Cyclists pour into the parking lot next to the Bell Tower Friday night as 7:00 p.m . approaches. More than 100 students on road bikes, fixed gears and mountain bikes flood Hillsborough Street once the clock rings, marking the beginning to their First Friday—a citywide art and cultural exposition.
This cycling event, which started in April 2007 according to organizer Victor Lytvinenko , occurs on the first Friday of every month, regardless of rain or snow.
Lytvinenko said riding bikes only makes sense given Raleigh’s layout.
“All the galleries are about a mile apart and parking downtown is not so great on Friday night,” Lytvinenko said. “They are too far away to walk, so we just started riding bikes around since it’s the best means of transportation downtown.”
As the riders leave the Bell Tower, they make their way downtown on Hillsborough Street. Although the routes change depending on exhibits at galleries, Lytvinenko leads the crowd of cyclists to Rebus Works gallery, on the corner of Boylan and Kinsey Streets.
The mass of bikers rolls along the Raleigh streets, occasionally running red lights, but Lytvinenko maintained that city riding is safe and improving in Raleigh. So is city policy toward bikers.
“Policy is getting a lot better—it’s getting amazing,” Lytvinenko said. “City Council put down $500,000 for bike facilities in this next year’s budget. Bike lanes are down on Hillsborough Street temporarily, they’re going down on Oberlin and Clark. It’s definitely coming around.”
Supervising this coming around is Russ Stevenson, council member at large. According to Stephenson, the First Friday bike ride brings the cycling issues to the city’s attention.
“All of the United States has been very auto-friendly, but I think it’s just more recently people understand the…benefits of biking,” Stephenson said. “Our city has been trying to be very proactive in finding new ways instead of burning fossil fuels. There are other ways to get around and there are other ways to grow the city without being dependent on adding thousands of cars to get from Point A to Point B, from parking lot to parking lot. This bike event is a good example of people raising awareness.”
Students are the driving force of the ride and the majority of riders attends or has attended the University.
Justin Phillips, a senior in art and design, said he has done more than 20 rides to First Friday.
“I have been to almost every one since the end of my freshman year,” Phillips said.
In addition to Rebus Works, popular stops on the ride include Lump gallery and Raleigh Denim, but the ride always ends in City Market, next to Moore Square.
According to Mary Kathrine Ward, a graduate student in psychology, the ride is a good way to integrate oneself in the community.
“I pretty much just follow the crowd, since I don’t like planning, but I go with the flow,” Ward said. “I like being part of this bigger community of cyclists, it makes me feel bigger.”
Lytvinenko leads the “flow,” but once riders enter City Market, many disperse to do their own thing, either getting a coffee at Benelux Café or checking out the galleries of Artspace .
In addition to these popular galleries, many First Friday bikers stop by the Fish Market on Hargett Street, the official gallery for exhibited work by students from the College of Design.
“I will have work in the Fish Market in December,” Phillips said, “but it is always great to get downtown to see the local art. I love riding bikes and when you ride with 100-plus people, down Hillsborough Street, it’s just empowering a little bit, because we stop traffic.”
