EDGEWATER – Riding a bike can be a different activity to just about anyone who gets on one.
For some, it’s a way to get out into nature and trek over hilly, rugged terrain. For others, a bike is an eco-friendly way to get to the store. Some like to push themselves to new distances or speeds: those riders would fit right in with the Edgewater pedalers.
Not every rider is looking for steep inclines or 30-plus mile odysseys, though. That’s something Judy Baggio understands. That’s why she started Slow Spokes.
Slow Spokes is – as its name suggests – a slower-paced group tailored for those who have not been on a bike in a while, have gone through physically straining medical procedures, or are too busy to commit to regular long rides.
Members of Edgewater’s Slow Spokes bicycle group get ready for a morning ride on July 18. (Mason Souza/Sun Day Photo)
Baggio came up with Slow Spokes in 2007 while joining on 10-mile-plus rides with the Pedalers. She and friend Terri Acosta felt something was needed for more casual riders.
“We talked about, gee, we need to have another group that would maybe just stay around Edgewater because we knew some people that didn’t want to go outside Edgewater,” Baggio said.
And so the Slow Spokes got rolling in 2008. The group has fluctuated in membership since its inception, but that’s all part of its fluid nature. Today the riders meet every Thursday (weather permitting) and riders go for between five to eight miles.
Though they most often stay in Edgewater, the Slow Spokes have ventured out of the neighborhood north through Longcommon Parkway, south across Bowes Road, and East across Randall Road to Elgin Community College.
Members are never pressured to push themselves and can always rest or turn back if they are tired.
“This has got to be fun; if this isn’t fun, then what’s the point?” Baggio said.
The Slow Spokes do take safety very seriously, however. Members are required to wear a helmet in order to ride, and Baggio recommends they bring water, a cell phone, a driver’s license, and a copy of insurance just in case.
“When we ride, we always have someone who leads the group and someone who – we call them the sweeper – and they are at the end of the group,” she said.
This formation helps keep a steady pace, but also ensures that the group is always aware if someone has stopped or needs to slow down.
The communal rides help encourage members to go farther than they thought possible on their own, Baggio added.
“I guess because I’m a party person, I do like the socialization, and the few times that I’ve gone with [the Pedalers], I’ve been just amazed at how much farther I was able to ride just because I was in the group,” Baggio said.
Baggio hopes to better connect the two cycling groups by getting Slow Spokes riders to tag along for a portion of the Pedalers’ longer rides. She said some of her riders have built up enough stamina to participate fully in the Pedalers group.
Slow Spokes member Anita Reid called Edgewater a bike-friendly community with its light traffic and wide roads.
“In the evening you see a lot of people just riding around by themselves,” she said.
“A lot of times if somebody has a partner, well, they’ve got someone to do it with,” Baggio said. “But if you’re alone, it’s a good way to meet people that like to do something that you like to do.”
Reid hopes to encourage those riders to come try a group ride without feeling they have to commit or push themselves.
“They should feel free to just ride,” she said.
