 AM with the headline "Group hops on bikes for ‘Respect Ride,’ stressing safety."