TOLEDO, Ohio —
Ride of Silence organizers are getting ready for a local event with a worldwide mission: honoring people killed while riding their bicycles.
It's a mission to honor cyclists, remembering the hundreds of lives lost each year. Toledo has taken part in the global event for just over a decade.
But things will look a little different this time around as the event goes virtual and promotes social distancing.
"Just asking cyclists to take their own solo ride or with their family group unit and take the time to be by themselves to remember,” Toledo Ride of Silence Coordinator Keith Webb said.
They aim to remember the men, women, and children killed or hurt while biking and to raise awareness and remind drivers to share the road.
"We have the right to be out on the road watch out for us we are considered a vulnerable user kind of a pedestrian because we don't have a car around us so we're just asking for drivers to give us the same respect of other users of the roadway" added Webb.
Webb added 25 people died on a bike ride last year in Ohio, including people from our community.
"Two of them close to home, we had a gentleman killed here on Dorr (Street) in Toledo and also a fatality in Findlay,” Webb said.
Webb said this is more than something he's working to put together - it's personal.
"A friend of mine was killed in Tennessee when I live right outside of Knoxville back in 2006, the cycling community is really like a family and we try to all watch out for each other” Webb said.
The neighboring cities participating in the Ride of Silence is Bowling Green and Findlay.
If you or anyone you know would like to ride next year, you can follow We Are Traffic on Facebook for upcoming events.
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