I Love Riding in the City

NAME: Corey the Courier
LOCATION: Phila/NYC
OCCUPATION: Bicycle Messenger

Where do you live and what’s it like riding in your city?
I live in New York. It is an urban jungle in the extreme sense. Pedestrians litter the roadways like ants, cars and trucks drive aggressively to combat delays caused by jaywalkers.

What’s your favorite (or the most exotic) city you’ve ridden in, and what made it special or memorable?
Philadelphia has a 50-mile bike path that goes from the Museum of Art almost all the way to the Lehigh Valley Velodrome. Fairmount Park, the world’s largest in city park, contains the trails of Belmont Plateau and Wissahickon—perfect for
cyclocross or heavy-duty mountain biking. They have the annual pro-cycling race along Kelly Drive into Manyunk in Early June. Every year it’s always a jumbo biker party that stretches along the Schuykill River from Center City to Manyunk.

Why do you love riding in the city?
There’s always a chance you’ll see a friend on their bike or strolling along the street. You can appreciate more of the little details that make city life enjoyable more than a pedestrian or speeding vehicle driver.

The Acrobats Build A Ramp
By Andrew Trapp
For Vicente Lovato

The kids on my street were acrobats.
They were dirt clods and fistfights
And tightrope tops of fences.

When the bus stopped at the corner
In front of Vincent’s house, we’d scatter
Below garage doors and into refrigerators,
Or under doormats on damp cement.

After Kool-Aid or brown grass and dog poop,
We’d push shovels into holes for hideouts,
Or pedal and pull handlebars up gritty curbs.

From cannons of concrete block and splintered plywood,
Coaster brakes and seat posts and shinny grins
Fly and fail to gravel dirt and bleeding chin.