Bicycle Austin forum

dougmc

Administrator

Registered: 2008-06-01

Posts: 628

Part of the Shoal Creek GB Trail is to be renamed "Chris Riley Bend"

This email came across the Austin BAC mailing list last week regarding a dedication of "Chris Riley Bend" :

https://groups.google.com/g/austin-bac/c/_OcsJONC8MY

Basically, the segment of the Shoal Creek Greenbelt Trail between West Avenue and 5th Street will be renamed "Chris Riley Bend".

(If you've been riding around here for any length of time, you'll probably recognize that name!)

They were looking for people to support the ordinance in person at 1pm Thursday 05/30 at City Hall, though I haven't heard anything about that in a week, so I *assume* it's still on but don't know for sure.

dougmc

Administrator

Registered: 2008-06-01

Posts: 628

Re: Part of the Shoal Creek GB Trail is to be renamed "Chris Riley Bend"

So, I was unaware of this, but there's a reason he's being honored now: He has cancer, and just a few months left to live.

Yesterday he had an "urbanist happy hour open to anybody who wants to celebrate the movement’s recent accomplishments" and I went to it without fully knowing what was going on.  Chris was not there -- I heard he was being treated for his cancer, which I was unaware of.  And now after bringing myself up to speed, I'm sad.

Tomorrow -- July 12th, 2024 -- this article mentions a 60th birthday party at 4pm at his house at 1310 San Antonio St from 4-9, and all are invited.

MichaelBluejay

Webmaster

From: Austin, TX

Registered: 2008-05-26

Posts: 1,464

Website

Re: Part of the Shoal Creek GB Trail is to be renamed "Chris Riley Bend"

Thank you for posting this.  I'm very sorry to hear that Chris Riley will be leaving us soon.  I'm glad he's being honored.

MichaelBluejay

Webmaster

From: Austin, TX

Registered: 2008-05-26

Posts: 1,464

Website

Re: Part of the Shoal Creek GB Trail is to be renamed "Chris Riley Bend"

I was in Chris' neighborhood today and something told me I should swing by, so I did, and coincidentally it turned out that it was his 60th birthday party.  That was mentioned in the article dougmc posted but yesterday I'd only skimmed the article and didn't see the bit about the party.  (I've since read the article carefully.)

He remembered the heyday of this forum back when it was an email list, particularly the spirited discussions involving Mike Dahmus, Patrick Goetz, and me.  He also talked of his time in Japan, and raved about how the public housing there works so well, but how that idea is a non-starter here.

There's more, but I'm mostly at a loss for words.  Probably no one has done more for cycling locally than Chris, and that's not even all he's done.    If the world were fair, people like him wouldn't be taken so young, while the people actively f**king things up live decades longer.