Tomorrow marks a Greenlake neighborhood favorite—the 12th Annual Tour de Greenlake, a bike-riding, costume-wearing, booze-guzzling affair that begins at 1:00 p.m. at the Red Hen and ends three bars, several hours, and many drinks later at Tacos Guamas.
From the event’s webpage:
You all know the drill: #1) Grab yourself a bike. Any bike will do, but it’s more fun if you have it decked out! #2) Wear something fun, crazy, stupid or illegal. (Maybe a see through top for the Ladies?) #3) Start drinking! (You’re no fun when you’re sober!!) All the bars will have drink specials for us!!
Meet at the Red Hen at 1:00pm on Saturday, June 25th and start to warm up by downing a few cold ones! We will leave there at precisely 2pm (or close too, as it sometimes takes awhile to get all the drunks to finish their drinks) to make our way around the lake to St. Andrews!
This event sounds great—except for the see-through top suggestion. Wearing flimsy clothing while drinking and riding is a solidly stupid idea. If I wanted road rash on my soft parts, I’d just take a cheese grater to my nipples and save myself the commute.
Full itinerary here.
I would actually like to see that. The grater on the nipples, not the bike ride.
My college roommate got married at this event a couple years ago. It was a great time. If you like fun drunks and costumes, you can’t go wrong.
Why is drinking and driving illegal, but not drinking and cycling? Are the streets going to be closed off for this to ensure public safety from drunken cyclists? I really dont understand how an event like this could even be promoted.
I’m sure this will do tons to make people appreciate cyclists and respect their right of way in traffic.
@3 How many people each year are killed by drunk cyclists?
@3 – I’ve been hit by a car and by a bicycle. Both experiences kinda sucked, but I can tell you which one I’d do over again if I had to.
@3 Using an episode of Scrubs as my legal basis, it may be illegal? But if it is, it’s just as enforced as the helmet law.
From http://geomium.com/event/tour-de-greenla…
Karl didn’t stress that helmets were required. Does Karl have enough insurance to organize something like this?
Summary of the ride results
1) Local hospitals had three head injury and 16 road rash patients, most were under the influence,
2) 25 citations were given to cyclists for DUI,
3) Go to the SPD auction next year for lots of seizure and forfeiture bikes to bid on.
@3, I’m quite certain that cycling while drunk on the streets is illegal. Maybe they’re sticking to the Green Lake path? It’s illegal to drink in the park, but not to BE drunk. though if you stray off the correct portion of the path, or go the wrong way around, you can get busted. This seems like a recipe for trouble.
@5 I’m not looking forward to having to lay down my motorcycle to avoid running over someone acting retarded.
Yeah, maybe this could make bicyclists look bad, but didn’t they say Critical Mass could make bicyclists look bad? Or that PETA could make vegans look bad. And how did that turn out?
@5 “How many people each year are killed by drunk cyclists?”
Ill guess and say three. A bike can collidge with a young child or senior and actually kill someone.
A bike, like a cat or a dog, can dart into the middle of the street and force a driver to swerve to avoid a collision, which might cause the car to hit another car, or pedestrian. Bikes can cause accidents in which they dont even get a scratch and I see some dangerous cycling manuvers downtown Seattle occur a few times a week. Add alcohol to that and your playing with fire.
Just because you ride a bike, doenst automatically excuse you from any of the laws that govern other vehicles. Your not saving the planet, your not earning carbon credits that allow you to act like other jackass drivers.
this is in fact a dui party.
@13, HA!
This sounds lame. I’ve been known to ride home after a drink or two — very carefully — but organizing an event that encourages people to get pissed up and do this as a group sounds kinda dumb. The topless women idea just sounds skeezy. Maybe some of you Ladies can make out with each other, too! Hawt! Burp! (crash)
Washington law regarding intoxicated bicyclists: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?…
Basically, police can offer you a ride, or impound your bike if it is “necessary to reduce a threat to public safety”.
@16
thanks for the deets. didn’t realize that washington state did not have dui for bicycles. good news!
Ugh, I wouldn’t go in the Little Red Hen if it were the last alcohol-serving venue in the world. That’s where my stepfather used to go to get liquored up and mean. 🙁
@18, my dad preferred cars. 🙁
That is why I joined the war on cars.
Forget the boring bike vs. Car arguments. Lets get back to the cheese grater on Ciennia’s nipples. Some how that’s kinda hot.
@19 “That is why I joined the war on cars.”
You know, I like to entertain the notion that there really is a War on Cars, and that our mayor is waging this covertly, but its paranoid thinking. I’m an asshole for thinking there really is one. Until I read comments like yours.
It’s a fun event and not everyone is meant to live forever. Stop getting your panties in a bunch over a group of people riding a bicycle and having a few drinks.
And as far as killing old people while drunk on a bike, you could be drunk and fall on an old person and kill them. Let’s face it if your that brittle your probably not out walking in the park.
@3 and any comment you ve made after… You obviously have no life, I advise you to get one.