where's the box

This week my bike club listserv once again debated where and where not to ride on the west side of Chicago. The conversation started when a cyclist who's new in town asked for advice on how to ride between Oak Park and downtown Chicago.

This is an eternal topic for our bike club. We are often asked for route advice along these lines. I always urge caution about riding through Chicago's west side for the simple reason that there have been many real, dangerous, documented incidents in which cyclists, both men and women, have been attacked. Some have been quite seriously injured. I recently had a conversation with an Oak Park man who was beaten up on his ride home from the Loop - just because he happened to be there when someone's impulse to violence took over. Last year a young man was killed in an apparently random, opportunistic attack.

I am not a fearful rider, have never personally had a problem, and I do ride alone quite a bit. But I'm sure I look like an easy target. So I am careful about where and when I ride. I respect the choices that other cyclists make as well. If you know what the risks are, and you choose to ride where I would not go, I am glad you are braver than I am. I wish you well. Maybe your being there makes those neighborhoods safer somehow - I hope so.

The title of this post is "where's the box." I realized as I wrote my own response to the newcomer cyclist's query on our listserv that I have a mental map of Chicago with a box on it, outlined approximately by North Ave, Austin, the Ike, and Western Ave. I stay out of that box unless I am with experienced riders who are confident of the route.