By Chion Wolf:
In June of 2016, a person in a car hit me while i was riding my bike in the West End of Hartford. My collarbone was shattered, and I got a stainless steel plate, 8 screws, and 6 weeks out of work. Once I was able to get back on the bike, I did! But you can imagine how appealing the idea of NOT sharing the road with cars felt after this whole ordeal. Then – the lightbulb moment! I’d
run the 5k in the Eversource Hartford Marathon a couple of times, and it occurred to me that since the streets would (mostly) be closed before the marathon, if I timed it out just right, my friends and I could wake up early and ride the whole route car-free! On the early morning of the Hartford Marathon in 2016, we rode the marathon route. It was a fun, relaxing, exciting, ridiculous, wonderful time! This got me thinking – how can I make this into something more useful than a couple of friends going on an early morning joyride? How could it be more meaningful to Hartford, where I live and love? So here was my vision:
“Pedal to the Medal”
Cheerful and groggy bike riders alike showed up to the marathon early in the morning, wearing spandex and clip-in shoes, or tiger onesies, lit up with Christmas lights - whatever! It was a light-hearted ride – not a race. In the following year, we rode the CT Transit bus way! It was so cool to fly down that beautifully paved, enclosed path. After we were done, we cheered on the runners, got lunch in the city, and took a nap. We raised over $16,000 for the Center for Latino Progress, which supports Hartford's only non-profit bike co-op, BiCi Co.! While the pandemic squashed the 2020 & 2021 rides, and Pttm & the Hartford Marathon Foundation are going our separate ways (but THANK YOU, HMF!!!), plans are in-motion for other cool rides. How do you want the next ride to go? Email [email protected]!
