I’ve always considered myself fairly athletic — I grew up dancing, playing sports and stayed active well into my late 20s. But the past few years, especially after going back to school to finish a masters degree, my activity level dropped significantly.
So, when I volunteered to cover the 31st annual Tour De Bronx, I knew I was taking a risk when I chose to do my journalistic duty from the saddle of a Specialized Hybrid Straight Frame Bicycle instead of the safety of the sidewalk. But I figured the best way to cover the largest free cycling event in New York State was to ride it myself — I was mostly right.
Over 3,000 people showed up in bike shorts, bright tees, matching jerseys and costumes, ready to cruise through the Bronx on the first Sunday in October. Music pumped through speakers near Joyce Kilmer Park and you could feel the excitement building in the air.
I hadn’t trained, geared up, or bought anything special for the ride — just my CamelBak water bottle and my friend Gary.
Bicyclists gathered into three starting groups based on the different routes they signed up for, either 10, 25 or 40 miles of winding streets and paths through Orchard Beach, Starlight park and the Bronx river. Gary and I were in the second group, with other riders who registered for the 25 mile course.
I was especially excited about the prospect of biking through Woodlawn Cemetery — I’m a sucker for spooky history and stunning landscapes — but was crushed to learn that it was reserved for the cyclists on the 40 mile route.
While waiting on our turn to break out of the group, Gary and I met a couple wearing matching T-shirts with neon Axolotls and struck up a conversation.
The couple, Carina and Ricardo Galvan, have lived in University Heights in the West Bronx for around eight years. Galvan told me that Carina signed them both up for the Tour De Bronx as a surprise.
He had recently taken up biking and she had run a 5K and thought the ride was something they could enjoy together. But a hip injury kept Carina on the sidelines for the day, leaving Ricardo to take on the borough’s notoriously hilly topography solo.
Even with training and preparation, he said he was still a bit uncertain about the hills, which did not inspire a lot of confidence in my own ability to conquer the massive cycling event.
“ I mean, I don’t ride extreme, but yeah, I’m nervous,” Ricardo said.
Soon, we were all counting down to the moment when we would burst through the gates and start cruising around the borough. As the gates opened, cyclists flooded onto the open streets near Yankee Stadium
I saw someone whip by me riding a unicycle with a neon green rim. My only thought was, “I have to get this guy on video.”
I got the shot, but I also had to hit the breaks to avoid another biker and went flying over my handlebars and onto the pavement.
Still, I was a reporter first, and a few scrapes weren’t going to stop me. We pressed on through the South Bronx under the unrelenting sun— the concrete and low tree canopy coverage, amplifying the heat.
Soon our ride took us to the Bronx River Greenway bike path and we were suddenly surrounded by trees, benches and picnic tables.
The Bronx River and its Greenway have been part of the Tour De Bronx going back to its inaugural ride in 1994, when then Borough President Fernando Ferrer and a committee started the annual event. The ride highlighted the Bronx River Greenway plan, which had a goal of connecting 25 miles of mixed-use paths and public green spaces along the river.
The ride has stayed true to its original goal: encouraging investment in the city’s northernmost borough’s bike paths. Five years ago, the Bronx accounted for 6% of the city’s bike lanes. Today, it holds approximately 20%, according to the advocacy organization Transportation Alternatives.
Each year the Tour De Bronx’s registration numbers continue to grow. Transportation advocates say it’s proof that the demand for cycling infrastructure in the Bronx is increasing.
We continued riding through Soundview park and up to the Castle Hill YMCA. I met friends Nancy Garzõn, Alyssa Nieves and Hazel Romero who were all riding the Tour De Bronx together, while stopping to take some photos.
“ The views have been spectacular and surprising,” said Garzõn.
Nieves started riding the Tour De Bronx around five years ago and recruited Garzõn and Romero this year into their first Tour De Bronx. Nieves told me that she encourages everyone to try it at least once.
“ Don’t be afraid of the number,” she said. “If you’re afraid, do 10, but you could definitely do 25.”
Bolstered by Nieves’s confidence and my desire to ride through Woodlawn Cemetery, I knew I had a choice to make. Soon the 25 mile course would split from the 40 mile course, but I wasn’t sure we could do the entire ride.
Gary and I decided to give it a shot, and when we rode up to the sign directing us toward Pelham Bay Park to complete 25 miles or Orchard Beach to tack on an extra 15, we headed toward the beach.
Eventually, we took a much-needed break at the curved shoreline and bustling boardwalk of Orchard Beach.
Before hitting the road again, I spotted a trio of guys wearing matching pink socks and jerseys that read “Sky High” on the back. It was a group of friends, Luis Rosado and his friends Anthony and Alex. Rosado said the trio had known each other for around four decades and that they picked up cycling as a way to stay active and connected with each other.
“It’s something to keep ourselves young in age, and our kneecaps still moving,” Rosado said.
The men said the social aspect of the ride was what they liked the most, but agreed that it was the best riding weather they had seen in weeks.
Exhaustion set in as I rode from the East Bronx to the West Bronx across Edenwald and Wakefield. A series of hills forced me to dismount from my bike and walk more than a handful of times, but I wasn’t alone.
A brutal, never-ending incline peeled half a dozen riders off their saddles — on a street named “Light Street.” Nothing about it felt light, except the number of people still biking up it.
Eventually, our slow and wobbling ride led us through the high gates of Woodlawn Cemetery’s main entrance, where the volunteers and staff manning the gate cheered us on and gave us directions to get around the grounds.
Woodlawn Cemetery was unlike anything I had ever seen. Its mausoleums and opulent grave markings gave the whole place a sense of grandeur.
We got caught up in some confusion over the route markings and somehow ended up back on the 25 mile trail back towards the gardens. As close as we were to completing all 40 miles — about 32.5 miles in — I had to admit defeat. I needed food, Advil and probably a doctor.
Gary and I skipped the rest of the Tour De Bronx and returned to New York Botanical Garden. Sweaty and sunburned, we returned the bikes and helmets we rented for the event.
I sat with Gary for the rest of the evening on an outdoor dining setup in Little Italy on Arthur Avenue with a giant ziplock bag full of ice that a server was kind enough to make me. We enjoyed the fall air and laughed about all the characters we had met along the way and the insane number of miles I had biked with an injured wrist.
For me, the Tour de Bronx was a right of passage.
I’ve been a reporter in the borough for over a year and wanted to immerse myself in one of the Bronx’s biggest events, not just as an observer but as a participant. Despite an injury and a last minute detour, it was impossible not to love it.
