What’s up with the Booty Loop?

Posted on 20 Jul 2009 by Liz Barrett

photo: James Willamor; view this photo on Flickr

So what is it about this 2.8 mile loop in the heart of the Myers Park neighborhood that attracts cyclists, runners, walkers, strollers, and rollerbladers (yes, apparently inline skating wasn’t just a fad) from all over? Maybe it’s the beautiful tree lined streets, maybe it’s the fact that you can continually loop around with no left turns or busy intersections, maybe people feel safe with others around, or maybe it’s all the fit eye candy. Whatever it is, this route is a magnet for outdoor exercisers. The Booty Loop is Charlotte’s Boardwalk, where the active go to be amongst their own kind, but instead of ocean vistas, it has tree-lined streets with branches arched across the road creating a cathedral-style oak canopy.

In the morning, at lunch, and during evening rush hour, cyclists take over an entire lane for their daily exercise routine, slowing traffic and eliciting exclamations from drivers who don’t want to share the road. But this coming weekend, the cyclists will officially get a a lane of their own as it is blocked off from 7pm on Friday until 7pm on Saturday for the annual 24 Hours of Booty event to raise awareness and funds for the Lance Armstrong Foundation and local cancer organizations.

Wanting to capture the view and hoping to discover a little more about what makes this loop so popular, James Willamor and I took to the street to video the Boot, including an entire loop around the route. Video after the break: