IT’S FRIDAY evening in Athens and a phalanx of peddling enthusiasts is making its way around the city’s streets for the weekly Freeday bicycle outing. 

What started out two-and-a-half years ago as a weekly rendezvous among a handful of friends has gradually attracted an increasing number of friends and, in recent months, after one of the excursionists had the idea of announcing the outings on Facebook, the cyclists have snowballed to more than 4,000 - and the number continues to grow.

The idea began in February 2008 when the five friends decided to combine exercise with recreation, got together, took out their beloved bicycles and embarked on a series of different tours of Athens.

Soon, the five bikers became 10, by summer they were 100, and the following summer (2009), they had reached 600.

After the initial group posting on Facebook, the number of participants swelled and the outings extended into particular destinations, covering an increasingly greater area and exceeding the strict borders of Athens city proper.

The Freeday outings have turned into a weekly social event, with people of different ages and backgrounds from all parts of the greater Athens area meeting, making new friends and sharing their love of bicycling as they escape from the daily monotony and discover a different face of the city they live in.

The bikers start gathering at the designated spot, a different one each time, at 9.30pm on Friday night, and set off for their weekly adventure at 10pm. The outing usually lasts a few hours, but some of the more avid excursionists continue throughout the night, taking in the sunrise at a different location each time.

• On the net: facebook.com/group. php?gid=49283986544