Brooklyn, despite some dangers, is a great cycling city. Part of the reason for that is because there’s so much great stuff to see. Unfortunately, you’re usually too busy dodging cars to really appreciate the scenery. Which is why the Tour de Brooklyn, a large group ride through a section of the borough, is so nice. This year it falls on June 2, and registration just opened for it. So go on, git, and register so you can ride with your thousand closest friends.
This year’s ride will start at Commodore Barry Park in Fort Greene, and over 21.6 miles, cover Ft. Greene, DUMBO, Red Hook, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope, Crown Heights, Stuyvestant Heights, Bushwick, Williamsburg and Greenpoint. All great places to ride (provided you know the spot of every pothole in Bushwick, that is). It’s not a race though, it’s just a nice, casual ride. So keep your Lance Armstrong drugs and generally dickish Lance Armstrong behavior at home.
Because the ride operates as a rolling parade and doesn’t get to shut down the streets completely, registration is limited to 1,250 people, so don’t think too hard about this if you want to do it, just register and deal with the consequences later. And if it falls on your wedding anniversary without realizing it, well, being sweaty as all get out is sexy. Kind of. In the right circumstances.