The Light Up the Night Ride is a slow-rolling, 6.4-mile social ride through downtown Cary designed to build and expand the bicycling community in Cary. We encourage participation by beginners and families with children who have good control of their bikes and can follow simple safety instructions. As a no-drop ride, we match the speed of the slowest participants, which is typically around 11-12 miles per hour.
We meet in front of the Wake County Regional Library/Downtown Cary Park at 7:00 PM and roll out at 7:05. We start with a 1-mile loop near the heart of downtown that allows participants to stop early if they like. We then continue with an additional 5.4 mile route that explores more neighborhoods within the Maynard loop. We end at the parking lot behind the Ivey-Ellington House at 308/310 S. Academy Street across from the Downtown Cary Park. From there, the group will select an ice cream shop or other family-friendly destination to socialize after the ride.
All ride participants should bring front (white) and rear (red) lights for their bikes as required by state law; most of the year it will be dark by the end of the ride or the social. Helmets are mandatory for kids and strongly recommended for adults; falls are always a possibility when riding in close proximity to other bicyclists. Our ride takes place on low-speed streets open to normal mixed traffic and participants are expected to follow the basic rules of the road including riding on the right half of the roadway and stopping at red lights and stop signs.* If traffic or a signal change divides the group, the leader will stop the front of the group at the side of the road until the rest can rejoin. We also have a “sweep” rider who follows at the back of the group to assist anyone who falls behind for any reason including mechanical trouble.
We hope you’ll join us downtown and discover how easy and enjoyable it can be to explore downtown Cary by bike.
– Cary on Bikes
*This ride is designed to teach best bicycling practices to children who are still learning how traffic works. The leading cause of serious injury collisions to NC bicyclists under age 16 is the bicyclist running a stop sign or red light. Stopping gives a bicyclist more time to see and judge traffic while in a position with good vantage. While adult bicyclists with seasoned traffic skills and awareness are very rarely injured by rolling slowly through stop signs, our focus on this ride is teaching reliable habits to kids as their traffic skills develop.