PHOTOS: Cyclists Cruise from College Park to DC for TJROW

As the time neared 1 p.m. Tuesday, shop in College Park was filled with eager riders.

By 1:20, the shop become a whole lot more crowded with the arrival of dozens more cyclists who rode in from Baltimore that morning and early afternoon. For several of them, these were the last few miles of a 500-plus mile trek from Boston.

The crew, led by cyclocross champion Tim Johnson, was picking up more riders at Proteus to pedal in the rest of the way to Washington, D.C., to join the first day of the National Bike Summit.

, and a statement they made as the group swelled to about 80 to 100 cyclists rolling from College Park to the District. Several of the riders planned to stay in D.C. for the three-day summit, lobbying Congress members to support measures that create bike-friendly communities.

Patch rode along to learn more about the initiatives and to learn about the locals involved. . Accompanying this post are several photos from Tuesday.

Disclosure: Proteus Bicycles loaned the non-cyclist editor a bike to ride along and observe the Ride on Washington.