This year marked the 15th anniversary of the event known as 9/11, a pretty mindblowing fact when you think about how much that day is still referenced in relation to the global politics of war, religion, and power. It’s also pretty mindblowing to think that this year’s class of high school freshman was made up mostly of kids that weren’t born yet when 9/11 went down. So for them it’s only a story. This is why we ride. We ride to remember that there was a time, not so long ago but always growing more distant, when fear and control were not the primary drivers of life. We ride to remember that Manhattan had vast swaths of rugged territory, before it became a massive luxury mall. We ride to acknowledge that New York City is made of people from all places, walks of life, and belief systems, and that’s why it’s the greatest city on earth. We ride to visit the places in the five boroughs that don’t reach the celebrity and financial media outlets and therefore barely exist. We ride because when we do we can go anywhere in this city and interact with any of it’s people. We ride for life. Please join us as we present the 2016 Bridgerollers 100 Mile 9/11 Tribute Roll in photos by Craig Wetherby and words by Tim Brodhagen and remember for yourself why you love New York City.
And it begins…Michael Cohen setting the pace with an AM crossing of the Manhattan Bridge, the first of many bridges that day.
Used to be the World Trade, then Ground Zero, now they call it the Freedom Tower.
How’d the paparazzi know where Coach Saes was gonna be?
We assembled in the belly of the beast.
15 years later and the NYPD is still on high alert. 9/11 should not be a day of fear. This is why we ride. We are not afraid.
9/11 is a day of respect. We definitely ride for the FDNY.
BK Bound!
Now entering the County of Kings!
TheGoodLife! FC All-Stars Franco & Cheick joined the pack as soon as we hit Brooklyn.
Roll Out!!
New York Fucking City. It doesn’t get any better than this.
Brooklyn Remembers.
By the time we hit the Verrazano, we were 30 deep. And it wasn’t even noon yet.
With Saes at the helm we were bound to hit some unexpected terrain.
Which doesn’t always work out for everybody.
But we still made it to Coney Island!
Boardwalk Empire.
So we pressed on. Adrian was focused!
A few hours in and we all needed to refuel so we headed to our favorite watering hole…
DARDY BAR!! Not coincidentally the new sponsor of TheGoodLife! FC!
He had to miss the beginning of the ride but Power came by in the Overthrow truck for some major BridgeRoller crew vibes.
It was getting warm out and we still needed hydration so another pit stop was announced.
Bohemian Hall! Timbo & Status Jeff had the right idea…AHHHH!
Now we were ready to cross some more bridges…
And we enjoyed every minute of it!
Hell’s Gate. But felt more like heaven.
Our impression of “Stand By Me,” who’s idea was this?! Active train track yo!
Since we didn’t die, we decided it was time to party. Real Bronx shit yo!
Akira Ruiz joined the pack on his BMX. Vamos!
Some peeps wanted their Mister Softee fix…but there was a bit of ambivalence. Clean eating is the new wave!
BX BABY! Southern Boulevard represent!
The sun may have started setting but the journey was still beginning.
Even while rooollin All Day I Dream About Soccer so Status took the shortcut across the pitch.
Deep in the Bronx and the crew was still assembling!
Time to hit some more bridges!
Status ain’t scared!
So worth it.
60 miles wasn’t phasing him so Hugh Grand hit the corner for a quick thug workout!
Back on Manhattan Island our first stop was El Tina’s. You need to know this spot.
Stacked up and the hood gave us mad love.
Our route back down the east side would require several more bridges. They don’t call us BridgeRollers for nothing!
Chain snap? No problem.
After a quick fix and a rapid roll we were Shaolin bound!
All aboard! Passage is free and beers are plentiful. The Staten Island Ferry is an oasis.
This is why we ride.
After a few quick miles on Staten Island we headed back to finish what we started!
We made it!
Tribute Lights were beaming!
And so was the squad!
One last treat before the end – roller coaster style!
And of course one last group shot.
Only the strong survived!
For finally victory beers at The Ear!
After 17 hours, 5 boros, 60 BridgeRollers, 100 beers and so many good vibes in the city we love, it was homeward bound…This is why we ride. We hope you’ll join us next year for #100MilesAndRooollin!
You must be logged in to post a comment.