maniiiiiif!

Roulez bio, roulez vélo.

"Ride organic. Ride a bike" was the message of the day. Joe & I got ourselves out and participated in our first "manifestation". The translation for this is tricky, since it depends on the mood. Riot. Protest. Demonstration. I'd say today was a solid mix of protest & demonstration. We met near the station to get ourselves excited before starting the ride around town.

The demonstration was led by a group of bicycle advocates pushing for more logical traffic regulations: Give fines to cars parked on sidewalks & in bike lanes. Give fines to bikes on sidewalks. Do NOT give fines to bikes that are dodging traffic because they are forced out of their bike lane. Do NOT give fines of 50 euros to someone on their bike who has to go on the sidewalk to get to a bike rack.

Don't want us riding on your tram line? Give us another option, because "On en ai pour deux minutes," as the signs said. We're only there for two minutes. We're decreasing traffic. We're decreasing CO2 emissions. We're decreasing the price of the gas you still use. So decrease the aggression towards bikers.

This is a cause that Joe and I have gotten increasingly passionate about while being here. We've loved being without a car, & we hope to make it as much of a lifestyle choice as possible when we get back to the States, where bicycler's rights are also still a point of confusion for most people. (I rarely ride without someone shouting, "Get on the sidewalk!")

It was fun to get out & support the cause, which got us more excited about continuing the fight when we get back to the States. It was even more fun to note that the average age of the protest (especially for the rollerbladers who shot ahead of the group to block intersections that we could cruise through) was 50. It was fun to watch the children in their safety seats or on their tricycles, shouting with the rest of us to "Make way for the bus" or "Get that car out of the bike lane!"

The rollerblading groups would block intersections like teachers on a field trip with elementary school kids, then our group would slowly ride through the intersection ringing out bells & disregarding the red light. For the most part, people were patient (even the police that drove past). Those that weren't served to prove our point: We're not respected and neither are traffic laws.

Two motorcyclists got tired of waiting & sped around us. While we closed in on one, he eased off to the side & sped up on the sidewalk, zipping past us & revving his engine all the way. We stopped to clap & cheer for the expensive gasoline he was wasting for himself & the lack of people he was impressing, because what boosts spirits more in a rally than mocking your opponent?

The second motorcyclist wasn't nearly as entertaining. While we filled the street (this time on a green light & moving at a fairly normal speed), he zipped along the far lane & didn't slow down when he nearly clipped the bike in front of him–which held a two-year old child. It made one parent's sign all the more pertinent: A baby on board in Nancy = a baby dead? (The baby seemed unaware of the potential danger & sat happily in his buggy, sipping juice box.)

Things got most heated when we passed a car parked on the sidewalk, in the bike lane, in the middle of an intersection. This was too much, & one of the veteran bike advocates couldn't pass up the opportunity to make a point. This parking is common when the French want to pop into the post office or bakery. They leave their hazards & assume that all traffic laws disappear in the flashing lights. So, one of our leaders began wrapping the car in red & white police tape.

When the owner of the car returned, he began unwrapping the car. It continued this way for several minutes: one wrapping while the other unwrapped. "It's funny, ok. Enough," the owner would say. "But it's not funny. It's illegal," the crowd replied. So, the evil, gas-guzzling, law-breaking villian balled up the police tape & threw it to the ground.

BAD decision in front of a group of aging environmentalists. Bells ringing. Trumpets blasting. Children chanting. Bikes closing in on the small, European SUV. The older "leader" finally gave the man his ball of police tape–forcibly showed it into his back seat–and told us to carry on, up the narrow streets where cars were forced to stop & take note.

I don't know how much gasoline was wasted today as cars stopped to let us pass. I don't know how many drivers were inspired by us instead of completely enervated. I do know that I felt a lot of support from the kids on the sidewalk, who'll soon have to make the choice between driving & biking. I felt support from shouted from the windows & from shoppers walking between stores. I felt like I was a part of something too right, too big & too exciting to die out.

We'll keep riding & people will keep joining. Vive la Révolution!

For more pictures of our adventure today, click over to my Flickr.

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