The modern iteration of the Critical Mass ride is over two decades old and started off as a way for cyclists to gather and assert their rights to use the road. It started out as a small ride in San Francisco but has grown into a rowdy and chaotic protest that takes place worldwide. With no leadership to speak of and no real hierarchy or formal organization, there is little effort to work with proper channels or the authorities to do things in a safe, much less legal, manner. That has caused the rides to become not only controversial for their lack of adherence to traffic laws, but have also resulted in numerous collisions or other traffic incidents where riders were injured.
