Today was an excellent day for our annual Five Boro Bike tour family outing. The wife and I have done this every year together for a least the last ten years. My son started riding with us in 2010. This was his fourth trip with us. This year was very different because this was the first major public event since the bombing of the Boston Marathon a few weeks back.
The police presence was overwhelming. There were numerous checkpoints throughout the course. I even spotted a few police snipers on rooftops along the tour route. There were a number of changes from previous years. For one, riders were not allowed to carry any backpacks because of the potential for a copycat bomber. I even decided not to use the brand new water pack that the wife gave me for Christmas because I was nervous about being stopped and having the water pack confiscated.
However, despite the negativity lingering from the Boston bombing, we had a good time. Still I have yet to get my daughter to join us. She likes to sleep in on Sundays.