Streetfilms

Best ride in the city. Thanks for the video folks!

Wow! I can't disagree more with Carl, I had a fabulous time seeing the city and all its wonder. This is NYC and the tour is advertised as an urban adventure. In fact it is the only urban Century in the country. I'll be there next year for sure!

I too will disagree w/ Carl. This was my 5th NYC Century, & I'm wondering how he managed to find it unrelaxing. It's the easiest century in the Tri-state area. I've done the ride to Montauk 3 times, & although there are longer stretches where you don't have to worry about navigating, there are also parts where it gets a bit boring. I find the NYC route to be a lot of fun, & you get to see so much of this city, & realize thast it is green & beautiful! The NYC route is well marked on the street, & although at times you may have to stop & consult the cue sheet, there are also long stretches where you don't, like the waterfront in Brooklyn & Queens, & all the rides through the parks.
My concern is that the rest stops for the 75 & 100 mile routes were not properly stacked, & I have confidence in the organizers that this will be taken care of next year.

Rockin & wickedly fun spin. It was a great day and fabulous event. To all those who complained after the overwhelming support from terrific volunteers I have two things to say: 1) chill and 2) Let's wait and see you do better next year. Many thanks to the organizers, volunteers and the video guys.... See you in 2008... Dan from Balto..

I would agree with Carl and that this was not exactly what we expected. There were only a few relaxing portions of the ride, like Central Park at dawn, Times Square and some parts of Brooklyn and Queens. The Bronx loop was unappealing to say the least. We missed about 10 turns because the green paint was so faint and too small to see at speeds, plus reading a 5-page list of directions while riding through broken glass and potholes in the bike lane is a bad idea. The food was great, and the staff was very friendly, but why long lines for water on an 85 degree day? We had some fun, and the organizers did a great job preparing for the day, but we will probably consider another Century next year.

First, let me say that I LOVE this ride. It's the best way to see the City, I see parts of New York I've never seen before, people are wonderful, not-competitive...just a glorious day all the way around, despite the traffic and broken glass, and honking cabs and all the rest. It just adds to the challenge, right? This was my second year in a row and I do have to say, however, that last year's event seemed a bit better organized to me. Is that my imagination? The route was far better planned, the food was better and more plentiful (this year, at two of the rest stops I came to, there was almost no food left by the time I got there!! My friend almost passed out from hunger along the route. Not cool.) Plus, there was a stretch in Brooklyn where it seemed like we were doubling back along the same route "to avoid the hills" I was told by one of the Marshalls. Surely there are other routes to take to avoid the strenuous patches without having to cover the same ground twice. Well, enough complaining....I still had a great time. Personally, I like a hill or two thrown in for good measure. And, if the organizers could place the green markers on the roads BEFORE the intersections and turns, instead of AFTER the intersections and turns, it would really help to keep us from getting lost!! Thanks a million for a fun event. See you all next year!!

Amazing! My friends and I came in from Kahnawake Quebec, Canada (near Montreal) and we thought it was a great experience. I can't speak for all but most of us are planning on returning next year. Great job organizing the ride.

Totally agree with Carl. One of the most poorly marked and hazardous routes I've ever traveled. I've done the 100-mile route of the MS tour every year and have NEVER gotten lost. On this ride, I got lost along with lots of other riders, three different times. Once, I was sent in the wrong direction by a marshall!!

This is by far one of the best rides I've ever done. You have an amazing city, I came from TO just to do this! I'm so glad I did, I'm bringing my pals next year, Carl is a bit whacked I think...
I'd be proud to be part of a cycling community that puts on an event as fantastic and beyond compare as this one!!

My husband, our 14 year old son and 12 year old daughter have done this race before. The sights are amazing, the people are so friendly and it's a great "family" day together. We will definately be back next year. You guys did a great job. Nothing in life is perfect. It's definately a ride that you have to pay attention to your surroundings, but it also lets you appreciate your surroundings. See you next year!

This was my first time for the NYC Century and I did the 55 miler. I'm usually mountain biking and this was my first year back in road biking after many years. The scenery was great, especially the shoreline and bridges, the starting route between Central park and the river, Broadway, etc. The painted lines should be in a brighter color next time, maybe flourescent blue or red or something like that. If you used a stencil with an arrow you could even do a small logo or initials like NYCC and then just overlay it with fresh paint next year. But I caught them in time and only missed one turn. Only tough part was coming back through Brooklyn from the shoreline rest stop at the pier, lots of congestion by that time of day.
I was really impressed with the courtesy most drivers had when approaching cyclists in parallel along busy streets.
Howeverm, I think some cyclists who may not be used to cycling defensively in the city could use some education about how to avoid getting honked at. It's just not the same as riding on country or suburban roads where you can just cruise through intersections in the middle of the day without having to be concerned about crossing traffic. I observed some cyclists who obviously didn't know how to maneuver city streets safely--weaving between lines of cars and buses at traffic lights, running red lights at obviously busy intersections without really looking, drawing horns from cars when it really could have been avoided without losing much momentum. (there's always a few in every crowd I suppose, but it impacts the reputation of the group as a whole and the goals of these organizations who are trying very hard to promote cycling on the streets) Overall, I was very impressed by the route, the great people who ran it and participated, and I will be back next year--probably for the 75 or 100 miler.

I agree wonderful idea, but definatly could use some tweaking.