Thousands of cyclists were ready to roll for the 10:30 a.m. start near Yankee Stadium. The 40-mile riders kicked off first, followed by those cycling the 25-mile route 10 minutes later.

Many of the participants had rarely been to the Bronx before. Waiting at the start outside of Bronx County Courthouse, Adam Danforth of Brooklyn said it was a foray into new territory. "What's in the Bronx? I'm trying to remember if I've ever even stopped in the Bronx."

For Brandon Fong, a nursing student from San Francisco who studies at NYU, this was his first visit. "I'm going to be a tourist while I ride, and hopefully not fall off," he said. Fong commutes by bike from Brooklyn to Manhattan and doesn't plan to stop when winter hits. "I have metal studded tires for the bike. I'll be out there with ski goggles on the snow."

Merrill Gay of New Britain, Conn., turned out in a velomobile, a hybrid bicycle automobile that he recently rode from Portland, Ore., to Washington, D.C. in 28 days. "I'm not a great athlete," Gay said. "I couldn't have done it if I didn't have this."

MOVE OVER, CARS

The cyclists, flanked by police escorts and accompanied by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., headed south from Concourse to Melrose and Mott Haven before turning onto a section of the Sheridan Expressway that was closed to cars for the event.

Down in Castle Hill, the Bronx Classics Bike Club, profiled in 2007 by the New York Times, showed off their wheels. The South Bronx group adds attitude to cycling with custom leather jackets and homemade bikes.

ON THE BOARDWALK

Fordham University doctoral candidate Dan Bang rode a worn but trusty French bike he bought second-hand when his girlfriend moved three miles from his home -- too close for a subway ride, but too far on foot. Bang fell in love with cycling just six months ago, and now rides about 100 miles a week.

He has been grazed by a car, taken a hard spill, and lost his brakes on a downhill ride, but is not discouraged. "The bike is in the shop continually, and it's not its fault at all."

THE FINISH LINE

After a long day of cycling, the first wave of riders reached the end of the tour after 2:30 p.m. The cyclists that reached the gates of the Bronx Botanical Garden were greeted with free pizza, juice, and t-shirts. 

Bobby Mendoza, 56, has lived in Queens for 20 years yet seen little of the Bronx. "I never knew the Bronx looked like this," he said. "I got lost so I was riding blind, but I enjoyed the ride and did my own Bronx tour."