BikinginLA

It seems like everyone is anticipating this Friday’s L.A. Critical Mass  — whether with excitement or trepidation — especially in light of the recent announcement that the LAPD intends to participate.

Some cyclists are planning to respond by observing the letter of the law and stopping for all red lights, regardless of the effect that may have on traffic. Or on the department’s ability to manage countless groups of riders converging on a single spot.

Meanwhile, a rider going by the name of Plebis Power — loosely translated, Power of the People — left a comment on a recent post that featured the department’s poster announcing their plans to attend the next CM, as well as on the LACBC’s blog. And in it, offered a link to a tongue-in-cheek response to the LAPD.

It’s pretty damn funny — and effectively makes a good point, while demonstrating that there are two sides to this story.

And I’m told that even the officer who created the department’s original poster found it pretty amusing.

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Sharrows began hitting the streets on the Valley’s Reseda Blvd, making it the third of six locations scheduled to get them; bike lanes are still planned from Devonshire to Parthenia and Parthenia to Valerio. As for the others, I rode both Westholme Ave and Abbot Kinney over the past few days; no sign of sharrows yet.

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Long Beach’s biking expats offer images from Music City. Good Samaritans save a cyclist who suffers a heart attack in Silicon Valley. How to safely navigate your way around trucks, and how drivers can safely navigate their way around you. A road-raging writer says he hates bike riders more than serial killers and TV pitchmen. U.S. Representative Earl Blemenauer and DOT Secretary Ray LaHood write about the new bike lane on one of the world’s most famous streets; now maybe our bike riding president can use his to get to the next State of the Union address. A Portland cyclist beats a ticket for carrying a passenger on his bike. Seattle gets its first buffered bike lanes. The RAAM rider critically injured in a Kansas collision still has no feeling from the waist down; still no word on charges against the driver. Oklahoma cyclists can now legally run red lights that don’t change. New York neighborhoods start to fight back against more bike lanes, while the city’s Sanitation Department revokes a misguided plan to remove ghost bikes. A bike riding first grader hit on the last day of classes shines a light on Safe Routes to School. New Florida road signs say “Ride Right, Drive Right.” Using lights to see and be seen. Lance Armstrong’s Radioshack team names its roster for the Tour de France; after his second place finish in the Tour of Switzerland, Lance may be competitive this year after all. Guerilla tactics to protect your bike. New Zealand authorities seek a teenage BMX riding groper. A cyclist wins in court after slipping in oil spilled by a farmer.

Evidently, it’s open season on cyclists in the Windy City. In a truly bizarre case, a Chicago judge celebrates their Bike to Work Day by giving two drunk drivers who intentionally sought out and hit two cyclists — actually changing seats so both would have a chance — to less than a slap on the wrist. One driver got 7 to 10 days in jail; the other was sentenced to two years probation.