Orlando's Bike to Work Day

 
Friday was Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer's Bike to Work Day and he had only one rule for the 200 cyclists who joined him Friday morning for National Bike to Work Day.

"No one pass the mayor," Dyer joked.

Cyclists riding mountain bikes, 10-speeds and beach cruisers pedaled alongside the mayor for the eighth annual event, which promotes the use of bicycles as an alternative way to get to work.

May is National Bike Month, and hundreds of communities across the U.S. are having events focusing on bicycles and two-wheeled transportation. Dyer wanted to emphasize how easy it is to ride a bike in Orlando. Dyer, who sported a pair of black shorts, black shades and a white bike helmet, added that riding bikes is both healthy and friendly to the environment.

The 15-minute, police-escorted ride, which many bikers called "steady," began at Infusion Tea in College Park and weaved its way through the streets of Orlando. The group rode south on Edgewater Drive, east on Lakeview Drive and then south on Orange Avenue toward City Hall.

Along the way, the bikers were greeted by honking horns and waving pedestrians. And none of the bikers tried to get ahead of Dyer.

Dyer has hosted a Bike to Work Day event every year since becoming mayor in 2003. The League of American Bicyclists has designated Orlando as a "Bicycle Friendly Community" each year since 2000.