Washington, DC Got Tweeded But Good

The first semi-annual Washington, DC Tweed Ride was a great success! Eric and the crew from Dandies and Quaintrelles really pulled it off. Thanks to you and all your volunteers, and kudos on the great piece in The Post this morning! Over 200 people pre-registered, so I imagine there were a lot more who showed up. It certainly seemed that way.

The weather was perfect and the enthusiasm and motivation were palpable. Everyone was amazed at how great the event was and how much they were enjoying themselves. The event started with some wrangling to get signed up and have photos taken but before we knew it the ride was on.

The nice part of the route is that it started in a relatively passive neighborhood on the Hill. This meant that those who were timid about riding on the DC streets started off easy before they hit the downtown traffic. Well played indeed.

There was hound's tooth and wool as far as the eye could see, or for several blocks at least.

A brief rally at the Obama's house before pressing onward.

One of the finer moments of the ride came when the main group reached Dupont Circle. As everyone entered the circle all automotive traffic came to a halt, and for two delightful orbits the epicenter of DC traffic congestion belonged to the velopeds. Also, seeing a penny farthing in the circle was quite satisfying.

Eventually we arrived at Marvin where the gin was flowing, the pipes were smoking, and the bike racks were provided by WABA...

...some needing less tweed than others. (I hope that tweed was lined, for her nipple's sake.)

It's interesting that when compared to a more serious cycling movement like a critical mass ride, a tweed ride seems to gather a great deal more people. Looking at yesterdays event I think the tweed ride might be more effective at creating positive awareness of cycling as transportation without the negative press and connotations that the critical mass gets. Thoughts?

It was the perfect way to spend a 70-degree Sunday in November. And since this was advertised as a semi-annual event the big question is when is the next one?

There are a ton of you who have great photos of the event. Please post a link to the photos in the comments section so we can all enjoy them.

Daniel sent me his flicker set this morning.

Here is a link to the pile of photos on Flickr

A video of the ride is here.

Also, I found a pump along the route, hit me up if you lost yours on the ride.

Have a smashingly good Monday ole' chaps!