Bicycle Day

How to Celebrate Bicycle Day

Following Hofmann’s discovery, LSD was subsequently the subject of intense medical research throughout the 1950s but arguably became best known for its use as a recreational drug.

LSD has been a popular drug among psychedelic communities for many years, but hitting a few tabs probably isn’t the safest way to enjoy Bicycle Day. Instead, individuals are advised to recreate the psychedelic vibe minus the drug use. Fake it, don’t take it.

Solo celebrations can be as simple as sticking on some Beatles music (Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds is literally an acronym of LSD) while reading Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. It’s trippy, safe, and very easy to organize.

Small gatherings are best enhanced with a few décor changes. Psychedelic hanging rugs or canvas art can work wonders. Close the drapes and use lighting in an effective way to further support the desired atmosphere. The playlist could include:

• Jefferson Airplane – White Rabbit,
• Timothy Leary – How to Operate Your Brain,
• Pixies – Where is My Mind?,
• The Moody Blues – Legend of a Mind
• Jimi Hendrix – Purple Haze

When Bicycle Day is enjoyed safely, it can be a lot of fun. Better still, there’s no major comedown, enabling an immediate return to normality. Perfect.

History of Bicycle Day

While the day isn’t a direct celebration of bicycles, most people that learn about the day are relieved to discover that the two-world vehicles do play an integral role in the story. Even for an LSD user, the absence of a bike would just be weird.

The Famous Bike Trip

The historical event was, quite literally, a bike ‘trip’ taken by Dr. Albert Hofmann. In April 1943, the Swiss scientist accidentally discovered the effects of LSD on the human body.

Three days later, he subsequently conducted an experiment in which he intentionally took a 250mcg dose of the substance before riding home with his lab assistant. During the ride home, Hofmann’s trip started with bouts of anxiety and paranoid warped thoughts that his next-door neighbor was a malevolent witch.

However, the trip would change his perceptions in a more positive manner. He later explained: “little by little I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented colors and plays of shapes that persisted behind my closed eyes.

Kaleidoscopic, fantastic images surged in on me, alternating, variegated, opening and then closing themselves in circles and spirals, exploding in colored fountains, rearranging and hybridizing themselves in constant flux.”

Having been checked over by a house doctor, it was confirmed that (aside from dilated pupils) no physical alterations could be detected, thus confirming the impacts had been entirely psychological.

While Hofmann had correctly predicted this after his previous encounter three days earlier, his calculations on the threshold were wildly inaccurate. That 250mg hit was over 10x the 20mg threshold dose, which probably explains why the impacts were so quick and noticeable.

It clearly didn’t do him much harm in the long-term, though, as he lived to the age of 102!

The Development of Bicycle Day

While Hofmann’s famous bike trip happened in 1943, Bicycle Day didn’t launch for another four decades! That’s one very long comedown…

The first Bicycle Day was organized in 1985 by Thomas B. Roberts, then a Professor at Northern Illinois University, starting out as nothing more than a party at his DeKalb, Illinois home.

Despite remaining a small scale event over the following years, it grew in popularity at a rapid rate in the early years of online interactions thanks to students spreading the word on forums and other internet platforms.

It is now an annual event that has been amplified to greater levels than ever before, with thousands celebrating it in their own ways. Even more, people are expected to join the fun year after year.