Everything You Need to Know About Waving Wednesday
What is Waving Wednesday?
It’s a simple concept! It’s Wednesday and you’re riding a bicycle. You see someone else on a bicycle. You wave to them. They wave to you.
Does it cost anything to participate in Waving Wednesday?
Waving Wednesday only costs about 3 calories per wave.
If I wave on Wednesdays, can I still wave on other days?
Yes. Waving to promote camaraderie among people who bike is always encouraged.
What qualifies as a wave?
A wave ‘counts’ when you move your hand back and forth at least 3 times.
Nodding or saluting do not count—those salutations can find their own darn days.
Do I really have to do this?
Yes, you have to.
When did Waving Wednesday start?
The first cyclist to wave to another cyclist was in 1867, the first time two people on bikes approached each other on a Wednesday. However, the modern concept of mandatory waving on Wednesday was started in San Francisco in 1992.
Is it just me, or is there a male gaze-y white-centric hetero-normative vibe in that picture you’re using?
No, that’s not just you. But Waving Wednesday is supposed to be for everyone on a bike. Send pictures of yourself and others waving on a bike to @calbike on Facebook or Twitter or just add the hashtag #WavingWednesday. We’ll feature them.
Is this just a California thing?
Yes, Waving Wednesday is just for California, for now. But other states will probably copy it like they do everything else.
Shout out to our friends at the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, who kept the original flyer from the 1990s bike activists who created #WavingWednesday for us to enjoy.
