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Montreal Critical Mass Bike Party - 25 August 2006Anonyme, Lundi, Août 28, 2006 - 15:33
Charlieo
Ah Ouais! On avance! As usual, there were fifty or sixty cyclists gathered at Phillips Square for our monthly celebration. It was bright and sunny, which suited our beach party theme somethin' lovely. I parked my bike, custom-fitted with
Also, someone had prepared flyers about car and bike safety to hand out to
drivers during the ride. For me, these were a reminder that cyclists
literally risk their lives when they take to the streets for their daily
commutes. What can I say about the cyclists that have died on the streets
of Montreal? I can say that I'm thankful that my friends and family are
happy and healthy, and that my sincerest condolances go out to anyone who
has lost a loved one because of cars and trucks.
There was a big pile of free stuff on the lawn. Riders helped themselves to
home-made patches and flags, some taking a minute to pin "fuck trucks" or
"joyeax moulineaux" on their friends back. One rider had a paper mashay
palm tree strapped to the back of his bike with inner tubes. There were a
bunch of people in swimsuits, some with beach towels, taking the weather
and theme to heart. There was no group discussion before the ride. A
hearty rally cry of "LET'S GO" got everyone up, and we poured onto St.
Catherines.
We rode down to the film festival, and took a left, getting some waves
from police officers parked on the side of the road. Up to Sherbrooke and
left, left again on Peel. Excellent corking from experienced and rookie
riders kept everyone safe and together.
We were heading south on Peel when we first heard the obnoxious sirens and
non-sensical demands of the Montreal Police. We had enough energy and group
dynamic to keep riding, and keep smiling. As we approached McGill College,
an ironic and down-right funny thing happened. Over his cruisers' loud
speaker, an officer said "ah ouais on avance". The Mass riders quickly took
this up as a new cheer, "AH OUAIS! ON AVANCE! AH OUAIS! ON AVANCE!",
smiling and laughing at the ironic situation. There were hundreds of
walkers, talkers and shoppers smiling and waving from the sidewalks,
wondering what was going on and asking for the flyers that some people
were handing out.
As we approached Union, I thought the police had left us free to continue
with our celebratory ride. There were no more sirens, and no more silly
orders booming at us from behind. Just then, a speedy rider weaving through
cars to catch up passed on the bad news: "someone's getting arrested! We
have to go back!" Without waiting for the crowd to react, I turned into
oncoming traffic to see what was going down...
to be continued!
[ EDIT (Mic. Lessard for the CMAQ * added the themes: Activism | Ecology | Repression * minor cosmetic details ]
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