MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) – It was ok to play in the streets of Myrtle Beach Sunday, as some roads were closed off at the Market Common for first ever “open streets” event in the city.
Organizers put it together to show people that being active, can also be fun.
Cyclovia Myrtle Beach allowed bicyclists the chance to ride on car-free streets, learn about biking safety, and go on guided group rides.
The event also featured fitness classes like zumba and cross fit, to get people out and enjoying the outdoors.
“We’re going to go bike riding on a beautiful day,” said Lisa Paulson.
Paulson went out to Cyclovia to scratch off a bucket list item- riding an electric bike.
“It was speedy, really fast. You get tired of peddling, just kick in the juice and zoom,” she said of the experience.
Jeffery Elmore’s day was a bit more physically demanding, he joined cyclists for an eight mile ride, on his skate board.
“They were cheering me on. They didn’t think i could make it the whole way, but you know, I liked the positive energy. Surrounded by a bunch of these people so it was amazing,” he said.
Elmore says he enjoyed the freedom of the open road and hopes to see more of the city open up, “I think that should be a big part of the community where people walk the streets instead of having cars flood it all the time.”
It’s an idea that is gaining popularity around the world, inspired by the Cyclovia in Bogota, Columbia
“They’ve been doing this for 20 years, they close down 70 miles of their streets, and they have 2 million people come out every week,” said Rich Griffith, who helped organize the event.
“This area is leading the pack in the Myrtle Beach,” said Aaron Maynard, the owner of Pedego Electric Bikes in the Market Common.
Maynard organizes bike rides throughout the year and sees areas he’d like to see improved.
“It would be lovely to have a path from market common all the way down to the board walk area,” said Maynard.
The city has a bicycle and pedestrian committee that is currently looking at connectivity issues so that people can ride a long way in a safe environment.
The committee was at the event with a map for people to write suggestions on.
According to Chairman, Bill Pritchard, “we’re going to take those up as part of our considerations going forward.”
Pritchard says having bike paths connect popular destinations, “makes us a more complete community than if we were just auto driven.”
Organizers say they hope to bring the Cyclovia back to Myrtle Beach next fall, and are even hopeful for a spring time event in downtown Myrtle Beach.
The Myrtle Beach bicycle and pedestrian committee next meets on Tuesday, Nov. 3, to go over safety regulations.
