Update: The mayor showed up around 7:25 and collected a peloton worthy of the Tour de France (in numbers anyway!) for the ride up Dexter and downtown to City Hall. I counted 200 in the group departing from the Fremont Bridge, about 150 at Denny and down further as the riders strung out through downtown.

Overall, the number of cyclists downtown felt lighter than last year, though. The weather was about the same, so something else is going on. We’ll wait for final numbers later today from Cascade Bicycle Club and see what its analysis is.

Mayor Mike McGinn's rolling press conference at the Fremont Bridge.

By contrast, the rally downtown blew off the doors compared to last year, at least triple the turnout. The Mayor and other dignitaries gave short enough speeches to leave enough time for a group photo at the end.

A rousing conclusion to the Bike To Work Day rally at City Hall.

Washington State again No. 1 ranked of “Bicycle Friendly” states by the League of American Bicyclists.

Word continues to get out that Seattle has a cycling mayor. We prefer to state it as: Although other cities have mayors who ride and who support cycling, Seattle has the ONLY bike-commuting mayor.

GoMeansGo dug up a funny video on cyclists’ rights from the mid-1990s (I’m guessing late spring 1997). (Thanks to Eric Stobin for the tip.)

Yes there is such a thing as an organic bike.

Is bicycling the new golf? I dunno … is Red Bull the new double martini?

One more reason why I’m buying a new set of Easton Haven carbon wheels no matter how much they cost!

We’ve been posting in Questionland on The Stranger, where the topic of the week is bikes.

Another Drunk Cyclist gives up the bottle on DrunkCyclist.com. Also see the profile on the transformation of Big Jonny in the June issue of Mountain Bike magazine as well (not online).

Thanks to Lance and Levi for donating their Tour of California bikes to a great cause.

Kudos as well to Trips for Kids, which pulled in $25,000 for its bike commute challenge.

Anthill Films’ new “Follow Me” DVD is finally out and available to the general public!

Woo hoo! At Bike to Work Day in San Francisco yesterday, bikes accounted for three-quarters of morning roadway traffic on Market Street.

Proof that bike thieves aren’t any smarter than other thieves, especially when they’re whacked out on drugs.

Happy Birthday to Kidical Mass, and watch for ‘em on Bike to Work Day at the after-party in Ballard.

Oakland Local covers the Bicycle Commuter of the Year. “I hated being in the car and I thought there’s no way I’m ever going to do this job without a car.” That changed a year and a half ago, when a friend offered to loan her an old bike trailer…

Re bicycling on sidewalks: Yes, it’s typically not safe. But it can be safer than riding in a congested street with no shoulders, let alone bike lanes. I ride on sidewalks all the time — slowly, carefully — when the alternative is becoming road jelly at the hands of impatient inner city drivers. Generally I have only one rule governing bike commuting: Stay alive. It puts all the other rules in a proper perspective.

And wouldn’t the rules be all the easier to follow if drivers and cyclists were simply more humane about each other?

Fabien Barel, one of downhill racing’s classiest pros, is out indefinitely with a busted femur. That has to hurt. Get well soon bro!

There never was anything more than a glimmer of doubt, but it’s confirmed that Galbraith Mountain will remain open to mountain biking despite the recent change of ownership.

Up in Vancouver B.C., Velopalooza is looking like a real hoot (June 4 through 13).

And at the same time, the North Shore Bike Fest will be going on June 4-6.

We have one question for anyone who refuses to sell a bike patch repair kit to a kid on grounds the adhesive could make him high: What are you sniffing??

Niner Bikes is recalling its widely reviewed, highly praised and decent-selling Jet 9 for potential cracks on the front-triangle welds. Yes, it’s so much cheaper to build bikes in Taiwan. And this is what we get.

Sometimes it’s better to take care of the bike fix right when you notice it. You might save a life … or two!

Have a great weekend everyone! It’s supposed to be sunny and warm, even in Seattle!