BikinginLA

This weekend, it’s all about the L.A. River Ride on Sunday.

KCRW’s Shortcuts looks at the River Ride, while Damien Newton demonstrates his scary knowledge of One Tree Hill in honor of Grand Marshal Austin Nichols. And if you read this early enough, Will Campbell invites you to join him and other volunteers in the annual tradition of marking the route; the photo alone is worth the click.

You can expect Nichols to be there on Sunday, along with Mayor Villaraigosa and a camera crew from KTLA. As well as a few thousand happy cyclists, including yours truly.

You can find me on the 70 mile ride, and signing up new members in the LACBC booth afterwards — assuming I can still stand at that point. Though I may have to sneak off for a cold 1554 at the New Belgium Brewing booth at some point.

And don’t forget the after party at Home Restaurant, 2500 Riverside Drive, with $3 New Belgium pints all day.

After all, you have to do something to get your strength back, right?

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Some other notable events this weekend:

Saturday, June 4th, the Palms Neighborhood Council and the LAPD’s Pacific Division is sponsoring the 2011 Bike Rodeo from 10 am to 2 pm at Palms Elementary School, 3520 Motor Ave; events include a bike safety course, safety inspection, radar speed test and a bike giveaway, as well as live entertainment and free food.

Folk Art Everywhere explores the historic West Adams District on their next bike tour on Saturday, June 4th; expect an easy, fun and fascinating ride perfect for beginning to moderate cyclists. Meet at Mercado La Paloma, 3655 S. Grand Avenue in Los Angeles, at 11 am, with the ride starting at 11:15.

Flying Pigeon hosts their monthly Brewery Ride on Saturday, June 4th from 3 to 5:30 pm; meet at Flying Pigeon Bike Shop, 3714 North Figueroa Street in Highland Park.

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Following the death of Nick Venuto and the serious injuries to Baron Herdelin-Doherty in San Diego on Wednesday, both Caltrans and local cyclists question whether the bike path they were riding on is safe enough. And Bike Crave remembers a man he barely knew.

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As noted Friday morning, Mayor Villaraigosa shook up LADOT, appointing Deputy Mayor Jaime De La Vega to head the troubled department, among others; Damien Newton calls the appointment a safe choice and asks if it was the right choice.

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Goodbye to Sirinya of UCLA’s Be A Green Commuter blog, who’s moving on with her career; she did a great job helming BAGC, and I learned a lot from her. Good luck in the new position.

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As Chris points out, sometimes you just have to ride, even if you’re going in the wrong direction. The Bicycle Shop Decal Project offers a great way to kill a few minutes, or hours. LAPD bike point man Sgt. David Krumer answers readers’ questions on Streetsblog. Examined Spoke says if you focus too much on poor cyclists, you could lose them once they reach middle class. The latest Beastie Boys video features at least eight I. Martin customers. A look back at a successful Bike Month in Glendale. Great news for cyclists as Angeles Crest Highway finally reopens. Camarillo cyclist Chris Barton had less than a week to prepare for the Giro. The next round of workshops for the South Bay bike plan are coming up later this month. A Santa Ana councilwoman rides her bike to fight OC’s status as the state’s second fattest county. Huntington Beach offers traffic school for ticketed cyclists, something that was also included in L.A.’s new bike plan.

Tucson Velo looks at Oceanside’s riding scene. Authorities credit a 9-year old’s bike helmet for saving his life after he was hit and pinned under an SUV. Cyclelicious fills you in on the status of bike related bills in the state legislature; the three-foot passing bill passes the state Senate and moves on to the Assembly. Joe Linton looks at bike facilities in Baghdad by the Bay. A San Jose father builds a homemade trike to help his son recover from a brain injury. Bay Area children are involved in more bike collisions than any other age group. Yet another sign of the bike boom as Caltrain commits to two bike cars on every train.

Bob Mionske offers his usual great advice on how to avoid collisions, and what to do if you have one; seriously, take notes — I failed this test in real life. Bicycling offers a revue of stylish bike baskets, which will never, ever grace my road bike. The hottest trend in cycling is just ride, already. Neil Browne explains why he’s not taking down his Lance Armstrong poster. Twenty percent of all collisions are related to driveways, as many cyclists can attest. DOT Secretary Ray LaHood plans to bike to work on Monday. The culture of carnage needs to change. Dave Moulton says it’s never too late to insist on bike/ped access for a new bridge. A Florida non-profit fixes up bikes and gives them to the homeless. However, if you visit Florida, you might want to avoid Lee County, the most dangerous county in the U.S. for cyclists.

Nearly three-quarters of Toronto residents want more bike lanes. An 82-year of British man dies after rear-ending a stopped truck during a time trial. A British motorist is killed by an enraged rider after dooring a group of cyclists. Maybe Copenhagen has finally gone too far in welcoming cyclists. People for Bikes looks at Seville’s remarkable transformation.

Finally, Ewan McGregor, fixie fanatic. The food truck fad shrinks as El Tacobike hits the streets of Oakland.

And you’ve probably already seen the inspirational speech that follows a kid’s first successful bike ride.