The year of 2005 has, for my family and I, been one in which we have become closer than ever before. My wife and I have finally found something, cycling, in which we all are interested in, and make it a vehicle by which we can take on our share of responsibility to impact positive change in our community. I feel good about that, because I think that is a responsibility of a father, as head of the family. It’s like I have taken another step towards being a more complete husband and father. It feels good to know that you are handling your responsibilities, don’t you agree?
But, as good as I may feel about that, I still have my own little insecurities about what is the right thing and wrong thing to do, as it pertains to those responsibilities. For instance, from the very beginning, my train of thought has been that I want to encourage people in the urban core to ride bicycles, young and old. And as we have worked successfully towards that, I find myself trying to figure the best way to go about that, responsibly. As the development of the Major Taylor Foundation of Greater Kansas City continues, we need your help in answering that question.
Think about this, the year 2005 was a great year for cycling in this country, and I think that the cycling community has made great strides in taking it’s place as a viable and visibly active part of this city. I look at some of the moving and shaking that has gone on with cycling advocacy; I see the racing scene become a tool for youth development thru area support. I have personally scene at least 30 people, who did not ride a bicycle before this year, begin to ride, love it, and have spread the word to others.
Now, I am happy about those 30 people, but I begin to consider my responsibility to them as they enter into the sport. Most are beginners beginner’s, or very young and uneducated on the nuances of riding a bicycle. How do I handle my responsibility of making sure that they are properly prepared to ride a bicycle, especially on the streets of this city? There is no one person that can be responsible for that, right?
Let’s be honest, with all the success we have had in cycling here in KC, overall, it has not been a very good year for riding a bicycle. We have had several cyclists, young and old, male and female, killed in riding accidents, along with several serious injuries thrown in. I still remember riding this summer with the Brookside group and following behind a speeding car that was harassing this guy in front of him, about to run him down…he ended up stopping short so that riders behind him crashed into the back of his car…and then took off. What about my friend, jr. racer John Shipman, who had some kids in an SUV try to hit him on a ride, and when they missed, backed up to try and get him again. I witnessed a drive-by shooting; while in the line of fire, during a night commute home in February. And I know that each of you have at least one story to add to these.
I think about my responsibility of encouraging others to ride in this city, knowing that for some of them, something bad could happen to them. I mean, we all know that riding seems to be safer here when we ride in groups, but what happens when new riders ride alone? And as I said before, we all have at least one story to tell about riding by ourselves. Obviously education is the first step, and consistent guidance is next, providing opportunities for riders to get acclimated to riding on the streets of KC, but is that it? I will continue to wrestle with this issue. I’ll let you know what I come up with, but I don’t know when.
Now, since I am on the subject of taking responsibility, let me move to an even more somber issue that, I think, should be mentioned by someone. Some of us are not able to speak on it, so I will speak for those who have wanted to. Some people try and stay away from issues like this one, but not me. And believe me, I only do this because it is the right thing to do.
Recently, a memorial ride was held for cyclist, Robert Osborne, who was senselessly gunned down while riding his bicycle during a commute. My three sons, Thomas, Christian and Josh met up with a group that was riding to the ride. We had a good ride and when we got there, people were already showing up. While waiting for the ride to start and to hear a few comments from the family, I noticed and talked with City Councilman Alvin Brooks, a black man, who had some comments and did a prayer for the ride. Once the ceremony began, there were probably 90 people in attendance.
That’s when it hit me. Outside of Mr. Brooks, my sons, and myself there were no other black folks in attendance. Okay, excuse me…this man, active in the community, family man, good person, etc, was gunned down by two African-American kids, for no reason other than they were “bored”. Somewhere along the way, those two kids and of course, Robert Osborne was let down by our community. And while Robert lost his life, those two boys have lost theirs too, in a way.
I am ashamed and upset as a black man to see that there were no others that look like me present at the memorial, to acknowledge that we take a measure of responsibility in the behavior of those who threaten the very lives of others. It hurts me to know that no one else from the African-American community thought about this and did something about it to show some measure of caring or concern. I can’t help thinking that given other positive supported options before this terrible thing happened; those two confused boys might have chosen something else, maybe even cycling, to do.
I made sure that we all introduced ourselves to the mourning family that were present, and even rode the entire with one of Robert Osborne’s brother. We talked about MTF maybe doing an event in the spring to honor Robert.
The Major Taylor Foundation of Greater Kansas City will begin, in 2006, to become a representative or ambassador of options, thru cycling, for individuals looking for them. We will step forward and accept the responsibility of making changes in the community, changes in our lives and the lives of others, and maybe we can stop things like this from happening.
Happy Holidays to you all, from all of us!