Peaceful along the Detroit River

Frequently, I take advantage of the early sunrise by riding out to Detroit’s gem of a park, Belle Isle. The large island park is centrally located in the middle of the Detroit River and is generally packed with thousands of people on hot, summer afternoons. But in the early morning it is quite calm. There are few picnickers, smoking barbeques are noticeably absent, and loud music rolling out of the small picnic sheds is non-existent. Thankfully, there isn’t the bumper-to-bumper traffic that slowly cruises the five-mile loop around the island, with bone-shaking music blasting, as is normally the case on warm weather afternoons.

The early morning calmness is refreshing and soothing. It’s as if the island hasn’t awakened from its nightly rest. Biking across the half-mile bridge on those crystal clear mornings, with the rising eastern sun lighting the Detroit skyline, is an invigorating ride. The tall downtown buildings seem to take on a golden, reddish glow, as does the Ambassador Bridge that spans the Detroit River to Canada, just beyond downtown. The river itself appears to be a much brighter blue in the morning and is generally smooth as glass.

A view of the Detroit skyline from the Belle Isle Bridge

Once on Belle Isle, it’s common to see other bike riders or groups of riders circling the outer island. Numerous joggers and a few walkers (some with dogs) are also out there enjoying the peacefulness of the early morning hours. Others are out there at their special spot, sitting and relaxing in lawn chairs or on blankets, watching massive thousand-foot ore carriers as they silently slide by, like bats in the twilight sky.

Thousand-foot ore carrier heading downriver

I cherish the serenity of the island in those early morning hours where, on occasion, I see herons and swans in the inner ponds. I’ve also spotted wild turkeys on the side of the roads, and there are always plenty of ducks and geese. The river itself is always soothing to me. I especially like watching the Detroit Boat Club Crew members pulling on the oars of their sleek rowing boats as they effortlessly glide across the ripple-free water. The calmness I feel out there as I ride along the edge Detroit River is the perfect counter balance to the harsh realities of the city.

Two-person rowing boat off the tip of Belle Isle

Detroit Boat Club Crew Members taking advantage of the calm waters of the Detroit River

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Detroit Grand Prix on a Bike

No, I didn’t race my bike in the Grand Prix, and I didn’t see any other bicyclists out on the Belle Isle racetrack this past Sunday. In fact, bikes weren’t allowed inside the race venue at all.  Imagine that? So I did the next best thing and checked out the Grand Prix from the outside looking in. I did so on my bike, a perfect means of transportation for an event of this size; an event that was spread over many acres on the west end of the island.

I was there for the early practice sessions on Sunday morning, a few hours before the actual race.  Not many fans had arrived yet, but they were slowly working their way to the island via shuttle buses or by walking across the Belle Isle Bridge. Once on the island, race fans were being funneled through security checkpoints at the entrances before heading to their grandstand seats.

Race fans on their way to the track entrance

Since I didn’t have a ticket, I rode along the eastern boundary of the fenced off area to see if I could find an open view of the track. The miles of cement barriers and chain linked fencing lining the track were covered with advertising banners, making it almost impossible to get a look at the race cars humming by. Fortunately, there were a few cutouts in the banners that were being used by professional photographers, and race personnel. It was at these openings where I was able to get a glimpse of the cars.

These guys never flinched as the cars sped past

Sort of like drapes pulled back for a view of the outside world

The cars flew by during the morning practice session

As I pedaled along the perimeter of the course, I spotted cameramen perched high on lifts. They were filming the speedy Indy cars as they sped around the winding track at speeds well over one hundred miles-per-hour. The live video was being shown on giant TV screens that were strategically placed along the track.

The camera and operator was in constant motion

The giant TV screen faced a section of the grandstands across the track

Cutting across a grassy area of the island park, I came across an auto corral. In that roped off area were a number of sports and classic cars. They were all perfectly lined up, like dominos on a table top. In that section of the park I saw spotless Ferrari’s, a variety of Porsches, Ford Mustangs, vintage Corvettes, Cadillacs, and sporty Camaros. Unfortunately, there were no vintage bicycles, just one outfitted with a battery operated motor, silently rolling by.

Classic 1954 Corvette

A sleek, black Ferrari, one of few that were parked on the lawn

As I rode my bike across the Belle Island Bridge to the Detroit mainland later that morning, I couldn’t help but think of the brutal contrast between the city’s huge deficit and the millions of dollars spent by private companies to put the auto race together.

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