Bikes, lights and music, welcome to the Bike Rave Vancouver 2013. On Saturday, June 29, hundreds of cyclists will turn out for a fun filled night.
Here is a video to give you a better idea as to what happens at a bike rave.
Start time: 9 p.m., arrive at 8 p.m. (weather depending of course)
Location: Crab Park (101 East Waterfront Road)
The music
They will have a 5 hour long DJ mix for the event, and it will be available for download from a variety of sources a week before the ride. Put the mix on your MP3 player of choice and make sure it’s charged up. Strap some battery powered speakers to your bike. Just before they start the ride, they’ll make an announcement via megaphone to get everyone with a sound system to gather in one spot. Then, they’ll do a countdown and everyone will hit ‘Play’ at the same time.
The lights
Part of the fun is getting your bike decked out like a late 90’s candy kid. Corner the market on glow sticks, EL wire, bike lights and anything else shiny or blinky. Let’s light up the entire city!
Most dollar stores have glow sticks, and some party supply places sell them by the case. Almost every bike shop in town has cool lights. Places like Lee’s Electronics can help you build awesome LED lighting rigs for your bike if you’re so inclined.
Vancouver bike route map
They’ve planned a few stops along the way to do some dancing:
– The underpass at Devonian Park
– Second Beach in Stanley Park
– The band shell at the Plaza of Nations
– Under the Terminal Avenue viaduct
– The black-top oval at Strathcona park
If you’re late, they’ll be easy to find so feel free to join in at any time.
Weather advisory
If it’s a nice day outside or a little cloudy, the ride goes on. If it’s raining a little and likely to clear up, the ride shall go on. If it’s pouring, the ride will NOT happen, if you unsure, show up and see what happens. There will be someone at Crab Park between 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. to let people know if the ride is cancelled. In the odd chance the ride does get cancelled due to weather, it will be rescheduled for Saturday, July 27th.
Please read
The cover-our-ass-disclaimer from their Facebook Page
We are not responsible for your safety; YOU ARE!
We have done our best to ensure that the route is well lit and wide, but it does involve a little riding on the road. We should attempt to obey all traffic laws. If we get split up, we can rejoin at one of the several stopping points along the ride, so please stop at red lights and stop signs.
When riding on bike paths, watch out for oncoming riders and give other bike ravers room, since most of us will probably be swerving a little. In previous years, a few people have gotten hurt due to being intoxicated. While we can’t tell you what to do, we ask that you try to avoid getting so wasted that you smash into people and cause them to get hurt. If you’re riding with someone super drunk, try to encourage them to ride at the back of the pack.
It would be wise to expect to interact with the police at some point in the night. They showed up last year and rode along quite peacefully. If you choose to drink while riding, you should try to avoid being incredibly obvious about it because they’ll make you pour it out. If you are one of those folks who likes to yell obscenities at the police whenever you see them, please stifle that urge for the duration of the ride to avoid drawing negative attention. Try smiling and waving instead. Wear a helmet and all that other safety/legal junk too!
Finally, if you feel like helping, we welcome folks to bring bike tools or first aid equipment just in case. Bikes For All bike shop will be at Crab Park to provide some last minute repairs. Given the size of this years ride, we’ll be very excited if you have current first aid and bring some first aid supplies along!
Remember, this is a DIY event. If you aren’t comfortable taking responsibility for your own safety, or you feel it is acceptable to put others at risk for your own amusement, this would be a good event to sit out.
Lastly, pick up after yourself. Your Mom probably won’t be around to clean up after you (although if you can get her to do that we’d be stoked). There will be garbage and recycling bags at the gathering area, and there are public waste bins all along the route.
Main Image by luke.me.up