Campus unites to protest closing of Beer-Bike track for additional parking
In the first Beer-Bike, students rode around the Inner Loop. So when 30 students and Beer-Bike coordinators rode their bikes in the Inner Loop Friday to protest the closure of the Beer-Bike track, they were treading familiar ground.
The protest began at Willy’s statue where protestors signed a petition to open the track, which is closed until January.
Wiess College senior Brandon Chalifoux said he organized the protest as a peaceful way of calling attention to the closure of the track and a way to speak to the staff about keeping the track open.
“We didn’t want to make it seem like we were trying to be negative,” Chalifoux said. “We decided we would run a friendly protest ride to show we have student support and there are more than just two or three people who want to use the track.”
Chalifoux said he spoke to Director of Administrative Services Eugen Radulescu on Tuesday about keeping the track open. Chalifoux said he wants the administration to either move the construction parking to West Lot or to put up stop signs to allow parking and bikers on the track.
Radulescu said moving the parking for construction workers to the student parking lots would complicate the gated parking lot system. He said using the track for biking and parking might be a viable option, though he does not predict the track opening before next semester. He said not enough students use the track now to justify keeping it open for the year.
Wiess junior Patricia Ladd, who participated in the protest, said she will miss the bike track.
“Everytime I pass by, there’s someone on [the track],” Ladd said. “People from the neighborhood use the track, so it’s not just Rice people who use it.”
Although it was a physical workout for all involved, Ladd said the protest brought the bikers together in their goal.
“We rode around the Inner Loop, and when we saw people on bikes we would scream, ‘Join us!’ and tried to sing songs of solidarity, like Queen’s Bicycle Race,” she said. “I’m angry about it being closed, but I also like sticking it to the man.”
Radulescu said if no change occurs, the track is still scheduled to open the first week of classes in January. After Beer-Bike, if more construction parking is needed, the track will again be closed.
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