By Marla Crockett, KERA Reporter
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-492960.mp3
Dallas, TX – Marla Crockett, KERA 90.1 Reporter:
It's about 6:00 on Sunday night, and members of the Bike Party are starting to gather across from the Magnolia Theater in the West Village for their weekly ride. Since July, they've come from all over, often at the urging of their friends:
Members of the Bike Party: It's always different, every ride. I love all things bike related, it's a way to hang out with people of similar interests.
Crockett: The 26 young, mostly single professionals are here thanks to
Donovan Dawson, owner of Uptown Cycles: Donovan Dawson, a.k.a., the Cycle Pimp.
Crockett: Dawson is 34 and a former commodities trader. About a year ago, he decided to sell his car, and follow his passion for bicycles, which had been nurtured as a kid in Houston area bike shops. He'll open his own store in the neighborhood in April.
Dawson: With the anxiety of opening up a cycling shop and realizing there really was no cycling culture. I had a bunch of bikes shipped to me from the manufacturers and said let me at least get people out and we can all be in a group and have a good time, discover a new neighborhood. It kind of organically happened.
Crockett: He picks a different route every week.
Dawson: My strategy is to keep people interested in coming back. People are somewhat shocked as far as how quickly they can get to or officially around this downtown area. We're going to ride tonight through the Highland Park area and check out some Christmas lights, then whittle our way back to Uptown in the St. Thomas area. So, I'd say less than a 10-mile loop.
Dawson: Okay, everybody ready? Bells and sirens.
Crockett: So, we're off. Ken Pixley, a marketing manager from Oak Cliff, has decorated his bike for the occasion:
Ken Pixley: I ran a battery pack and ran two strings of Christmas lights on the frame of my bike. 'Tis the season to be jolly.
Crockett: There's no spandex here, the pace is leisurely, and several of the bicycles are collectors' items from the 30's and 40's. It's all part of what Dawson calls a subculture of fun.
Dawson: 'Course we had a costume party on our bikes. Ooh, make a right. There are good lights on this street. I was thinking we might get on our bikes and have whitey tighty nighty, get on our bikes and ride in our underwear just for a block or two to ring in the new year.
Crockett: Every week the group makes two stops. First, at a local watering hole for 1 drink. Helen Chaney, a recent Urban Planning graduate, is a relative newcomer to the group. She likes the bike culture Dawson's trying to promote:
Helen Chaney: I'm living in North Dallas and plan to move closer to the Uptown area, because it affords you the opportunity to walk and bike places. It's becoming more of an attractive characteristic for people when looking for housing, to be someplace where they can get around using alternative modes of travel.
Crockett: Back on the road, motorists are generally respectful of the large pack, which by this time--after 8 o'clock-- is getting hungry. So, the next stop is a pizza place a few more miles down the road in Dallas's St. Thomas neighborhood. Dawson picks up the tab for the food. He's got a relationship with the restaurant and the bar we just visited and gets discounts, but it's all part of his plan:
Dawson: I come from a business background, economics specifically. Economics is the science of incentive, so how do I get someone to ride a bike? I get you out to meet cool people and fill your belly, why not?
Crockett: He might not get rich doing this, Dawson muses, but at least he'll have a lot of friends. For KERA 90.1, I'm MC Bike Party member: Ride over, boo.
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