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Riding a bike in New York City can be a pretty terrifying experience, and many would-be cyclists avoid a life of active transportation out of fear of being pancaked by a semitruck. But for one glorious day each year, cars are banned from 40 miles of Gotham’s streets, giving way to the largest organized group bike ride in the city: the Five Boro Bike Tour.
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Now in its 41st year, the event draws more than 30,000 cyclists from across the country. Registration for the ride, which is slated for Sunday, May 6, opened today at noon. Standard tickets go for $105, and a VIP option is $340, which includes an early start time, a branded jersey and access to a lounge after the race. Proceeds from the tour support Bike New York's free bike education program, which taught cycling skills to more than 25,000 kids and adults in the city last year.
As its name suggest, the tour’s route snakes through all five boroughs and allows the unique opportunity to bike in areas across New York that are typically off-limits to bikes, including the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, FDR Drive and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. The ride kicks off in Lower Manhattan at the corner of Franklin and Church Streets, heads north through Harlem and the Bronx, back down through the East Side and into Queens and Brooklyn before finishing on Staten Island.
Be sure to snag your spot sooner than later—the ride typically sells out quickly after registration opens.
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