Two-wheeled commuters became heroes when a flashmob of garishly dressed as cycling enthusiasts lined a popular bike route to cheer them on their way to work.
The unsuspecting people’s peloton, who braved the cold and saddled up at the crack of dawn, must have thought the early morning revellers were yanking their chains when they were asked to pose for selfies and signed autographs on a cold Tuesday morning.
A video of the stunt in Owen Street, Islington, which brought beaming grins to the cyclists’ faces, has now been viewed more than 250,000 times on Facebook after Cycling Weekly posted it alongside the caption “best cycling flashmob ever?”
James Turner, 34, who organised the event on social media, said: “I’m a cyclist and I know how hard it is to roll out of bed in the morning and take your bike out of the shed instead of going on the bus or in the car.
“I’d been talking about it with some friends and we wanted to bring a bit of light and colour to people’s mornings as a reward. It’s something you don’t often get as a cyclist – you can feel very unappreciated.
“I put a call out on Twitter explaining the idea and people dug out whatever ridiculous costumes they could find and came along.”
Mr Turner, who commutes from his home just off Essex Road to Highbury by bicycle, turned up with the rest of the mob at about 7am last month.
He says he hopes his flashmob, which was reminiscent of the crowds of screaming fans that came out to cheer on the Tour de France riders in London last summer, will encourage others to do the same.
“The reaction that we’ve had online has been fantastic,” he said. “We’re delighted. The dream is that this happens all over the world, not just in London but in other places – maybe we will see one in Abu Dhabi or Dubai.
“I want to do it again soon, one of the people who came down described it as the most fun you can have on a Tuesday morning and I agree.”
The video has also attracted dozens of comments on facebook and is liked by more than 2,000 users of the website. Susanna Rovins posted: “That would be nice. I usually just get screamed at on my commute to work. And not in a good way.”
Follow the cycling flashmob movement at #CyclistsAreHeroes
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