A few months ago we sponsored Breanne Thomas on her ride from NYC to the Commitment March in DC in support of the BLM movement. Here are some of her thoughts and images of the experience:

I had been protesting since Day 1 in New York and even early on, I was fascinated by the presence of bikes in the scene—how quickly they could move, how they protected people, and broadly I admired how people made their bikes work for them. It didn’t matter if you had a single speed or a fancy road bike—you could get involved. I had only been a casual rider before this moment, but I witnessed a growing and active community I wanted to be a part of, and I knew that meant I’d have to become a stronger rider so I could keep fighting for others.

When I heard about Ride to DC in late June, it gave me a singular focus of action and training—I also admired the scale of it. If bikes were such a presence in the city protest scene, imagine the impact we could have if we rode over 300 miles in a large group? That we could collectively fight for Black lives and against racial inequalities in cycling just by joining together in the saddle? It was an impressive idea and I hopped right in, training with fellow riders every few days and eventually volunteering to help the RTDC team with their comms.

It was a joy to ride with this crew and it’s given me a community of fellow cyclists and protests who I know will continue to fight. This is just the beginning.