biking

Bring some hooch. You can drink beer, wine, or malted beverages on the bike, but the HandleBar doesn’t serve it.

Including Westfield Police Chief Joel Rush, who is now turning the idea of running from the cops on its head.

“Nope. Wait, do other people get asked out on the Monon? Am I missing out?!”

Don’t try to make new friends. Even so, the people-watching is first class. Just don’t gawk.

Question: A friend says my Instagramming is disruptive to other trail-users, but everyone “hearts” my tilted shots of trees and bridges. What’s the verdict?

1. It’s an advertising-free zone.
2. Barbecue sandwich at Locally Grown Gardens.
3. Murals.
4. Spying cool bikes. …

This year’s tire art was unveiled on First Friday this month, May 3, in conjunction with the usual art gallery openings. Two winners in the al fresco art show were announced, with Global Gifts taking the top judged honor for its owl display.

From the moment the green flag dropped at Bill Armstrong Stadium, the race maintained a dizzying pace. The top teams took turns at the front of the pack, riders looking over their shoulders more than at the track ahead of them. The attacks were fast and furious, stretching the field out so much so that at Lap 65, nearly half of the teams had fallen off the lead lap.

Bundled up and shivering, the racers were eager to get started. So much so that the 2013 race featured its first crash in just lap 3. Oddly, it has become a bit of an annual tradition to have a fairly scary crash in the first few laps before the bikers settle down and race cleanly. This crash left a Rainbow Cycling rider with a broken collarbone, leaving that team’s already-smaller squad with just two able-bodied riders for the remainder of the race. Remarkably, they stuck with the pack and finished the race in 14th place, earning the respect of the entire field.