New study shows drivers just don’t get us, and the short trip from WorldTour cyclist to doper to OnlyFans and funny money

February 5, 2026 / / No comments

My apologies for yesterday’s unexcused absence.

After writing about Sunday’s fallen bicyclist in Hemet, my internet service went down at precisely 12:07 am as I was in the middle of writing what would have been yesterday’s post.

At which point, I wisely gave up and went to bed, after Spectrum finally stopped insisting there was no outage in my area, and admitted  they wouldn’t be back online until 5 am, at best.

On the other hand, I am pleased to announce that our spokescorgi will be competing in the 2026 Winter Corgi Nationals at Santa Anita racetrack on February 15th.

She is easily the fastest corgi I know. But whether that energy can be directed towards running in a straight line remains to be seen.

And yes, I’m told the betting windows will be open. Although where they’ll find a jockey that small, I have no idea.

Feel free to open a crowdfunding page to fund matching team uniforms, along with a limo to deliver her to Arcadia in the style to which she’d like to become accustomed.

Or a decent bucket bike, anyway. 

This is from last year’s Summer Corgi Nationals.

Now, we’ve got a lot to catch up on, so let’s get to it.

………

A new study from Rice University says drivers just don’t understand us.

No, literally.

According to the research, drivers get hand signals when you point directly left or right in the direction you’re turning. But bending your left arm up to signify a right turn, or holding it down to indicate braking, not so much.

They’re also clueless when it comes to road positioning or body language to indicate your intentions on the road.

However, while the study doesn’t mention it, my personal research indicates drivers still understand the gesture most commonly used by bicyclists to signify displeasure.

Yes, that one.

………

Um, okay.

Twenty-four-year old Italian Andrea Piccolo demonstrates his unusual career path from WorldTour cyclist, to banned bike doper, to OnlyFans model, to getting busted by the cops for counterfeiting.

Although it beats the career path of 64-year old Colombian Luis “Lucho” Herrera, who went from Vuelta winner to hiring death squads to kill his neighbors.

………

Maybe it’s just me, but didn’t we see this same video last year?

………

Now you, too, can replace your chain with a set of 3D-printed gears that look like they came out of a Lego set.

………

A former member of the British Parliament inadvertently made the case for a protected bike lane with her “bonkers” video opposing it, as the video shows a taxi drifting into the existing painted bike lane.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

Portland’s Unity Ride protest went from a “joyful” vibe when riders met up, to a full frontal assault on innocent people who were teargassed by federal officers outside the ICE headquarters.

No bias here. A Utah legislator is calling for Salt Lake City to “mitigate” the impacts of any traffic calming work, including “mitigating” lane removals by removing bus and bike lanes and restoring lanes for motor vehicles. Without digging out my old dust-covered Funk & Wagnalls, I’m not sure that’s what “mitigate” means, exactly.

Iowa bicyclists are decrying a so-called bicycle safety bill in the state legislature, which would ban bikes or any other personal conveyance from streets with speed limits above 25 mph, as well as all sidewalks; advocates call it the most anti-bicycling bill in the state’s history.

Horrible news from India, where a 40-year old man was chased down by two men and beaten to death in a petty road rage dispute, which started when the victim’s bicycle brushed a motorcycle owned by one of his attackers; police arrested men the next day, who claimed they were just drunk and the victim owed them money. Oh, well okay, then.

But sometimes it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

No bias here, either. Singapore commenters criticize a pair of bicyclists for sprinting and passing one another in the traffic lane, rather than riding in the bike lane, where they would have been mixing it up with kids and pedestrians at over 30 mph.

Aussies were suitably shocked and appalled by images of a bicyclist skitching by holding onto the back of a pickup traveling at high speed — if you consider the equivalent of 31 mph high speed. Although you’d think they would have been mollified by his helmet and hi-viz adjacent pink jersey.

………

Local 

Streetsblog’s Joe Linton offers a roundup of bike lane news, including approval of the Better Overland protected bike lane project, as well as protected bike lanes coming to Glendale’s La Crescenta Ave and Colorado Ave in Santa Monica.

Tres shock! Los Angeles has installed a new slightly buffered north-south bike lane on a half-mile stretch of Hobart Blvd in East Hollywood/Thai Town/Little Armenia.

LADOT has another survey about the Los Angeles River path, this time looking for connections to a new segment of the LARiverWay in the east San Fernando Valley. Here’s a thought. If they’re trying to build one continuous bikeway along the entire LA River, how about just picking one name for the whole damn thing and sticking with it?

Not everyone loves the shade of “Hollywood” green used to make the West Hollywood bike lanes more visible to drivers, while remaining sufficiently inoffensive to filmmakers. Personally, I’d say it’s more of a puke green, but I appreciate the effort. 

Hats off to the Culver City Unified School District, which is redesigning the parking lot between Farragut Elementary and the Culver City Middle School and Culver City High School campus complex to improve bike parking, and build protected bike lanes leading to it.

 

State

Fullerton is the latest OC city to crack down on reckless ebike riders, including an extra-low 5 mph speed limit on city sidewalks. I’m not sure I could ride that slow on my road bike without falling over, let alone on an ebike.

Around a hundred people turned out for a memorial and ghost bike installation for six-year old Hudson O’Loughlin, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver while riding with his family in Pacific Beach last month.

San Marcos is cracking down on ebikes by fining the parents of kids under 12.

Sad news from Milpitas, where a 69-year old man was killed when he was struck by a driver while riding his bike in a pre-dawn collision. Although for one site, the most important thing seemed to be the traffic problems it caused.

San Mateo voted down a proposal to rip out the four-year old Humboldt Street bike lanes, at least for now, anyway, as they try to figure out a way to keep the bike lanes while restoring the 200 parking places removed to build them.

 

National

A writer for Bike Rumor says just because he rides an ebike — or lots of them — don’t assume he’s lazy.

While everyone else is cracking down on ebikes, Oregon goes the other way, lowering the minimum age to ride an ebike to 14.

A 35-year old Utah woman faces charges for being the ostensible getaway driver for a man who was fatally shot while trying to steal a bicycle.

A Massachusetts man returned home after a three and a half year, 46,000 mile bikepacking tour around the world, hitting six of the seven continents, leaving out only Antarctica.

If you want to ride New York’s Citi Bike bikeshare, watch out for ICE. No, not the immigration service, the stuff encasing the city’s bikeshare docks.

People For Bikes offers a delayed recap of how DC bike riders turned tragedy into action on November’s World Day of Remembrance, before segueing into a call to help pass the Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Active Transportation Safety Act (HR2011/S944) to ensure more funding for bikeways.

Florida is taking a surprisingly rational approach to regulating ebikes, as a proposal to create a task force to prevent ebike injuries moves forward in the legislature.

A Florida bike club is in mourning after a 67-year old club member was killed when he was struck by a truck driver towing a trailer; others in the club said that no one was safer on a bike, or followed the rules more than he did. Which is a tragic reminder that you can do everything right, but your safety still depends on the people you share the road with.

 

International

Momentum asks if it’s ever too cold to bike to work. If you ask most Angelenos, that’s any time the temperature drops into the 60s. Or 70s if it’s overcast. 

Road.cc recommends the best road bikes for under the equivalent of $2,700.

A writer for Canadian Cycling Magazine gets on his soapbox, and makes the case for why shouting “on your left!” is the worst thing a bike rider can do, aside from buzzing someone’s shoulder afterward, arguing that we should all just use our bells. Because evidently, every road and racing bike comes fully equipped with a bike bell, as any rider in the pro peloton could undoubtedly tell you.

A bikeshare system in the Scottish Highlands proves ebikes can boom outside of big cities, as users rode enough miles last year to go around the world three times.

He gets it. Lime Bikes UK policy director called for retiming the city’s traffic lights to create a Green Wave, enabling bike riders to get a wave of green lights so they don’t have to keep stopping.

A new report from Shimano shows the UK and Ireland have the lowest rate of bicycle ownership in Europe, calling it a wakeup call, as fewer than half of all homes have a bike.

If the Irish government approves a call to require bike helmets and hi-viz, it would apply to everyone on any type of bicycle, not just people on ebikes.

In a bizarre story, Polish adventurer Adam Boreiko was found dead in his Russian hotel room while attempting to ride the 570 miles from Yakutsk to Oymyakon in Siberia — the coldest spot outside Antarctica, at the coldest time of year; he’d already covered 250 miles, and appeared to be in perfect health when he stopped for the night, but was found dead the next morning. Has anyone checked him for polonium? Just asking. 

China’s newest literary star can claim bike shop worker and bike courier on his extensive resume.

 

Competitive Cycling…

The founders of Formula Fixed discuss the hows and whys of their track Brakeless Cycling League.

American startup Modern Adventure Pro Cycling had a podium finish in the inaugural race, nearly winning the recent AlUla Tour, nee the Tour of Saudi Arabia.

Twenty-five year old Eritrean cyclist Biniam Girmay claimed his first stage win since 2024, winning the first stage of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana in his first race for his new NSN Cycling team.

That feeling when some fool on an ebike ends up leading the breakaway at the Grand Prix La Marseillaise.

 

Finally…

Your next Ducati may not use gas — or even have an engine, for that matter. Your next gravel bike may have been born a mountain bike.

And no one ever said riding a tandem was supposed to be easy.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , ,

40-year old man killed by truck driver while crossing Hemet street on his bicycle Sunday evening

February 3, 2026 / / 3 comments

This week just keeps getting worse.

As if the death of a ebike-riding woman and her unborn baby in Playa del Rey wasn’t bad enough, now we’re learning that a man was killed by a delivery truck driver while riding his bike in Hemet on Sunday.

According to Valley News, the victim was hit with the truck while attempting to cross Florida Ave and Hamilton Ave at 6:49 pm.

He was reportedly attempting to cross Florida on Hamilton when he allegedly rode out in front of the westbound truck.

A Hemet cop on patrol witnessed the immediate aftermath of the crash, and attempted to perform life-saving measures on the victim, who was identified later as 40-year old Hemet resident Ricardo Olvera Hernandez.

He died at the scene.

The driver remained after the crash and cooperated with investigators, who do not believe he was under the influence.

A street view shows the intersection is controlled only by a two-way stop sign on Hamilton, with no bike infrastructure on either street.

The story doesn’t say which direction Hernandez was riding, but it’s possible he just didn’t make it across the five lane street before the truck caught up with him.

Anyone with information is urged to call Hemet Police Corporal Coley at 951/765-2400, file #2026-00837.

This the tenth bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the second in Riverside County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Ricardo Olvera Hernandez and his loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

Move along, nothing to see here — heartbroken rage edition

February 3, 2026 / / No comments

My apologies.

I’ve spent the last hour trying to write today’s post, and all I’ve done is type and delete, type and delete, with no idea what to say or how to say it.

To be honest, I’m just numb tonight, torn between the gut wrenching heartbreak of a pregnant mother and her unborn baby losing their lives for the crime of riding a bicycle with their family on the mean streets of Los Angeles. And white hot rage knowing it happened on the same street where bike lanes were installed, then unceremoniously ripped out, because a couple of rightwing radio jerks jocks didn’t like not being able to go zoom, zoom on the street anymore.

Jon and Ken, this blood is on you.

Assholes.

As you can see, I’m just not in control right now. And it’s taking all my self control not to throw this damn laptop across the room.

So we’ll be back tomorrow to catch up on what I couldn’t bring myself to write about tonight.

Until then, stay safe.

Please.

Category: General /

Update: 36-year old woman and unborn baby killed riding ebike on Pershing Drive in Playa del Rey, where bike lanes removed in 2017

February 2, 2026 / / 9 comments

Apparently, last month isn’t done with us yet. And it ends with perhaps the worst news of all.

After a month that had already seen seven people lose their lives riding a bicycle in Southern California, you can add two more to the tragic toll.

And one wasn’t even born yet.

According to a crowdfunding campaign, 36-year old Regan Cole-Graham died after being struck by a driver while riding a bicycle with her husband and two kids this past Saturday.

She was seven months pregnant.

Her unborn daughter survived another day before dying in the NICU at UCLA Children’s Hospital on Sunday.

What appears to be an AI generated site offers information that appears to come from the police report, placing the crash around 6 pm on Pershing Drive in Playa del Rey. A mobile app places it around the corner at 451 E. Manchester Ave at 6:02 pm.

Meanwhile a witness on Reddit says the crash occurred directly in front of the Hacienda Playa restaurant on Pershing.

According to the AI site above, Cole-Graham was pronounced dead on arrival after being taken to a hospital.

There’s no details on how the crash occurred, though the same site says she was riding an ebike. The driver remained at the scene.

Sadly, that’s exactly where bike lanes were installed in 2017 after a years-long community process, only to be removed following complaints from drivers used to zooming along the street.

It’s impossible to know whether this tragedy could have been prevented if the bike lanes were still there. But their removal will almost certainly mean Los Angeles will be liable for her death.

The GoFundMe describes Cole-Graham as “…a loving & devoted wife, a fierce & joyful mother, a hilarious & loyal sister, and a beautiful, fiery daughter.”

As of this writing, the site has raised more than $134,000 to pay for funeral expenses and help her husband and kids with their future, while the goal has been raised to $210,000.

These are the eighth and ninth bicycling fatalities that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, the fourth and fifth in Los Angeles County, and the second and third reported in the City of Los Angeles.

Update: At least now we know what happened.

According to Fox-11, Regan Cole-Graham and her husband were both riding ebikes, with their two sons strapped into the child seats on their bikes. And yes, they were all wearing helmets.

Not that it would have helped under the circumstances.

An 87-year old driver ran down Cole-Graham from behind, knocking her into the street, where he ran over her with his sedan. Her three-year old son remained strapped into his seat as the car pushed her bike down the street, suffering minor injuries.

The driver remained at the scene; police do not think he was under the influence.

According to CBS News,

Yuda Zweda witnessed the incident and says that she briefly spoke with the man afterwards.

“The only thing he really said, ‘Please pray that she survives,'” Zweda said.

People who live in the area say that the intersection is dimly lit and dangerous for pedestrians.

“They put in some speed bumps down there and flashing lights, but I still just don’t think people seem to notice,” said one resident.

Ashley Saglie, described as a friend of the victim, expounded on that.

“I think a lot needs to change. I think there needs to be better lighting, I think there needs to be an expanded bike path,” Saglie said.

Never mind that there was a briefly bike lane on Pershing Drive, right where the crash happened, less than nine years earlier.

According to the California Post, the new West Coast edition of Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post, Cole-Graham was an executive with Google’s LA office.

Cole-Graham had worked for Google in Los Angeles since 2019, where she served as Consumer Marketing Lead and later Brand Partnerships Lead and orchestrated a multi-million dollar partnership with Live Nation among other deals, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Before that, she worked as a Senior Product Marketing Manager for AT&T and marketing manager at DirecTV, where her father also worked as an executive and helped her get her first job after she graduated from San Diego State University, her family’s lawyer said.

According to the Post, her husband described her as an “amazing wife” and “the world’s best mother.”

Brian Breiter, the attorney for the family, commented on the tragedy, as well as questioning why the man who hit her was still driving.

This is the hardest time anyone could imagine, and I just want them to be together. Imagine a three year old little boy and an 18 month old child witnessing that?” Breiter continued.

“And then, of course, their unborn sister, who survived in the NICU but unfortunately didn’t make it.”

Breiter said he’s reviewed horrific footage showing the crash, which remains under investigation by authorities.

He noted the driver’s age at that “at some point it times to take the keys away” from some people.

Which is exactly why I keep bringing it up.

Meanwhile, the crowdfunding page for her husband and sons has raised nearly $200,000 of the $210,000 goal.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Regan Cole-Graham, her unborn baby, and all their family and loves ones. 

Thanks to Joe, Richard, Oren and Madeline for their help in piecing this together. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , , ,

Tens of thousands turnout for Unity Rides to honor ICE victim Alex Pretti, and LBPD accused of withholding info on killer driver

February 2, 2026 / / No comments

Bicyclists in Los Angeles joined people at hundreds of rides around the US, Europe and Australia in honoring VA nurse Alex Pretti over the weekend.

Pretti, described as an avid mountain biker and lover of the outdoors, was killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis a week earlier when he tried to help a woman who had been gassed by agents for no apparent reason.

CBS LA offered a brief report one of the Los Angeles rides, taking with Finish the Ride founder Damian Kevitt across from the VA grounds about how Alex Pretti was one of us, as Pretti’s parents said he would have loved the rides.

The LA Times also covered the same ride, one of several held in the Los Angeles area, listing the turnout at several hundred. And like CBS LA, also quoted Kevitt.

Damian Kevitt spent Saturday afternoon on a 10-mile bike ride with hundreds of other cyclists, a sticker displaying Alex Pretti’s photo stuck to his jersey

“These are just cyclists, clubs, bike shops and individuals who have come together and said, ‘Hey, Alex was one of us,’ ” said Kevitt, while riding on Broadway in Santa Monica. “He was an ICU nurse, he loved the outdoors, he loved cyclists and he loved cycling.”

However, the paper included their brief coverage of the peaceful Unity Rides in the same story with on a rally to protest ICE in DTLA that was peaceful until it wasn’t, after police declared an unlawful assembly when a relative few protesters refused to leave at the end of the day.

Unsurprisingly, a crowd estimated in the thousands turned out for the Minneapolis ride, riding past memorials for Pretti and Renee Macklin Good, and the VA hospital where Pretti worked, with may participants wearing yellow vests that read “Peaceful observer, don’t shoot.”

Several other rides also made the news, with turnouts ranging from a few dozen riders in small Iowa and Wisconsin towns, to over a thousand in my Colorado hometown.

I can’t remember any other event that united so many riders here in Los Angeles, let alone tens of thousands of bicyclists throughout the US.

Let’s hope that our leaders get the message, and that this is the last memorial ride like this we ever need.

But I fear it’s just the beginning.

………

The Long Beach Police Department is accused of illegally withholding information from relatives of 35-year old Raul Agustin Galloppa, who died two weeks after he was run down by a driver while riding his bike back home.

Galloppa was allegedly struck by 24-year old Ahkeyajahnique Owens as she was driving at an extreme rate of speed on city streets. She’s also accused of running a red light while driving around 100 mph just three months later, killing two more people.

Galloppa’s kin, who live 5,000 miles from Long Beach, allege they were denied all but the most basic information about the two crashes.

They’re asking a judge to order the police to release the information.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

Democrats in the Washington State legislature are proposing a one-time $25 fee on the sale of all bicycles worth more than $500. Because apparently, paying the sales tax just isn’t good enough anymore.

No only are Ontario provincial officials threatening to rip out Toronto bike lanes, now bicyclists are demanding to know who is going to clean the snow out of the bike lanes, after it was dumped there by snow plows clearing the immaculately snow-free traffic lanes.

But sometimes it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

Police in Carlsbad arrested a 22-year old Oceanside man for slapping women on the ass while riding his ebike on a hiking trail.

No bias here. After a 39-year old British man was arrested on charges of rape, kidnapping and sexual assault, The Sun somehow insisted on identifying him only by his manner of transportation. Even though they’d be unlikely do the same for a driver, walker or transit user.

Britain’s Jeremy Vine is confronted by the country’s “rudest” bike rider, offering proof that we aren’t all that different from all the f*****g road-raging drivers out there.

………

Local 

Today is the last day to comment on plan to close the gap on the LA River Bike Path through DTLA, Vernon and Maywood.

Wednesday is Transit Equity Day, in honor of civil rights icon Rosa Park’s birthday, which means free transit on Pasadena Transit, Dial-A-Ride, Metrolink, LA Metro, LADOT and Foothill Transit, as well as Metro Bike bikeshare.

Police in the South Bay are looking for the burglary crew behind a rash of ebike thefts.

 

State

Witnesses provided the evidence that led police in Fallbrook to a hit-and-run driver who ran down an ebike rider Sunday afternoon.

San Francisco bicyclists plan to rally at City Hall today, as the city threatens to end the popular Sunday Streets open streets festival after 17 years due to budget cuts.

 

National

Reporters from Le Monde rode their bikes across Cuba, witnessing the resourcefulness of residents as the country bounces from one crisis to another, all while under the watchful eye of state security. But you’ll have to subscribe or find a way around their paywall if you want to read the damn thing. 

Sad news from Indiana, where a 13-year old boy died after suffering multiple blunt force injuries falling at a BMX bike park; he had raced BMX alongside his younger brother for the past eight years.

A Cleveland writer offers a guide to the kind of cold weather riding most LA bicyclists will never see without moving.

A 65-year old New York man was killed when an ambulance driver hit his ebike head-on, while he was riding against traffic on a one-way street with a two-way bike lane.

Horrible story from New Jersey, where a 40-year old father was stabbed to death in front of his three sons as he was teaching them how to ride a bicycle, after getting into an altercation with their mother’s boyfriend.

That’s more like it. A 19-year old New Orleans man was sentenced to nine years behind bars for the drunken, coke-fueled hit-and-run that killed a 36-year old Bourbon Street bartender as he rode his bike home; he was just below the legal alcohol limit a full 12 hours after the crash.

Not every memorial ride honored Alex Pretti. Florida riders turned out to honor a ten-year old Palm Bay boy who was killed in a house fire.

 

International

A British Columbia bicyclist and expert in road design begs the local government not to build anymore bike lanes — because he doesn’t want any more substandard ones.

A pair of British writers make the case for why bike tours and booze just naturally go together.

Shimano was just the latest bike industry brand to pull the plug on this year’s Eurobike trade show, though talks continue on saving it for next year.

A data breach risked exposing the personal information for all 4.5 million users of the Seoul, Korea bikeshare system.

More bad BMX news, this time from Australia, where a 27-year old man died two days after he crashed at a bike park, on his first time riding a BMX; he bled out from internal injuries after refusing to go the the hospital. A tragic reminder to always get yourself checked out after a crash; if the paramedics hadn’t ignored my refusal to go to the ER after the infamous beachfront bee encounter, I might not still be here to write this. 

 

Competitive Cycling…

Three-time world champ Remco Evenepoel is already in mid-season form, winning three races in three days to start the new season.

While Evenepoel was ruling the road, Mathieu van der Poel was busy setting a new world record by winning his eighth world ‘cross title.

Three cyclists suffered injuries more common with bull riders after hitting the deck during Saudi Arabia’s AlUla Tour at a ridiculous 65 mph, including a broken spine, ripped glutes and a torn anus. Yes, you read that right. 

Former Polish cyclist Stanisław Szozda died following a serious illness; he retired at 28 after winning two Olympic silver medals and two World golds, as well as multiple stage wins. The 62-year old Szozda was described as one of the greatest Polish cyclists of all time.

Nineteen-year old Azerbaijani junior cyclist Artyom Proskuryakov was banned for three years for testing positive for meth, following “intelligence-led testing” during September’s UCI junior road world championships in Rwanda. Because any meth head could tell you it does wonders for their performance, right?

 

Finally…

That feeling when your hand-me-down bike belonged to a racing legend. Or when your local bike lane is in the Epstein files.

And no, your bike doesn’t need an oil change.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Unity Rides roll out this weekend; San Diego fights for density LA just fights; and NC pot calls bike kettle “elitist”

January 30, 2026 / / 2 comments

Pink Bike reports that over 100 Unity Rides are planned to honor Alex Pretti, the 37-year old Minneapolis-based mountain biker who was shot and killed by ICE agents last Saturday.

And those are only the ones that have been listed on the website of the Angry Catfish Bicycle Shop, which organized the Minneapolis ride, and inspired similar rides across the US, as well as Canada, Germany, Austria, Finland and Australia.

There are undoubtedly countless others planned around the country, including at least three in Los Angeles.

Okay, make that five.

Here is a press release from Streets Are For Everyone and Domestique Cycling Club, providing details on DCC’s Saturday Unity Ride, which promises to be one of the largest in the LA area.

ALEX PRETTI UNITY RIDE IN SOLIDARITY
WITH MEMORIAL RIDES ACROSS THE US

LOS ANGELES, CA — Alex Pretti was a nurse and a cyclist who loved the outdoors. This Saturday, cyclists from across Los Angeles will join cyclists from across the U.S. and around the world for memorial rides honoring Alex Pretti, in unity with the Minnesota cycling community and in solidarity with @angrycatfish, the cafe and bike shop Alex frequented.

From @angrycatfish:

“Alex was one of us. He rode bikes, he believed in community, and he believed in justice. Whether you’re 5 or 80, you remember the first time you rode a bike—because bikes are magic, and joy itself is an act of resistance. Today, with tens of thousands of cyclists expected nationally, we are showing not just grief, but unity. We are stronger together.”

The Unity Rides are taking place simultaneously across time zones, with riders gathering and rolling together to demonstrate collective grief, unity, and resolve within the cycling community.

Domestique Cycling Club is organizing a slow 10-mile ride leaving from the parking lot of the Veterans Administration in collaboration with dozens of cycling clubs and advocacy groups across Southern California.

Additionally, several smaller rides are independently organized by local cycling groups and bike shops as part of a national and international effort led by community organizers.

A global map of participating rides is available at: https://bikepacking.com/news/alex-pretti-memorial-rides/

Ride details:

  • 📅 Saturday, 1/31
  • 🕚 11:00 AM — Meet
  • 🕦 11:30 AM — Roll
  • 📍 VA Med Center Parking Lot 6
    304 Dowlen Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90025

Hundreds of cyclists are expected (between 150 and 500). This will be an easy, calm, no-drop ride focused on unity, respect, and showing up together as a cycling community.

OTHER LOS ANGELES–AREA RIDES

Friday

• Allez LA Bike Shop & CA Chicken, 7:30 AM — Boyle Heights

Saturday

• West LA Bicycle, 1:00 PM — Bike Path & Main Street

• Trash Panda Cycling, El Mariachi Plaza

Sunday

• Mom Ridaz BC, Downtown Los Angeles

To be honest, I don’t care what your politics are, or where you stand on immigration.

This is about the violation of the right to assemble, protest and report what’s happening guaranteed by the 1st Amendment, as well as Pretti’s right to legally bear arms, as guaranteed under the 2nd.

And the needless killing of our fellow Americans under the color of authority.

It’s your choice whether to turn out this weekend. But as the Angry Catfish bike shop put it,

We are many but we stand together as one. We’re stronger together, and they can’t take us all.

No, they can’t.

And even Surly is joining the fight.

………

Evidently, San Diego has the same fights over increased density that we do.

Except their city leaders are fighting for it, rather than opposing greater density in most of the city, like their neighbor to the north, while retaining single-family zoning and fighting SB 79, which overrides local zoning to allow dense, multi-family housing near major transit stops.

Lawrence Herzog, a writer and lecturer on urban studies and planning at San Diego State University makes the case for the mixed-use Midway Rising project, a medium density development that would replace the current sports arena and warehouses with housing and an entertainment district that opens onto the bay.

The project includes bike and walking paths connecting the various villages that make up the development, as well as connecting to a transit station less than a mile away.

The difference is that San Diego has been fighting a CEQA lawsuit filed by an anti-density group, which recently won its appeal over a failure to conduct an adequate environmental review of the height of some of the buildings.

Never mind that the city had placed the project before the voters, who narrowly approved it.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles continues to fight for an exemption to SB 79, despite a severe housing shortage in the city, affordable and otherwise, leaving us no choice but to increase density, despite what our city leaders seem to think.

Even though that increased density would effectively shrink the city, allowing it to become more walkable and bikeable, and reducing the need to drive everywhere.

And maybe even freeing up road space for better transit and safer bikeways.

Maybe someday our city leaders will stop kowtowing to residents desires to seal Los Angeles in amber and preserve it as it is today, and begin fighting for the healthy growth we so desperately need for the people who are already here. Let alone those who will inevitably come.

But clearly, today is not that day.

………

Meanwhile, San Diego’s 30th Street protected bike lane recorded a record 130,000 trips last year, with ridership rising every year since it opened four years ago.

And tres shock!

It has not destroyed the local neighborhood and businesses, despite the protestations of opponents both before it opened, and after.

………

No bias here.

Santa Monica public radio station KCRW provides a profile of Streets For All founder Michael Schneider, as the group works to extend the Ballona Creek bike path.

It’s a good read, even as Schneider patiently explains that you really can ride a bike to LAX.

But what really stands out is this section —

Disrupting the existing automotive order can mean more traffic and less parking, of course. So Schneider has angered some people over the years.

In 2022, he was on a neighborhood council championing a proposal for a dedicated bus lane along La Brea Avenue. The proposal passed, but in the run up, he says, one guy got pretty mad about it: “He put up a mugshot of me along La Brea at different establishments saying, ‘This guy’s about to ruin your neighborhood,’” Schneider recalls. When his mother-in-law saw the flyers, she “thought her grandkids were in danger.”

Matthew Tallmer says he did post — though not create — those flyers. “Obviously, the businesses were very concerned that they were going to lose business because there’d be no parking,” says Tallmer, now a member of the Mid City West Neighborhood Council, though at the time he was just a guy going door-to-door opposing a bus lane.

Tallmer’s larger objection is that Schneider’s unique lifestyle just may not work for everybody: “The whole idea that people are going to bike all over the place is an elitist fantasy, to be honest.”

So someone who sits on the Mid City West Neighborhood Council posts wanted posters with a photo of Schneider’s face, for the crime of daring to contest the automotive hegemony on La Brea.

And yet he somehow calls Schneider elitist for riding a bicycle, and thinking other people might want to do that, too?

Um, sure.

And I thought the Mid City West NC was one of the good ones.

………

Local 

A trial has begun in the lawsuit over the death of an LAPD training instructor who died following a catastrophic spinal injury during bicycle training exercise; the parents of 32-year old Houston Tipping allege he was intentionally killed after he began a sexual abuse investigation into another officer.

The Argonaut looks at the weekly Venice Electric Light Parade and founder Marcus Gladney, who leads bicycle riders on a musical tour of the city that draws participants from around the world — including the Australian group RÜFÜS DU SOL, who hosted the listening party their fourth album on the parade.

 

State

The National Law Review examines California’s new regulations regarding ebikes, including a ban on converting new ebikes to exceed legal limits, as well as the regulatory gaps in the law that should be corrected. Like defining an ebike as at least partially human powered, and anything that’s not as an electric motorbike. 

San Bernardino Parks will officially open a new 3.8 mile section of the Santa Ana River trail on February 12th.

The Thousand Oaks Acorn looks at a recent bicycle rodeo in the city to teach kids how to ride safely.

Streetsblog San Francisco’s Roger Rudick called for the BART train system to fire a contractor who not only parked in a protected bike lane, but flipped him off when he asked the driver to move his van.

 

National

Newsweek examines why bicycling feels easier than walking and remains the world’s most energy‑efficient mode of human transport, more than five decades after Scientific American first reported it. Which is truly shocking. Not that bicycling is so efficient, but that Newsweek is still a thing.

Escape Collective says Trek is in deep doo doo as it marks its 50th anniversary, with layoffs, overstock, retail decline and debt making this its most challenging year yet. I bought my first adult bike from the company when they were just five years old. And I still have it, even if it’s not in rideable condition these days. Then again, neither am I. 

If you’re one of the roughly 2,000 Americans using a BeePrincess adult bike helmet, the CPSC wants you to take it off and kill it before it kills you.

Google is bringing its Gemini AI navigation to walking and bicycle maps. You know, just in case you want to put your faith in AI not to guide you into a brick wall. 

LA’s favorite ex-pro cyclist Phil Gaimon claims the KOM on Hawaii’s epic Mauna Kea, gaining more than 14,000 feet of elevation in just over four and a half hours.

A Denver website recommends visiting the Gold Level Bicycle Friendly Community of Durango, Colorado, calling the small cowboy town an important bicycling hub in the southwest corner of the state. So if I suddenly disappear one day, that’s probably where you’ll find me. 

Megan forwards news that a Denver bicyclist has built a calendar of bike events in the Mile High City.

That’s more like it. A 22-year old Texas man faces up to 20 years behind bars after being convicted of manslaughter for killing a high school student as he rode his bike in a crosswalk; investigators said he never touched his brakes before slamming into the boy’s bike. Although in California, he would only face a maximum of six years for vehicular manslaughter. 

A Florida House committee unanimously approved a provision to rein in ebikes in the state.

 

International

British bike advocates say it’s just common sense that the country’s transit police have reversed their policy of not investigating the theft of bicycles parked at train stations for more than two hours, arguing that it sent the wrong message about whose journeys really matter.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Ireland was given the 1,000th refurbished bicycle to be upcycled by a bike nonprofit group. Okay, one of the Lord Mayor’s, since they have four.

Workers in Germany can deduct the full cost of leasing a bicycle or ebike from their taxes, with 2.1 million people taking advantage of the benefit — a full 2.5 percent of the country’s population.

 

Finally…

Now you, too, can have an airbag in your shorts. And why am I only now hearing of Bands on Bike Taxis Getting Beers?

I mean, seriously.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Bike rider in his 40s killed by hit-and-run driver in Boyle Heights Thursday morning; 7th SoCal bike death this month

January 29, 2026 / / No comments

Once again, someone riding a bicycle has been murdered by a hit-and-run driver.

And as usual, we know almost nothing about the crash.

Sources are reporting that the victim was struck while crossing the street at 7th Street and Boyle Ave in Boyle Heights around 5:20 this morning.

The victim, publicly identified only as a man in his 40s, died at the scene, after the driver left him to die alone in the street.

There’s no other information on how the crash occurred, including which street the victim was crossing. Given the circumstances, unless police find a witness or security cam video, that may be all we ever know.

There’s also no information about the driver or suspect vehicle at this time.

A street view shows the intersection is controlled by a traffic signal with crosswalks in each direction, though there doesn’t appear to be any bike infrastructure on either street.

There’s a posted 25 mph speed limit on 7th, while Google AI reports a 35 mph speed limit on Boyle. Although at that hour, it’s likely the driver was exceeding whatever the posted limit is.

Anyone with information is urged to contact LAPD’s Central Traffic Division.

This is the seventh bicycling fatality that I’m aware in of Southern California already this year, and the third in Los Angeles County; it’s also the first reported in the City of Los Angeles.

Hit-and-run drivers have been responsible for two of those SoCal deaths this year. Nineteen of the of the 55 reported bicycling deaths last year involved hit-and-run drivers.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones. 

Thanks to Danny for the heads-up. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , ,

Bike lanes could be coming to Los Feliz, CicLAvia comes off life-support, and hit-and-run driver murders Holocaust survivor

January 29, 2026 / / No comments

Bike lanes could be coming to Los Feliz Blvd.

But only if they can figure out how to build them without a) removing a traffic lane, and b) adversely affecting Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument Number 67.

Or as most of us know them, the majestic evergreen cedars lining either side of the busy boulevard, which have been designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument since 1970.

CD4 Councilmember Nithya Raman, who somehow represents the area in a bizarrely gerrymandered district, got the city council to approve $400,000 for a feasibility and design study to install a cycle track between Fern Dell Drive and Vermont Ave.

A safe bikeway along the corridor would provide a huge benefit, as there is currently no safe way to get from Hollywood to the LA River or the zoo, without climbing extremely steep hills.

Or to Costco, for that matter.

………

It looks like CicLAvia may be off life support.

According to the San Fernando Valley Sun, Metro voted last year to approve funding for open streets events tied to the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics, putting traditional open streets events at risk.

However, after outrage from the community, Metro agreed to fund 70% of the cost for nine additional open streets applications, while requiring host cities to provide the other 30% matching funding.

Which is exactly what the Los Angeles City Council did yesterday, voting 12-2 to approve $3.2 million for open streets.

CD3 Councilmember Bob Blumenfield and CD7’s Monica Rodriguez opposed the measure because only one of the events is planned for the San Fernando Valley.

CD9 Councilmember Curren Price, Jr. was absent.

Probably because he’s just the latest in what’s becoming a long list of allegedly corrupt councilmembers, facing trial for embezzlement, perjury, and conflict of interest benefitting his wife and her consulting company.

………

This is who we share the road with.

The LAPD is looking for the hit-and-run driver who killed an 80-year old Holocaust survivor and his dog as they were walking in the bike lane on Woodman Ave in Sherman Oaks on Tuesday night.

Police located the car, a silver Maserati Quattroporte, abandoned nearby at Mammoth Ave and Milbank Street.

There were no license plates on the murder weapon.

………

My bad.

I neglected to consider yesterday that not everyone has Instagram. Which I should have, considering I only have it to share corgi photos and witticisms.

Well, I think they’re funny, even if the dog doesn’t share my sense of humor. Or my wife, for that matter.

Fortunately, Randy corrected my mistake yesterday, posting details of the West LA Unity Ride, while noting rental bikes will we available.

Meets at West LA Bicycle at 1:00pm, rolls around 1:30pm. 114 Washington BlvdMarina Del Rey, CA 90292Route: beach path to the art walls for a photo. Then to the Santa Monica Pier, Courthouse, Police Dept, and down Main Street to make a little bit of noise and get some visibility. #Bike #SoCal

— Randy Coppinger 🎙🎛🎧 (@randycoppinger.bsky.social) 2026-01-28T17:48:44.724Z

https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:l3c3zg3aljdbctelkytee3wo/post/3mditnnt4cc2u

Streetsblog’s Damien Newton notes Unity Rides will be taking place throughout California this Friday and Saturday, including additional rides in the LA area:

Los Angeles: Organized by Allez L.A. Bike Shop, 5227 York Blvd. Meet This Friday at 7:30 a.m., 8 a.m. roll-out.

Los Angeles: Organized by Organized by Domestique Cycling Club, Westwood VA Medical Center parking – just off Dowlen Drive, west of Sawtelle Blvd. [Strava route map]

Although it would be more effective if all the rides could meet up somewhere for a rally that would really get attention.

You’ll find information on the Westwood ride below, assuming the Instagram post stays embedded this time.

A ride will also take place in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where Pretti grew up; Bikepacking has mapped rides ranging from the US and Europe to Australia.

Meanwhile, Salsa Cycles explained why they felt compelled to speak out, even as commenters demanded we should keep politics out of bicycling, with the company saying they’re proud to call Minnesota home.

But clearly, not everyone agrees with them.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

You know your new bike lane sucks when riders are reporting broken bones and kidney damage, like this one in Brighton & Hove, England; the city is defending itself by arguing that they’re all turning in the wrong place.

A British man was convicted of assault for punching a bike rider who had stopped to relieve himself in the woods along a bike path, accusing the victim of being a “pervert,” and touching his genitals in front of him. Which is generally what one does when one stops to take a leak; a better question might be why was he looking? 

The capital of Estonia is busy moving bike riders to side streets, because apparently only drivers belong on main thoroughfares, and bike riders don’t really need to get anywhere, anyway.

………

Local 

An op-ed in the Los Angeles Times says the county has set a goal of ripping up 1,600 acres of pavement and replacing them with green space and trees, but questions if it’s too little, too late. Probably. Because we all know how “goals” tend to work out around here. 

Bike lanes on Fairfax Ave now have a new coat of Kermit, in a special shade or green specifically designed not to piss off Hollywood filmmakers. Although that’s still probably not enough to keep drivers from using them as traffic bypass lanes. 

 

State

The Laguna Beach Police Department will hold a free e-bike training course this Saturday, including certification to ride an ebike to local schools.

The attorney representing the family of 6-year old Hudson O’Loughlin is looking for deeper pockets than the woman accused of killing the boy as he rode his bike with his family in Pacific Beach; the suspect has been without a valid driver’s license for nine years, which means she probably doesn’t have insurance.

 

National

Amazon is recruiting ebike delivery riders who own their own bikes without any illegal modifications and with their own liability insurance; the company has also begun investing in their own ebike cargo vans for urban deliveries.

Seriously? A nonprofit bike park in Idaho continues to battle with county officials, who have denied it a permit to even build bathrooms, in a dispute that boils down to whether it should be classified as a ‘park’ or a ‘recreational facility.’

A 62-year old motorcycle rider faces a vehicular homicide charge for killing a 68-year old man riding a bicycle just a few miles from my Colorado hometown following a nine-month investigation; he’s accused of failing to negotiate a lefthand curve after passing another motorcycle, striking the victim on the far right shoulder, apparently head-on. Which makes it sound like the investigation should have taken about ten minutes.

Texas authorities warn parents that their kids could be riding an illegal electric motorcycle in the form of an ebike, while Gulf Shores, Alabama joined the parade of coastal cities cracking down on ebikes.

 

International

How to convert an old, unloved mountain bike to a modern gravel bike for the equivalent of less than $1,400.

A Brazilian gas company recounts the tale of a man who rode from his home in Bahia to New York in the 1920s, taking two years to travel through 11 countries, including sleeping in a tree after getting stalked by a jaguar, only to return home to find that no one really cared about his feat.

Bicyclists in Toronto appeared in Ontario’s highest provincial appeals court yesterday to defend their successful challenge of the province’s plan to rip out three of the city’s bike lanes, which ended with a ruling that bike riders had a constitutional right to have safe places to ride.

A Toronto film school graduate released his own, self-financed 15-minute romantic drama called The Bicycle Boy, which cost him just $23,000, which you can now watch for the low, low price of just $3.49. Which means he’ll break even if just 6,590 people pay to watch it. 

The British Parliament is considering a bill that would ban kits for illegal ebike conversions.

Horrible story from Ireland, where an inquest heard witnesses say they saw a 14-year old boy riding unsteadily after falling off his bicycle, only to disappear for six days before his body was found in a storm drain.

 

Finally…

That feeling when bike thefts are merely “inconveniencing,” or when it’s never too cold to ride. Who needs an ebike when you can build your very own electric jet bike?

And a reminder how it feels to ride a bicycle for the first time.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Nationwide Unity Rides Saturday to honor Alex Pretti, and accused hit-and-run killer of 6-year old Hudson O’Loughlin arraigned

January 28, 2026 / / One comment

Alex Pretti was one of us.

The 37-year old Minneapolis VA nurse, who was fatally shot — okay, murdered — by ICE agents on Saturday was a lover of the outdoors, and an active mountain bike rider.

Which is just one reason the bike community is rallying behind him.

Minneapolis’ Angry Catfish bike shop, which claimed Pretti as a frequent customer, is helping to organize memorial Unity Rides rides across the country for this Saturday, starting with Minneapolis.

The Radavist is calling for the entire bicycling community to come together for healing and to honor Pretti, who he says could have been any of us. Although I’m not sure how many of us would have stepped up to help a stranger at the risk of our own lives.

Meanwhile, Minnesota-based Salsa Cycles is urging bike riders to contact their legislator and join in a Unity Ride to protest the recent fatal shootings by ICE agents in Minneapolis.

According to Cycling Weekly,

“Our neighbors are being unlawfully detained, harassed and murdered at the hands of the federal immigration enforcement agents,” Salsa Cycles wrote in its statement. “Now is the time to speak up and stand up…”

“Community is important in times like this,” Salsa Cycles states. “Alex Pretti was a member of our local cycling community…We encourage you to come ride with us, host a ride in your community, or simply go ride in solidarity on Saturday.”

Bike Portland reports other rides have been announced for Portland, Oregon, Richmond and Norfolk, Virginia; Austin, San Antonio, and Dallas, Texas; Bellingham, Washington; San Francisco, California; Wichita, Kansas; and Memphis, Tennessee.

West LA Bicycle will host a Unity Ride here in Los Angeles (click here in case the Instagram link below doesn’t embed properly).

https://www.instagram.com/p/DUCoEbDjDuR

Anyone interested in organizing a ride can contact Community@angrycatfishbicycle.com for more information.

Let me know if there are any other rides planned for Los Angeles or Southern California.

I honestly don’t care what your politics are.

No one should be killed for legally, and peacefully, exercising their 1st and 2nd Amendment rights.

………

Ten years hardly seems like enough.

Thirty-two-year old Tiffany Sanchez was formally indicted Tuesday on felony charges of vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run for killing six-year old Hudson O’Loughlin as he rode his bike with his family on a Pacific Beach sidewalk January 18th.

The former carries a maximum of six years, while the latter has a max of just four years, thanks to California’s lax hit-and-run laws.

And that’s only if she is convicted on both charges, and gets the maximum penalties, to run concurrently.

Anyone want to give odds on that?

Sanchez is accused of knocking Hudson off his bike as she turned right into an alley, stopping briefly, then fleeing the scene and driving over the boy as he lay helpless on the ground.

According to 10 News San Diego,

“The defendant did not stop, she did not render aid, she did not assess the situation or try to help out, she didn’t, she did not call 911,” said Cassidy McWilliams, deputy district attorney.

Never mind that she hasn’t had a valid driver’s license for nine years, and shouldn’t have been on the road in the first place.

She was ordered into custody on $150,000 bond, and will be required to wear an ankle monitor and forbidden from driving if she manages to post it.

………

A new map from the San Francisco Chronicle shows the most dangerous streets and neighborhoods for bicyclists and pedestrians, based on traffic deaths from 2020-2024, as reported by law enforcement agencies to the Transportation Injury Mapping System at UC Berkeley.

According to the paper,

This analysis includes people walking, biking, using wheelchairs or riding personal conveyances such as rollerblades or skateboards. In total, nearly 6,500 people were killed while walking or biking across California during this five-year period, a toll that includes about 800 cyclists.

Fatalities climbed steadily for nearly a decade across the state, reaching a peak of 1,429 deaths in 2022, before receding to 1,208 in 2024. In comparison, the Bay Area has remained relatively stable. The number of fatalities has ranged between 150-180 deaths per year.

The map pinpoints the location of both pedestrian and bicycling deaths, while blocking out high-fatality hotspots.

The latter of which makes Los Angeles look like the hot mess it is.

………

Active SGV is hosting a free Learn to Bike class in El Monte on Sunday.

The group is also hosting an easy ride to Whittier Narrows next weekend.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

A New Jersey legislator is “backpedaling” on his own proposal to require a $50 annual bicycle registration fee to make bike riders contribute to the cost of their own infrastructure, with public comments running 61% against. Because apparently, people who ride bikes don’t pay taxes like normal folks, and the proven societal and health effects of bicycling are worth nothing. And no, drivers don’t pay their own way; the overwhelming cost of building and maintaining roadways comes from general tax funds.

The simple act of bicycling without a helmet or hi-viz clothing could soon become a criminal offense in Ireland if a new government proposal is enacted; the president of an Irish bicycling organization calls it “performative policymaking,” arguing “there is no credible evidence” that it would significantly reduce collisions or fatalities. Meanwhile, an English author and columnist writing for the Irish Times says that “Anyone who thinks cyclists ‘come out of nowhere’ should not be in control of a vehicle.”

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

Carpenteria is becoming the latest coastal California city to crack down on ebikes without distinguishing ped-assist bikes from the electric motorbikes and illegal ebikes causing the problems, although they are capping ebike speeds at 28 mph, mirroring state law.

………

Local 

Metro will mark the birthday of civil rights icon Rosa Parks next Wednesday, aka Transit Equity Day, with free rides throughout the system, including Metro Bike; the agency is also conducting a survey to better understand the needs of neurodivergent riders.

UCLA is now requiring that every ebike and e-scooter kept on campus be UL-certified and registered with the school transportation department.

A Canyon Country bike rider was hospitalized with minor injuries as a result of a hit-and-run crash with a truck driver leaving a movie set. Which means the driver shouldn’t be too hard to find. 

He gets it. A personal trainer from Signal Hill says Long Beach residents don’t need another fitness trend, because all they have to do is go outside to enjoy one of the city’s most effective health resources, including the beachfront bike path.

 

State

Once again, a bike thief has been busted in Orange County, after stealing a bait bike worth over $2,000 in Huntington Beach, which makes it a felony. Meanwhile, the LAPD still won’t employ bait bikes because a former city attorney feared it could be construed as entrapment, even though similar charges have held up in other cities that do.

Laguna Beach city leaders are debating potential locations and designs for a pump track, though they haven’t made a commitment to building one yet.

A 71-year old man was critically injured when he was struck by a pickup driver in Indio Tuesday morning and knocked under the truck, suffering “significant” injuries; shockingly, the driver was unharmed. And yes, that’s sarcasm. 

Congratulations to San Jose, where traffic deaths dropped for the second straight year, declining ten percent from 2024 to the lowest level since 2012.

Bike-friendly Davis has released a new citywide bike map. Granted, it’s easier to build a connected bike network in a small city, but at least Davis has one. Los Angeles doesn’t. 

Sad news from Lodi, where a 78-year old retired physician was killed by a driver while riding his bicycle in Amador County, southeast of Sacramento; he was called The Lone Rider by his bike club because he rode so much after his retirement 23 years ago.

 

National

Gadget Review ranks the fifteen best bikes from last year. Some of which actually are. 

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The assets of bankrupt Seattle ebikemaker Rad Power Bikes were auctioned off in a fire sale for $13.2 million, following its recent Orange County warehouse fire — a 99.2% drop from its high valuation of $1.65 billion.

Once again, someone riding a bicycle has been collateral damage in a police chase, when a bike rider was killed by a speeding driver fleeing from the cops in Tucson, Arizona, who also crashed into a pedestrian before being shot by state troopers; the driver was hospitalized, while the pedestrian suffered non-life threatening injuries.

Winter bicycling rates are skyrocketing in Cambridge, Massachusetts, increasing over 400% in the past ten years, thanks in part to the city plowing snow from bike lanes.

South Carolina authorities are searching for a 15-year old boy who disappeared under “unusual” circumstances after leaving his grandfather’s house for a bike ride a week ago, and hasn’t been seen since.

 

International

A writer for Cycling Weekly says like it or not, of course there are barriers to bicycling for female riders, from the cost of an entry level bike to products designed for male riders, and threatening behavior from other road users.

A new Canadian study shows that nearly 3,600 kilometers — roughly 2,200 miles — of high-quality bicycling infrastructure was added across the country, but the increase largely bypassed areas with more children and older adults, which could benefit most from it.

The London Times asks if 2025 was the year London became a bicycling city, as even Timothée Chalamet embraced the city’s ubiquitous Lime bikes.

British Transport Police have reversed their recent announcement that they wouldn’t investigate the theft of bicycles left at train stations for more than two hours.

A British man completed a six-month, 14,000-mile trip from Melbourne to Melbourne, the former in the UK and the latter in Australia.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever stole a man’s wallet when he fell from his bike after leaving a nightclub in Turin, Italy, and was fatally struck by a hit-and-run driver while he was on the ground.

 

Competitive Cycling

Two-time Tour de France champ Jonas Vingegaard was lucky to escape serious injury when he crashed on a training ride, after he tried to drop an amateur cyclist who repeatedly tailed him and wouldn’t back off; amateur Pedro García Fernández posted video to Strava showing him riding on Vingegaard’s wheel, saying he couldn’t understand the pro’s anger at being followed by a fan. It used to piss me off when some stranger drafted off me, and I’m not even famous.

Chinese bikes have made it to the WorldTour, with the Quick Pro brand signing a new sponsorship agreement with the Euskaltel-Euskadi cycling team, after more than 30 years using Orbea bikes.

Ouch. Aussie Jay Vine finished the Tour Down Under riding with a broken wrist after getting caught up in the infamous kangaroo crash.

 

Finally…

That feeling when you give five grand from your insurance settlement to the driver who knocked you off your bike because the crash cured your back pain. We may have to deal with rabid LA drivers, but at least we hardly ever run into potentially rabid baby bats. Who needs a bike seat when you’re Ryan Seacrest?

And honestly, who wouldn’t want their very own lobster bike?

Ok, who has $200?seattle.craigslist.org/see/gms/d/se…

— Cold vermin winter of our discontent (@sciencehippies.bsky.social) 2026-01-24T20:52:56.370Z

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Today’s post called on account of yuck

January 27, 2026 / / No comments

My apologies.

I’m feeling just this side of awful tonight. With any luck, it’s just a passing bout of old and diabetic, and I’ll be young, healthy and beautiful after a good night’s sleep.

Hopefully, we’ll be back on Wednesday to catch up on anything we missed.

Category: General /
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