Critical mass riders commemorate Hurricane Katrina

By Elizabeth Daley, Bay City News Service

August 27, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) - Some 400 Critical Mass bicycle riders converged upon the streets of San Francisco on Friday to commemorate the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and remind the public that oil conservation can diminish natural disasters, said Amanda Hooshmand, a spokeswoman for Critical Mass.

Critical Mass usually draws quite an eclectic crowd. However, according to Hooshmand, Friday's ride was particularly impressive in both size and content.

"I was carrying a banner that said, 'More cars equals more climate change equals more hurricanes. No more Katrinas!''' Hooshmand said.

Brian Fleming, a spokesman for the environmental organization Rising Tide, which partnered with Critical Mass, said, "Many of us have ridden in Critical Mass rides and we wanted to make the connection between the oil industry and climate change as well as the damage to the wetlands in Louisiana that was caused by the oil industry.''

Fleming said the wetlands were a natural defense against hurricanes because they absorb storm surges and that a recent study by Louisiana State University showed that if the wetlands weren't degraded, some levees would not have broken.

According to Fleming, the U.S. Department of the Interior estimated that half of the damage to the wetlands is from oil industry activities. Fleming said that when Hurricane Katrina hit, a huge amount of oil spilled into residential areas.

"I saw many inches of oil in people's front yards,'' he said.

Since Critical Mass rides have always had the goal of promoting bicycling as an alternative to oil-fueled transportation, Hooshmand said it made sense to partner with an environmental group.

"Critical Mass-ers are...just trying to promote bicycling as an alternative form of transportation. Cyclists have just as much right to the roads as cars do,'' Hooshmand said. She said many different types of people are involved in Critical Mass. A man in a pink Speedo, a father with his two little girls, and a man dressed as Jesus were among Friday night's riders.

"There were two guys who welded their bikes together so they were riding side by side,'' Hooshmand said. "The ride usually doesn't follow a path, so if you lose the crowd along the way you could get lost.''

Critical Mass rides in San Francisco take place on the last Friday of every month at 6 p.m., with riders gathering in Justin Herman Plaza.

The rides also take place across the world and in Berkeley, Hayward and Oakland. More information is available at the Web site http://www.critical-mass.org.

Copyright © 2006 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.

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