Ride of Silence will honor bicyclists

BOARDMAN -- Bicyclists of all ages are invited to participate in the Mahoning Valley edition of the national Ride of Silence, which will be at 7 p.m. May 17.
The ride will begin near Chili's outside Southern Park Mall and cover 12 miles, according to spokeswoman Janice JanJanin. The riders will ride in silence to mourn cyclists killed by collisions with motor vehicles and to raise awareness of cyclists on roadways, she said.
Riders all over the country will participate in similar rides that day, she said. The first Ride of Silence was organized in Dallas in 2003 after endurance cyclist Larry Schwartz was killed by a passing bus mirror on an empty road.
The Ride of Silence is a free ride that asks its cyclists to ride no faster than 12 mph and remain silent during the ride.
The ride also requests black arm bands be worn, red if you have had a bike/motor vehicle accident, JanJanin said.
Chris Phelan, who is organizing the nationwide ride, can be reached at coachphelan@rideofsilence.org.
For local ride information, the Web site is www.rideofsilence.org. Follow the location link to Ohio, or contact Dan DeSalvo at (330) 770-3458.