Los Angeles Critical Mass July 2010

This past friday's Critical Mass was a big one with and estimated 800-1300 cyclists showing up to have a good time, assert their right to the road and to pay a visit to the scene of the most recent failure of justice for cyclists and people in general. We rode to the Beverly Hills Courthouse to protest the weak sentencing of Celine Mahdavi, the woman who drove drunk, struck cyclist Louis Deliz and fled the scene leaving him to die. Deliz spent 49 days in the hospital. Judge Elden Fox sentenced Mahdavi to 90 days of community service. BikesideLA covers all the infuriating details of this all to common example of cyclists being treated as second class citizens by our government. For the 2nd time, the LAPD was in attendance, escorting the Mass all over town, except when we entered Beverly Hills and West Hollywood. The ride is certainly more organized as a result of their efforts and there seems to be less antagonism between drivers and cyclists, though I did hear of one incident. Overall, it was a great display of humanity and one of the few activities that can unify the disparate and frequently isolated groups in this sprawling metropolis! AMEN!

BikesideLA's Alex Thompson fires up the Mass


Rollout

Regrouping at Olympic & Fairfax

Who's Escorting Whom?

Holding up on San Vicente



Entering Beverly Hills


Outside Beverly Hills Courthouse

Showing off on Hollywood Blvd

Gathering at CVS on Sunset

Recruiter for WNBR

Ironic collision outside Safety Cycle