They meet at Heinrichplatz and finish there as well so although I had missed the start, I thought it would be a challenge to make it too the end, how far could they go... So we were a mass group of maybe 500-700 bikes going through the streets of Berlin. The law here says that if a large group of bicycles enter an intersection on a green light then all the members of the group are allowed to follow along even if it turns red so the group is not split up. The law also stated that if you have a large event (protest/parade/march etc) that you should register it with the police so they can close streets and manage traffic. These events have no organizer so the police have no real ability to shut it down unless they commandeer loads of police cars, surround the group and force everyone onto the bike lane. They have better things to do.
We left the east side and headed for Charlottenburg and the glitzy west of Kurfurstendamm. Shutting down Ku'damm was fun and turned a lot or tourists heads. Turning right off of Ku'damm we went under the Sbahn train and up to Charlottenburg Palace. After turning left we passed the Palace and started the long run up to Spandau. Looking ahead up the hill was like watching the life blood of the city, all those blinking red tail lights energetically swimming with singular purpose, be visible to the motorized world, clearing the streets of cars to make our presence known. Conversely, looking back was a sea of white lights as the tail of our human powered group left a clear white trail.
On the way to Spandau in the west we pass an industrial area with the eerie sight of a Nuclear reactor. Now in the darkness it seemed almost traquil when not thinking about the cost of such technology. Surging past this we entered Spandau and went right past city hall to the old Zitadelle castle fortifications. However, before we got that far we hit a large traffic circle (round about). This was a highlight of the trip as by the time I got there it was completely full all around and cars were stopped from entering. A red and white ring running with the soundtrack of peddals and techno from the bike mounted sound systems. I did one long lap before we were directed out and back towards the east.
I've been meaning to head out to Spandau to see the Zitadelle fortification and we went right past it but due to the dark and vibe of the group I missed it, something the size of, well, a castle. As we headed back east we passed the north side of the Nuclear power station. This enormous cooling tower belching steam was now back-lit by a full moon, another moment I wish I had my camera. A few kilometers on, we were "guided" but the police (appearing every now and then) away from the autobahn and back down to Charlottenburg. Following the canal that pairs up with the palace again we headed down to the Zoologischer garten. The natural flow took us through the heart of Mitte, past the city hall and north.
Now entering Prenzlauer Burg we buzzed baby carriages, BMW's and yuppies out for a Friday night cocktail. Along the way Trams were packed with partiers as they watched us flow past the Sbahn and out to Weissensee. From there the route meandered its way towards Marzahn via streets named Allee der Kosmonauten which hearkened back to the Soviet era. Turning west again we headed towards Ostkreuz station and sailed over the bridge to Alt Treptow. I had considering turning back at a few points but pushed on however at this point we were down to about 100 riders. I sensed the home stretch now as we turned right towards Kreuzberg. I think it was about 4 hours later when we arrived in the buzzing Heinrichplatz bar scene. Everyone raised their bikes over their heads in a cheer of triumph for the few that persevered. Each small group or individual melted back into the Friday night crowd to refuel for the August run.
I tried to track the route from memory on google maps and promptly crashed it as there is an arbitrary limit to the number of pins and destinations you can enter. In any event this was the rough route, about 65km:
Ciao
Andy
