Last night the Galería Prophaeta On Alvaro Obregon in the Roma hosted the art exhibit JoyRide as part of the Mexico City Bicycle Film Festival this weekend. The Bicycle Film Fest has been a global phenomena since 2001. That was when festival founder Brendt Barbur decided to shine a spotlight on the urban bike movement by celebrating two-wheeled transport with art, music and film.
Joyride was wheel marks on a blank background, cloth bikes and my personal favorite, a series of photos by Stefan Ruiz of cyclists after a race — muddy, exhausted and stunned. You should have seen the median strip of Alvaro Obregon… filled with bikes of every shape and size.
Personally, I think the more Mexico City cyclists can start conversations about urban biking the better. Sure we have the Sunday morning Reforma rides and some main streets with bicisendas (bike lanes), but over all this city is tough on its bikers — with immense traffic, wild drivers and way too much exhaust. How much more could we reduce the city’s pollution problems if in addition to the days you aren’t allowed to drive your car into the city, we all chose one day a week to ride our bikes. I know, I know, it’s crazy to think about people living 2 hours away riding their bikes to work, but there are plenty of us who could drive just a little bit less and it would make a big difference.
Plus bike riding is so sexy right now.
Check out the scheduled events for Bike Fest this weekend