Ridership history
From San Jose Bike Party Wiki
It's really nice to get a decent count of the ridership of Bike Party just for historical purposes and seeing our own fun statistics...but it's hard to do. Sign up to volunteer before the ride, and if you can, do a count at some point on the ride!
Contents |
How to count ridership
Where to count
You will need to get near the very front of the ride, and realize that by the time you're done counting, you'll be at the very back of the ride. Good spots are places where the ride is spread out enough for you to count effectively (huge crowds are really difficult), and well-lit enough for you to see clearly:
- about 1-2 mi after a regroup
- bottlenecks: anywhere the ride has to go through a narrow passage or up a hill/overpass
- just ahead of a streetlight
- at the leading edge of a straight section with visibility for a few hundred meters
Keep in mind WHERE in the ride you are counting. The count will be higher if it's earlier in the ride, in most circumstances, and lower later on, since many people drop out as the ride goes on. This is fine...just get a good count wherever you can, and every time you tell someone what the count was, tell where/when in the ride the count was taken.
How to keep count
There are many methods, but here are some we've tried:
- Use a physical counter (like at amusement parks) or a counter app on your phone/PDA.
- Get a buddy: 1 person counts individual riders up to 50 or 100, the other partner tracks what multiple of 50/100 the count is at.
- You may or may not want to make it obvious that you're counting.
- People like to know what number they are when they know you're counting
- Some people feel a juvenile urge to mess up your counting by shouting random numbers...not sure what their motivation is here.
- If people aren't sure what you're doing, they might keep asking if you need help (wonderful helpfulness!) - you might just say you're waiting for a friend if you don't want to say you're counting.
Approximate Bike Party ridership estimates, by month
1st year
- October 2007 - 25 Super Hero Ride
- November 2007 - 30
- December 2007 - 30
- January 2008
- February 2008
- March 2008 - 45?
- April 2008
- May 2008
- June 2008 - 100?
- July 2008
- August 2008 - 150?
- September 2008
2nd year
- October 2008 - 200, in time for our one-year anniversary!
- November 2008 - 250?
- December 2008 - over 100 on a cold evening in the holiday season with morning rain
- January 2009 - 319 counted Mustache Theme.
- February 2009 - 350-375 Mardi Gras Theme.
- March 2009 - 500 Psychedelic Robot Theme.
- April 2009 - 500-800
- May 2009 - 1000 confirmed by 2 independent counts (1006 vs 1015) at Mary Ave bridge (halfway), after a rough-guess count (by 20's) had estimated 800. Moral: good counting matters.
- June 2009 - 1605
- July 2009 - 2400+
- August 2009 - 3500 estimated by CBS channel 5 at start; 2200 counted 1mi after final regroup.
- September 2009 - 1700 counted <1mi from finish; over 2000 estimated.
3rd year
- October 2009 - 4000+!
- 4029 counted with thumb-counter at Los Padres and Anna on approach to 1st Regroup, not counting 300-500 estimated who arrived via Scott Ave
- 2500 counted at Wolfe & Valco entrance on approach to 2nd Regroup, including those who came after 2nd regroup ended.
- November 2009 - 600 (450 counted at Capitol & Snell, 50+ to have arrived separately at Velodrome, plus some late joiners and uncounted groups...confirmed by another count of 450 right after the IBM Ranac park regroup with some groups leaving early/staying late at the regroup.
- December 2009 - 950 (counted at Central & Westfield)
- January 2010 - 1200 counted at the moderate/steep split
- February 2010 - 1200 counted at Winchester Domes
- March 2010 - 2200
- April 2010 - 1600
- May 2010 - 1400 counted at Jacklin and Escuela Parkway in Milpitas
- June 2010 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- July 2010 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- August 2010 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- September 2010 - 2800 counted leaving regroup #1
4th year
- October 2010 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- November 2010 - Soggy & Miserable ride in Almaden! 500 counted at the start, estimated 300 before 1st regroup, estimated <150 by finish.
- December 2010 - cold & damp, but not pouring like November - estimated 300-500, no formal count.
- January 2011 - 1050 leaving the start
- February 2011 - raining, about 80 people, but still had a joust!
- March 2011 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- April 2011 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- May 2011 - ~ 1,500-2000 riders
- June 2011 - 2,700 riders
- July 2011 - 3,000 riders
- August 2011 - 3,500 riders
- September 2011 - (hit edit to enter your count!)
- October 2011 - Happy 4th Birthday SJBP! 4,100 riders
- November 2011 - 500 riders
