The Chainlink

Anyone else planning on "auditing" the L.A.T.E. Ride?

Are the Marauders and other like minded cyclists meeting up before the Mcdonalds Midnight L.A.T.E Ride somewhere? Anyone planning on crashing the ride in large numbers?

I don't see anyone discussing this happening online or in person. And for some reason I ain't on the MM list serve, I should probably get on that.

 

Two years ago the L.A.T.E Ride audit was super bad ass fun. It was certainly one of the more memorable midnight rides in recent memory.

 

If you're joining us, please, RSVP and invite your friends on Facebook [ https://www.facebook.com/events/411389172247347 ] or the Chainlink [ http://www.thechainlink.org/events/mcdonalds-l-a-t-e-ride-audit ]!

 



Views: 6538

Attachments:

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Craig S. on June 26, 2012 at 11:19am

O, how many RAGBRAI's have you ridden and are you privy to any of the organization?

I've ridden 13 and in all those years, we've encountered more than a few towns who don't want a thing to do with RAGBRAI, and some towns have never put up any services and prevented business from providing services even though it's been a pass through town.  Many towns do not want that ride going anywhere near them and in fact, I know of one county who wants nothing to do with the ride and when the ride does go through it, there are no services alongside the road because the county fees are so high, on purpose.  

As Cameron says, it's not relevant to compare RAGBRAI to the L.A.T.E. Ride.

It seems you've done more to stoke the "us vs. them" meme more than anyone here by taking things that have been said actually seriously.  If you took the time to ride Marauders and perhaps spend some time with the folks you're needlessly criticizing, I doubt the tone of this thread would exist.  Or maybe it would.  This is all fun internet theater.....



O said:

Exactly what about your ride protest will be obvious to those of us riding alongside you in the dark? Will there be posters exhorting us to free ourselves from the tyranny of the FOP? Or will someone be giving a broadcast message about the evils of overpaying?

If you truly are all about educating the "silly yuppie" riders the please translate what Joe meant by his initial reply:

I'm DTF

Down To FuckWithTheLATERide

It reads like some sort of threat to me.

I certainly wish that the one member from Oak Park who decided to attach my virility could been more original. I guess that encountering "pushback" is more threatening to some than I had imagined.

I took the time to read the discussion from last year and it has the us versus them tone that this years discussion provides. Hipsters giving condescending verbal jabs at people who by all rights ought to be embraced for their willingness to ride at night in the Murder Capital of the Midwest.

I grew up in Chicago and moved to the suburbs during college. So I know both sides of this situation. I do most of my riding in the city and enjoy what it has to offer. What I fear is lost in this discussion is the need to have folks living outside the city embrace it as much as do I. We all need each other. There will come a time in the not too distant future when transportation funds will be severely attacked and possibly denied for such "frivolous" activities as bicycling.

Chicago needs as much good will as it can muster to over the negative aspects of its weekend murder rates. FOP charges whatever it must for whatever reasons they determine. I make my decision to register for any rides I attend based on how good my past experience with that ride has been. I know as I said before that putting on rides like this is expensive and lots of coordination has to be undertaken to pull it off.

I would rather see your group find ways to collaborate with the FOP and ATA to find effective means of reducing the costs to a point that everyone finds acceptable. Lots of groups that rely on donations (and that's what the registration fee for the LATE Ride really is) are having a hard time. Dog and cat shelters, shelters for the homeless and especially shelters for homeless veterans. I give as much and as often as I can to the homeless veterans shelter in my home town of Wheaton. Lots of people who claim to be patriotic seemingly never discover concrete ways to help those who served. Since I have two nephews who have served or are currently serving this is a cause dear to my heart.

Finally, if you really feel strongly that a low or no cost ride is something that should exist, I would think that many of those on this forum on both sides of the current fee structure issue would be happy to volunteer in a ride that your Marauders cared to stage. I think sometimes that have to "put up or shut up" is a great way to clear the air of bravado and get right down to the heart of the matter.

No one wants to quash your thinking just hopefully get you to think about how you couch your thoughts. Doing something constructive is far better than lashing out at the riders whose money is helping to stimulate the economy for all in the city. If you really think that low income folks are being shortchanged then you could help coordinate refreshment stands (like the ones along the Chicago Lakefront Trail near 47th Street) that are owned and operated by low income folks. They would be as happy to get the much needed shot in the arm for their self-owned businesses as the folks who service the vast crowds at RAGBRAI.

Chicago hipsters need to embrace this and any other invitational ride put on by ATA or FOP as an opportunity for small entrepreneurs to find themselves included in the revenue stream that is created by these events. Riding along with the crowd at night does not seem a very effective means of converting others to your way of thinking on the pricing structure and it does nothing to help low income bicyclists help themselves.

RAGBRAI towns leap at the opportunity to be on the current years route list. Hipsters and their friends should do the same. Set up stands along the route and hawk your wares or put out the word in the African-American community to the south of the ride that they should migrate north for the evening and set up shop along the route.

It would also be meaningful to lobby the FOP for booth space for these entrepreneurs to allow them to gain a foothold in the event on an annualized basis. Getting drunk and riding alongside the people on the route is somehow not what I imagine as an effective tool to drive home your message.

Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! said:

So it looks like it's this coming Saturday . . . is the preference to ride with the ride or against it?

H, with the ride, In the same direction as the ride. And no, this isn't an expressly oppositional get together against the Mc L.A.T.E. Ride. It is simply free people enjoying the road coincidentally the same time an official (expensive as fuck) ride happens to be taking place. Maybe we'll show the riders in the McRide that you can actually bike on the road for free.

Permalink Reply by O on June 26, 2012 at 11:22am
Your reply that it is all tongue in cheek fun seems oddly reminiscent of the ploy used by Rush Limbaugh. But as for your reply it leaves me speechless. Trust me you will grow up sooner or later, it's the Creators way of letting you know when your 15 minutes are up. What you do with those precious few minutes make all the difference.


Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! said:

Who said this was a protest?  It's just people getting together and enjoying riding bikes with other people.  Any language concerning or "message" of an audit or class warfare is really just tongue in cheek.

It's a shame you are completely lacking in any capacity to enjoy things that are fun.  But that isn't really my problem.  Please stop spamming us with your long winded irrelevant opinion.

OR.  Even better!  How about you meet us at the bar and get drunk with us.  You'll see how much fun this is.

Permalink Reply by Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! on June 26, 2012 at 11:24am

Just a note. I have talked to both ATA and FOTP about reduced fares for low income earners three or four years ago...

Howard, remember the epic nature of that flame war I started?  That John guy threatened me.  LOL.  The good old days before the Chainlink ruled and things got civil.

...and shortly after beginning our conversation the door was slammed in my face. I am willing to talk to them again of course. But seeing as how these groups use their events as a cash cow I don't think we'll see this exclusive practice change anytime soon.

Permalink Reply by O on June 26, 2012 at 11:25am
Perhaps you should attend Chris Cs event surrounding our Ale Fest. And if you do come ride over to the newest shelter home for Veterans and thank them for their sacrifices.


Kevin T. said:
I dunno, why ride at night in "the murder capital of the Midwest", I'd much rather get drunk in Wheaton. Oops, that would be kinda tough tho.
Permalink Reply by Vondo on June 26, 2012 at 11:25am
Marauders run a free night ride every month thanks to great people who put in a lot of work on designing routes, pre-riding, organizing etc. I'll be the first to say I've enjoyed multiple events made possible by people who go out of their way so the cycle community can ride a monthly night ride gratis. If anything, I feel a little bad about not doing more to pitch in. I'm more appreciative of their efforts than someone who writes a $45 check once a year and trashes the cycling community the other 364 days

End of rant
Permalink Reply by Joe Sak on June 26, 2012 at 11:38am

That's just me posting bullshit on the internet, not really making a judgement call one way or the other

I abhor the idea of alienating people who chose one way of riding their bikes over some other way

Doesn't mean I don't like having fun and crashing parties & rides with my buds 8-)

I wouldn't condone being mean or rude to anyone

Permalink Reply by O on June 26, 2012 at 11:48am
Actually I am saying that. Given the events last week in Lincoln Park many out-of-towners are likely to have second thoughts. In fact the stretch of the LFT that we took last time I rode back to the starting point is where many of the flash mob attacks have occurred in the past.

The general level of violence in Chicago is so much higher than in the collar counties that it creates doubts for folks who want to move back into the city to raise a family. Those who can afford high rise accommodations are probably less daunted but still two doctors were assaulted several weeks ago in what should have been a relatively safe area.

Chicago has a PR battle that is uphill. The more we can do to encourage people to take to the streets the better. I fear that the Open Streets project was a bit more in terms of logistics than could reasonably be handled in neighborhood settings. Perhaps that was not the case but it was brought to State Street last year which though interesting is pretty far removed from neighborhoods.

One of the reasons that the "silly yuppies" name calling is so very irritating is that it is inaccurate as well as pejorative. Suburban riders tend to be older and while somewhat affluent count their pennies as closely as the next person. What differentiates them from their neighbors is their willingness to venture in the Big Bad City and their desire to give back. Lots are folks who grew up in the city and migrated out but have stayed in touch.

They care about its future and that is enough to warrant your respect. Hipsters need to figure out who their friends are before hurling insults. A man driving one of the many Bentleys that are garaged one town over from me is not by definition uncaring or silly. He has relative wealth and therefore the capacity to amplify the giving needed to do good things in all parts of the city.

Philanthropists like the Crocs, Comer and others have and are erecting hospitals, cultural centers and much more. We need to honor that interest in the city by realizing that events like the LATE Ride are postive signs that Chicago is "worth the effort" and that these rides deserve our moral if not financial support.

Less negativism and more boosterism is likely to go a long way.


Cameron Puetz said:



O said:

I took the time to read the discussion from last year and it has the us versus them tone that this years discussion provides. Hipsters giving condescending verbal jabs at people who by all rights ought to be embraced for their willingness to ride at night in the Murder Capital of the Midwest.

 

Are you really saying that I should be impressed that so many people are brave enough to bike a route that basically goes from my office to my old apartment to my new condo? I'm sorry but I do that all the time and sometimes at night because of the hours I work. It's not some harrowing trek that people who do it need to be commended for their bravery.

Permalink Reply by igz on June 26, 2012 at 11:52am

ooh, and maybe camping....

Chris C said:

Did someone mention beer in Wheaton?  Well I'm glad you brought it up.  

 

Tickets are still available for the 2012 Wheaton Ale Festival.  General Admission is still only 40 clams and includes U-N-L-I-M-I-T-E-D sampling.  See the Chainlink event HERE


And did I mention the fest is only 1 block from the Illinois Prairie Path and only 2 blocks from the Wheaton Metra?  Furthermore, Seri is trying to organize a group ride from Chicago to Wheaton for this event.  See Seri's Chainlink event HERE

 

And remember boys and girls to drink responsibly.


O said:

Perhaps you should attend Chris Cs event surrounding our Ale Fest. And if you do come ride over to the newest shelter home for Veterans and thank them for their sacrifices.


Kevin T. said:
I dunno, why ride at night in "the murder capital of the Midwest", I'd much rather get drunk in Wheaton. Oops, that would be kinda tough tho.
Permalink Reply by Andrew on June 26, 2012 at 11:53am

If you put "hipsters" in place of "silly yuppies" in that sentence, it works just as well.  Weird!

O said:


One of the reasons that the "silly yuppies" name calling is so very irritating is that it is inaccurate as well as pejorative.
Permalink Reply by igz on June 26, 2012 at 11:55am


yet you have no problem continuing to call us hipsters, largely in a pejorative sense...


O said:

snip...

One of the reasons that the "silly yuppies" name calling is so very irritating is that it is inaccurate as well as pejorative.
 
snip...
Permalink Reply by igz on June 26, 2012 at 12:08pm

O, you are still missing the point.  We are not heckling bicycle riders from the more affluent riders of these collar counties. We welcome your income to support local businesses and industry. but that is not happening with the late ride. You are supporting a corporation that is "funneling" the fundraised money. Do we know how much of that is actually going back to the community? And due to the hours of the late night ride, local businesses are not seeing the benefits. Maybe if you supported a local family diner, sure, but mickeyD's is feeding you. And asking disenfranchised community individuals to sell their wares on the ride, their drinks...you dont think MickeyDs would stop that immediatel? and the most important point you have been missing to understand, which has been repeated several times now but you refuse to acknowledge, is that this event continues to label itself as the ONLY night ride. ONLY PAID FOR night ride maybe. as the others have said, there are dedicated groups of cyclists that do this at least once a month if not more, not just marauders. you seem to be playing so much into this victimized role, and in fac, also as previously stated, creating a certain divide of social economics into this issue of us and them. i always advocate the membership of mauraders - they are laborers and construction workers, they are lawyers. they are mechanics. they are doctors. they are unemployed, they are restaurant chefs, servers, they are cashiers, and occasionaly a quantum physicist. we are one and we are free.

 

what we are heckling is that so many believe that a ride like the paid late ride is the only way to enjoy the city by bike at night in such a controlled enviroment sponsored by a corporation not interested in your health or well being, has little regard for community, let alone bicycles (have you tried going up to the drive thru window on your bike?), whose superflous profits could be donated to good will instead of taking them from you, garnishing them, and then passing them along.

Permalink Reply by igz on June 26, 2012 at 12:14pm

ya beat me to it! im slow at editing.

Andrew N said:

If you put "hipsters" in place of "silly yuppies" in that sentence, it works just as well.  Weird!

O said:


One of the reasons that the "silly yuppies" name calling is so very irritating is that it is inaccurate as well as pejorative.ya

RSS

Groups

© 2008-2016   The Chainlink Community, L.L.C.   Powered by

Disclaimer  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service