Over 200 ride in silence for cyclists killed in traffic

Jill Byelich. James Louis Thelen. Eliyah Coats.

A line of over 200 cyclists, riding two abreast, stretched one mile over Michigan Avenue Wednesday evening.

Curt Dombecky. Daniel Smith. Stephen Stephenson.

The crowd rode in silence, the whirring of pedals and gears the only sound above the background noise of the city and the occasional passing car.

Bill Petry. Donald John Schafer. Frank Jay Baldwin.

It was the largest turnout yet for the annual Ride of Silence from Michigan State University to the state Capitol. A feeling of solemnity and quiet remembrance hung in the air as the group made their way to the Capitol steps, and as ride organizer Lysne Tait read the names of 12 local cyclists who were killed in traffic since 2004.

Eldo "Pops" Zirkle. Jose Angel Romiro. Kenneth Holt.

Over 300 similar Rides of Silence were held the same day across the world, in 17 different countries and 48 states in the U.S.

The purpose of the ride is two-fold, said Mike Unsworth, advocacy chair of the Tri-County Bike Association, which puts on the annual Mid-Michigan ride.

The first is to remember cyclists who have been killed or injured in traffic. The second purpose, he said, is to "remind the public that we have a right to be on the road."

According to data complied by the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, there were 1,749 crashes involving bicyclists in the state in 2014. Twenty-one of them were fatal.

"Roads are for everybody," Unsworth said. "This is a public statement, that we (bicyclists) belong here like everybody else."