The official 2017 Slow Roll Buffalo season kick-off takes place on Monday, May 1 at Niagara Square. That initial ride is just the beginning of a sweet rolling summer, filled with plenty of group rides. All of the rides start at 6:30pm (meet at 5:30pm) and are comprised of a 10-12 mile roundtrip ride. Each week there is a new route, with new sights to see. The cycling series is free and open to everyone of all ages and abilities – it’s called Slow Roll for a reason.
According to Slow Roll Buffalo founder Tony Caferro, 50,000 riders have participated in the cycling series to date. That’s a lot of people rolling through town. It takes 100+ volunteers to organize the ride, which culminates with an after party after each session (food, drinks and live entertainment) at some worthy Buffalo destination. Three new host neighborhoods in 2017 are as follows:
- East Parade Avenue (May 8th)
- Massachusetts Avenue Park (May 15th)
- Old First Ward (May 22nd)
The rest of the rides (six months of rides!) will be familiar to many participants. In order to ensure that the series goes off without a hitch, Slow Roll organizers continue to work with the following groups and organizations: Buffalo Police Department, Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, Department of Public Works, block clubs and community organizations. These relationships also reap side benefits such as organizing community cleanups and installing little lending libraries – how cool is that?
Slow Roll Buffalo is a GObike Buffalo program, presented by Independent Health. Other than Detroit, where the movement was founded, Buffalo has managed to harness the largest number of riders – even more than Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C, Berlin and Stockholm.
“Slow Roll serves as an example and extension of Buffalo’s increases in bicycling and bicycle infrastructure, while welcoming riders of all kinds to connect with our city in new ways,” said Slow Roll Buffalo co-founder Seamus Gallivan. “We’re amazed at the bonds we have built to date and excited to expand every aspect of our operation, from our ever-diversifying ridership to our ever-evolving community outreach.”
A full schedule will be released soon. In the meantime, riders are asked to fill out one-time season long registration.
Go slow Buffalo… go roll Buffalo!
Presented by Independent Health. Support from Deep Thinka Records, The Good Neighborhood, Bert’s Bike’s and Kara Kenney For Hair. Schedule, locations, and volunteer opportunities with Slow Roll Buffalo can be found at the websidte. Information on the worldwide Slow Roll movement can be found at www.slowroll.bike.
Photo: Clay Davies