The event Ride of Silence received its start in Joliet several years ago when a local bicycle club rider was struck and killed while leading a bike group.

Recently about 50 bikers met for a nine-mile ride starting at Memorial Stadium, located at 3000 W. Jefferson. It was an event to remember cyclists who have been killed or injure while riding. Sara Jo Briese, spearheaded the event. Her mother, Jan Briese, was killed in 2005 when an 88-year-old motorist hit her while she was leading a ride with her Joliet Bicycle Club.

“The point of the ride is to honor fallen cyclists,” said Briese, “People are being killed all the time. For people that kill cyclists, there is no justice,” she said.

And the ride is a way to remember loved ones that have been lost. On May 19, at 7 p.m., the Ride of Silence took place around North America and other parts of the world.

Cyclists took to the roads in a silent procession to honor cyclists who have been killed or injured while cycling on public roadways. At least 308 rides were taking place around the world, with at least one ride happening in each American state.

“I do it every year in memory of my mom,” said Briese, “She was my best friend.”

Briese, an avid cyclist, first experienced the Ride of Silence event while living in North Carolina in 2005. Immediately after the event she phoned home to tell her mother about it. She also suggested that her mother hold a Ride of Silence event in Joliet.

Unfortunately, that never happened. Eight days later her mother was killed while riding. Briese said her mother, who was 68 years old at the time of the accident, rode the same route with her bike club every Thursday for 12 years.

“My mother was my best friend, my best pal and my sewing buddy,” said Briese, a resident of Channahon.

In 2003, Chris Phelan organized the first Ride of Silence in Dallas after endurance cyclist Larry Schwartz was hit by the mirror of a passing bus and was killed.

The Ride of Silence is a free ride that asks its cyclists to ride no faster than 12 mph and remain silent during the ride. There are no sponsors and no registration fees. The ride, which is held during National Bike Month aims to raise the awareness of motorists, police and city officials that cyclists have a legal right to the public roadways. The ride is also a chance to show respect for those who have been killed or injured.

For more information about Ride of Silence visit www.rideofsilence.org.