PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — On a pleasant Wednesday evening, a few dozen friends set out for a bike ride through downtown St. Petersburg.
But the ride wasn't so pleasant for John Sinibaldi and the others who participated — all members of the St. Petersburg Bicycle Club.
The "ride of silence" was organized to spread awareness about a dangerous, deadly reality.
"It's just disappointing that here it is this day and age, and we still have people getting hit and injured and killed when we all should be much more cognizant of what goes on out there," said Sinibaldi, the club president.
They towed a bike painted white, known in the cycling community as a ghost bike, to memorialize those seriously injured or killed while riding.
Florida has proven dangerous for cyclists in the past several years, and that's certainly the case in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties.
Last year, 40 cyclists were killed by drivers in the three counties, and 1,169 were injured, according to statistics from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
There's a worry the situation will not improve in 2023.
According to the bike club, bicycle crashes and injuries in the tri-county area are on pace in 2023 to exceed those in the past 11 years.
Sinibalidi has felt the impact firsthand.
"I think I have a target on me for some reason," he said.
He was hit once in 2004 and again in 2010 for a total of 17 broken bones.
"I feel like I'm bragging, but I'm not. It's a horrible thing. I would do anything to not have that happen again, believe me," he said.
What's the solution? He and the other club members want less distracted driving and more roads designed for all users — drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists. They would also like to see more enforcement of unsafe driving and better education about the rights of cyclists.
