CicLAvia came, saw and conquered the Miracle Mile on Sunday, when more than 150,000 people ditched their motor vehicles and put their legs to work by walking, pedaling or skating.

(photo by Aaron Blevins)

The event, which spanned from downtown to Fairfax Avenue from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., was a first for Wilshire Boulevard, and by many accounts, CicLAvia — Iconic Wilshire Boulevard was a success.

“It was just great,” said Brad Gold, owner of Black Dog Coffee, located near Wilshire and Hauser boulevards. “I hope they do it again.”

He said sales were up 40 percent from a normal Sunday at the coffee shop, and Black Dog Coffee wasn’t alone. Gold referenced El Toro Cantina and said it was a “mob scene down there.”

“There were certain places obviously that were more attractive than others, but we were very pleased with the turnout,” he added.

The economic impact of CicLAvia was evident. While some businesses were apparently swamped, the Miracle Mile as a whole received good exposure during the event, Miracle Mile Chamber of Commerce president Steve Kramer said.

“Exposure’s important, particularly in a city where people aren’t known to stroll the boulevard,” he said, adding that some retail locations stayed open on Sunday, though they typically do not.

Kramer said the chamber had a booth at the Miracle Mile hub near Fairfax Avenue. Representatives handed out free water, and quickly gave out its entire supply of 500 to 600 bottles.

“We could’ve handed out 2,000,” Kramer added.

Ethan’s Lemonade Stand, a pop-up run by 7-year-old Ethan Gibbel and his mother, Dana, also did well. They showed up mid-event to peddle lemonade at Detroit Street, since they did not own bikes.

“I’m raising up enough money for two helicopters than can actually fly, like those toy ones for kids that can fly — one for my dad and one for me so we can both fly,” Ethan said. His mother added, “They figured this way there’s no fighting over the helicopter.”

Kramer said the event started quietly at 9 a.m., but that abruptly changed after the first hour. Kramer mentioned the Metro subway display (officials brought in a subway car), the Academy Museum’s Oscars statues on the boulevard and other museums that were “out in force doing great things.”

“It was awesome,” he added. “It was phenomenal. …It couldn’t have been better.”

Kramer said he had not heard of any negative impacts. He commended CicLAvia organizers for how they handled traffic and interfaced with residents and businesses.

“It moved pretty well,” he said. “Certainly it wasn’t perfect, but it worked pretty well. …People were just enjoying it, and that’s a good thing for everybody.”

Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge, 4th District, agreed with that assessment.

“It was a great day to celebrate Wilshire Boulevard and a great day for all Angelenos,” he said.

Many participants traveled from outside the route to attend. Greg Lopez, of West Los Angeles, was impressed. It was his third CicLAvia.

“It’s tons of fun,” Lopez said. “Wilshire Boulevard is nice. I didn’t expect them to open LACMA and the Tar Pits for us, so it was pretty cool.”

He said the event was filled with things people can’t typically do.

“Riding your bike on Wilshire is like a suicide mission, so having the ability to ride up and down is kind of fun,” Lopez added. “I just hope this keeps happening.”

David Perrin came down from Chatsworth.

“This is beautiful,” he said. “This is what L.A. should be about — people interacting, riding bikes, walking, talking to one another. Otherwise they’d be stuck in a car. …This is the best one so far, because there’s more interesting places along the route to visit, places most people just drive past. Now they get to see it up close and personal. I’m just having a great time.”

Brothers Sal and Rick Sanchez rode in from Boyle Heights.

“It’s great,” Sal Sanchez said, adding that this event was not nearly as crowded as the previous CicLAvia. “Every several months, we get to go and enjoy a big event like this with our neighbors and everyone around the city.”

CicLAvia executive director Aaron Paley said the new elements introduced at this installment of the event — pedestrian zones and activity areas — contributed to a great day.

“We’re very happy with how things went,” he said. “We were trying as best we can … to make the event safer and make it more fun and enjoyable for everyone.”

Paley said Wilshire Boulevard provided a “beautiful” route and a significant amount of architecture, culture and history.

“We would like to return to Wilshire,” he said. “We learned a lot this time. I think that our goal would be to repeat it again at the same time next year.”

Paley said the event was organized in about two months. If given a year to prepare, CicLAvia could capitalize on this installment’s successes. He was quite pleased with how the different cultural institutions collaborated.

“That was amazing,” Paley added. “It was just so great. Our hats are off to all those institutions.”

CicLAvia’s seventh event was longer in terms of hours, but was the shortest in terms of distance, he said. Paley said the extra hours helped alleviate the crowding problem at previous CicLAvia events.

While the event was generally positive, a car did enter the route and strike a cyclist, he said. The individual who was struck suffered non-life-threatening injuries, but the incident was a hit and run.

“We’re hopeful that the police will be able to find the person who did this,” Paley said. “We’re thankful that it wasn’t anymore serious than it was.”

He said the driver must have gone through a barricade, as every driveway and street was caution-taped and barricaded. Paley said the city’s Department of Transportation and the LAPD secured the route. LAPD officials confirmed that the driver went through the barricade and struck the cyclist.

Paley said he will meet with the city soon, as he always does after a CicLAvia. He said officials generally issue a report to organizers, detailing any public safety issues that arose.

Generally, CicLAvia has about 12 different medical issues per event, though some of those instances could be unrelated to CicLAvia, Paley said. He said safety is the organizers’ primary goal.

LAPD officer Chris No said the department has video footage of the incident, and the investigation is ongoing. He said the vehicle was a green, older model Toyota Tercel. Residents with information are advised to contact the West Traffic Division at (213)473-0222 or leave tips anonymously at (877)LAPD-247.

On a lighter note, Paley said the organization did a lot of research on Wilshire Boulevard prior to the event. He said that information, as well as a series of radio podcasts, are still available on CicLAvia’s website, www.ciclavia.org. CicLAvia partnered with the Getty Center to present the “postwar built environment of the city as a whole.”