infrastructure is only half the story. The
other half is the people. Unlike engineer-
ing accomplishments and master plans,
the origins of which can always be traced
to a concept draft, human passions and
the collective consciousness of a com-
munity are altogether more enigmatic.
Culture shifts, trends, the communal
sharing of ambition; though the causes
are hard to document, their impacts can
be profound, and in few places is this
more demonstrable than the booming
bike culture of Detroit.
K’Loni Thorpe describes it as a “take
the initiative” culture. It’s the perfect
description of a simple idea that cap-
tures the spirit that now exists in Detroit
and is as palpable today as once was the
soot pollution and factory emissions.
Confronted by a vacuum of civic man-
agement, a new generation
of Detroiters is embracing a
unique mix of entrepreneur-
ship and collective action to
create the city they want to see
and be a part of.
“
We take what we love,”
Thorpe continues. “We love
to bike, and we love to eat
good food, and so we are
making it happen.” She is
referring to Detroit Bike and
Brunch, a company/event/
social movement that Thorpe
founded with her husband
and a friend in 2012, which
is based around the simple
idea of getting together on
the weekend to ride to local
restaurants. Two years later,
those casual jaunts with a
handful of friends have grown
to a calendar of regular rides,
a burgeoning community of
customers and followers, and
a small local promotion and
management staff. According
to Marketing Director Brandi
Keeler, Bike and Brunch is as
much a product of Detroit’s
growing bike culture as a cata-
lyst for it.
“
I think the city is in the middle of a
really big change,” Keeler says. “You know
how Harlem had a renaissance? Well, this
is Detroit’s renaissance, right now.”
That optimism, and a fervent belief
that a new Detroit should be shaped by
the people who live there, also character-
izes another remarkable new expression of
Detroit’s bike culture.
Like Bike and Brunch, Slow Roll
started with modest ambitions but soon
captured the rising swell of energy for
biking and local exploration.
“
It started with just a small group of
friends and people we knew, about 10
of us, who wanted to explore the city by
bike,” says Mike MacKool, co-founder
of what is now one of Michigan’s biggest
bike events. Emerging from local bike
nerve centers like The Hub and Back
Alley Bikes, grassroots buzz has turned
this casual Monday night ride into a phe-
nomenon involving up to 1,600 riders
exploring neighborhoods, art projects,
community gardens, historic buildings
and local businesses.
The appeal is clear: a diversity of expe-
riences, and inclusivity.
“
Slow Roll is for everyone,” the
founders proclaim on their website. “All
ages and types of bikes, with a slow pace
that’s geared to keep everyone together
and safe.”
The “take the initiative” culture is
proving fertile soil for many grassroots
bike efforts across the city, few more dedi-
cated than Brush Park BMX, downtown
Detroit’s first hand-built DIY (do it your-
self ) BMX playground.
Completely volunteer built and
funded (“Bring a shovel, dig
to ride. Respect the neighbor-
hood. Take pride in your city.
Be the change!”), Brush Park’s
construction was started by
a group of friends in April
of last year—a form of guer-
rilla development by people
who see a world of possibility
where others might see just
the detritus of decline.
“
It energizes you, and it
gives you hope,” Patricia Bosch
says of the growing movement
in Detroit around trails and
greenways, biking and walking.
“
And hope is the important
ingredient. It generates the
buzz that
Detroit is not a bad
place, and
is actually an invit-
ing place for people of all ages,
of all nationalities, all ethnic
groups, to come and be a part
of this movement to make it a
better place, and have fun here.
That’s what we actually feel in
our hearts, as residents.”
Jake Lynch is RTC’s marketing and
media manager and the former
editor-in-chief of
Rails to Trails
magazine.
Map Illustration
by Danielle Marks
Danielle Marks Design
364
Lakev ew Drive
Hartfield, VA 23071-3110
804 238-1539
dmmarks@va.metrocas
danielle@daniellemarks
www.daniellemarks.co
All artwork © 2014
Danielle M rks
375
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detroit
drydocks
general
motors
ambassador
bridge
detroit-
windsor
tunnel
1
10
3
Mt.
Elliott
Park
Belle Isle
N
O N T A R I O
(
C a n a d a )
detroit
M I C H I G A N
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v
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CANADA
Cass Ave.
Kirby St.
Wilkins St.
Brush St.
Rosa Parks Blvd.
Mack Ave.
Atwater St.
Jefferson Ave.
John R St.
Canfield St.
Eight Mile Rd.
Stephens Rd.
Van Dyke Ave.
Outer Dr.
Connor St.
St. Jean St.
Clairpointe St.
St. Aubin St.
Map for reference only.
Not for navigation.
connor creek
greenway
completed / 6 miles
under
construction / 3 miles
midtown loop
Key to Trails
map illustration
by daniellemarks.com
phase 1 / .85 miles
phase 2 / .72 miles
dequindre cut
phase 1 / .95 miles
phase 2 / .45 miles
riverwalk
completed / 3.5 miles
phase 3 / .52 miles
phase 4 / 1.17 miles
rails
to
trails
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