My Pictures of

The Five Boro Bike Ride

May 6, 2001

Three friends and I and roughly 30,000+ other cyclists did the forty-two mile New York Five Boro Ride on May 6, 2001.

A veteran of last year's Five Boro Ride is Robin Dawson, an engineer at Sarnoff corporation and the husband of Susan Dawson who helps administer contracts for the physics department. New to the ride this year are Elliot Holland, a freshman in my Physics 106 class and also a member of the Princeton Cycling team, and his girlfriend, Amanda Alexander, also a frosh, but not taking physics (:-()!

We met at 4:10 am in the U-store parking lot and loaded the bikes and got organized. We drove up to Staten Island and caught the 6 am ferry to get us to the start of the ride in Battery Park, Manhattan.

Two graduate students in the physics department, Dan Angelescu, and Denis Barkats also did the ride.They took the train up. We agreed before hand to try to get together by leaving notes at the reunion centers in Astoria Park and the Festival. Unfortunately, their train was delayed (a train had pulled down the wires between Newark and Penn station in the middle of the night), so they got in the starting formation way at the end. Apparently, by the time they entered Queens, the ride organizers had cut out the loop up to Astoria Park (they shorten the route when it gets late). They found our note at the Festival, but about 5 minutes after we left!


Click on a thumbnail to see a larger picture.

    PARKING LOT, STATEN ISLAND Amanda, Elliot, and Robin at the parking lot a few blocks from the ferry terminal on Staten Island. This is about 5:40 am and the sun isn't up yet!
ON FERRY Amanda and Elliot on the Staten Island Ferry. About 6:10 am. FERRY PASSENGERS A view of some of the other riders on the ferry. The bikes are there too, just hard to see between the riders. We were sitting on the outer part of the lower deck, an area for pedestrians when the ferry is in normal service.
WTC TOWERS The World Trade Center Towers from our location at the start. To the south-southwest. ROBIN AT START Robin, with many others, waiting for the start.
OFFICIAL START BANNER The view North on Church Street to the official starting line (under the banner). We were about three blocks from the start. AMANDA, ELLIOT AT START Amanda and Elliot at the start - looking south on Church Street, about 7:40 am. Amanda decided to go at the last minute, so she hadn't pre-registered. After getting off the ferry, we all rode up as close to the start as we could get (about 6:40), then Amanda and Elliot walked back to Battery Park to register. The lines were almost non-existent and they made it back in plenty of time to stand around waiting for the official start at 8 am!
SCOOTER MODE After we had started moving, but still in "scooter" or walking mode. Looking north on Church Street, after we passed the reviewing stand at the start, and probably about 8:30 am or so. ELLIOT, AMANDA, ASTORIA PARK Elliot and Amanda at the Astoria Park Rest stop. This is about 18 miles into the ride at roughly 11 am.
RAILROAD BRIDGE, ASTORIA PARK A railroad bridge forms the backdrop for the rest area in Astoria Park, Queens. VERRAZANO FROM BROOKLYN Robin at the midpoint of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. The riders coming from Brooklyn.
MANHATTAN SKYLINE The Manhattan skyline with Brooklyn in the foreground as seen from the center of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. VERRAZANO TO SI Riders headed towards Staten Island on the Verrazano Narrows Bridge.
CREW ON VERRAZANO BRIDGE Robin, Elliot, and Amanda at the midpoint of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. It's all downhill from here! ROBIN AT FESTIVAL Robin at the Festival at Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island. About 2 pm.
ELLIOT, AMANDA, LUNCH Elliot and Amanda eating lunch at the festival. PARKING LOT Back at the parking lot near the ferry terminal on Staten Island. Roughly 3 pm.