Friendly hand gestures only at Courteous Mass in Dayton

A Courteous Mass flyer in Dayton.

I ended up in Dayton, Ohio—home of the Wright Brothers Bicycle Company—over the fourth of July holiday.  The most remarkable aspect of the trip (other than seeing Katherine's new work, of course): the extraordinary politeness of the Daytonians that I met. While I was buying toothpaste in CVS, for example, the cashier not only made eye contact but actually held the corners of my receipt as I signed it. I certainly can't remember the last time a cashier in Washington has done anything of the sort. 

And apparently it's not just the cashiers. Dayton is home to one of just a handful of Courteous Mass rides in the country, the demure cyclist's response to the sometimes rowdy Critical Mass rides that take place across cities on the last Friday of the month. Courteous Mass riders are encouraged to follow all traffic laws during the ride, discouraged from "corking" intersections, and make only "friendly" hand signals to motorists. The group's home page explains why:

Why? Because Critical Mass tactics amount to civil disobedience - a time honored way to protest denial of rights. But in Ohio, cyclists already have all the rights we need to bike the streets. We don't need to protest; we need to be visible and respected. Courteous Mass stands for the proposition that sharing the road is a two way street, and if we demonstrate our good will and our numbers, motorists will respect and expect to see cyclists.

Courteous Mass also has active chapters in Boston and Atlanta.  Video and a photo of a Courteous Mass Dayton rides below:

Courteous Mass Dayton Ohio from Andy Snow on Vimeo.