• Get Your Entry in for the Commerce Bank Five Boro Bike Tour 
• Bikes, Gear, and Lodging for the Tour
• Three Other Rides in 2008
  
• 2008 Class Offerings
• Stopping at Lights
  
• Want More NYC Bike News?
  

Get Your Entry in for the Commerce Bank Five Boro Bike Tour

If you want to join tens of thousands of cyclists for an unbeatably fun, car-free ride through New York City, now is the time to sign up. Registration is limited to the first 30,000 entrants--and in New York City, that means you'd better act fast! You'll assure yourself of a spot and save money by registering early.

Volunteer slots are also in high demand, and registration is now open for those positions too!

Bikes, Gear, and Lodging for the Tour

If you need help with any aspect of your preparations for the Tour, Bike New York is here for you. Some special offers for your consideration are listed below.

Bike Rentals: Bike and Roll NYC, the new preferred rental partner for the Tour, can provide you with a bike right at the start of the ride, making for a hassle-free day. The Tour rental package includes:

• Your choice of Trek bicycles--hybrid, road, comfort, and kids bikes available.
• Bike delivered to the start or picked up beforehand, tuned up and ready to go. 
• Optional bike return at the ride finish, so you don't have to wait in the bike line for the ferry.
  

Visit www.bikeandroll.com/fiveboro for details and reservations. 

Official Merchandise: Dress to mark your participation in the Commerce Bank Five Boro Bike Tour! The 2008 line includes matching jerseys and shorts (at right) as well as T-shirts, hats, socks, and more. Sales support the work of Bike New York. Shop >

Lodging: Need a place to stay in New York City? Take advantage of discounted rates at the Marriott New York Downtown near the Tour start or at Bike New York's headquarters on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Details and Reservations >

Getting Ready: Surf around www.BikeNewYork.org to get answers to other questions, whether about the Tour or riding in general. If your bike skills (or your bikes) are a little rusty, Get Ready to Ride is a good place to start. Enjoy!

Three Other Rides in 2008 

Stopping at Lights 

Bike New York events require riders to follow a few simple rules for safety, including obeying traffic laws such as stopping for lights and stop signs (except during the Commerce Bank Five Boro Bike Tour, when traffic lights don't apply). BNY's Bicycle Education Program explains why.

Don’t you hate it when you have the right of way and a driver cuts you off, or when a driver runs a red light as you are proceeding through an intersection? Now put yourself in the position of motorists who see bicyclists doing the same thing. Despite having the protection of their cars, motorists find this scary because it’s so unpredictable. And, it could involve them in a crash with the cyclist or with another motorist as they try to avoid the red-light runner.

Sure, red lights and stop signs can seem inconvenient when we're riding, requiring extra energy to speed up after stopping. But running through those traffic signals is the wrong thing to do, both for your own safety, and for the larger interests of cycling. Here’s why:

• Traffic laws are designed to maximize predictability for everyone, so that all road users know what to expect from each other at busy places like intersections. Running red lights and stop signs makes things unpredictable. Cyclists endanger themselves when they put themselves in front of motorists who have the green and are not expecting cross traffic.
• It’s a bad habit that may catch up with you some day. Most cyclists think they are “careful” to scan the intersection before blowing through the red--until that day when you have something on your mind and fail to notice the cop, who then writes you a ticket--or worse, the bus approaching the intersection at speed. What's more, if you have or cause a collision while running a stop sign or red light, you may not only be unable to collect damages for your injuries, but you may be held liable for damages and injuries to any pedestrians, cyclists, or motorists involved in that crash.
• It scares and angers pedestrians, and we need them as allies to make our streets safer. Too many cyclists do to pedestrians what drivers do to cyclists--cutting off pedestrians while blowing through a red light. Not cool Pedestrians appreciate when cyclists stop and yield to them, and a little politeness does wonders for other people’s image of cyclists.
• When cyclists are seen as scofflaws by other road users, cyclists' efforts to make the roads safer through better enforcement are undermined.