Sad news from Perris, as a bike rider was killed in a wrong-way collision on Wednesday.
According to the Press-Enterprise, the victim, identified only as a 54-year old man, was riding against traffic on the 300 block of Fourth Street when he was struck by a work truck around 4:43 pm.
He was taken to a hospital, where he died sometime later.
No other information is available at this time.
A street view shows a wide four lane roadway with a center turn lane, with sidewalks and a wide concrete gutter on either side. No word on why he would have been riding on the wrong side of the roadway, rather than with traffic or on the sidewalk.
Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Kiebach at 951/210-1000.
This is the 33rd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the second in Riverside County; it’s also the fourth bicycling fatality in Perris in less than three years.
Update: The Press-Enterprise reports the victim has been identified as Perris resident Roger Villegas. He died at Menifee Valley Medical Center before 5:30 pm, roughly 45 minutes after the collision.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Roger Villegas and his loved ones.
I had received reports of a cyclist down on PCH, but hadn’t been able to get any information over the weekend.
Tuesday, the answer came in the form of a gofundme account asking for donations to help defray the medical expenses for Steve Striver, who was hit by a car while riding in Malibu on Saturday.
Here’s what Edie Raff Pratt, author of the page, had to say.
After being airlifted to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, Steve underwent 6 hours of surgery to begin to repair the damage. The surgery went well however Steve remains in critical condition in the Neuro ICU unit at the hospital.
Steve’s injuries are extensive and severe. Trauma and bleeding in his head, a bruised heart, a punctured lung, fractured ribs, left wrist fracture, right hip fracture, pelvis fracture, left femur fracture, scapula fracture, lower broken back, extensive wounds on his body and face from road rash. Honestly, there is hardly an unbroken or contusion free area on his body.
Once Steve gets past the initial hurdles in the hospital, he will have extensive and challenging rehabilitation and a long road for recovery ahead. We appreciate any prayers of healing you can provide for Steve as well as prayers of comfort for his wife Marianne and their four children Claire, Tim, Sam and Jeffrey.
Steve Shriver is a husband, father, son, brother, friend to many, artist, musician, cyclist, surfer, gentle soul and one of the best people to ever know.
As you can imagine, the medical bills ahead will be mounting. This page and fundraiser is set up by friends of Steve & Marianne Shriver and family, so that we may raise money for the medical bills and expenses related to them. All monies will go directly to the Shriver family.
As of this writing, the fund has raised a little more that $15,000 of the $250,000 goal in the first 18 hours.
Thanks to Adam Ginsberg for the heads-up.
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We’re less than one month away from the annual Ride of Silence to remember bike riders who’ve lost their lives in the past year.
This year’s ride will take place on Wednesday, May 18th, the evening before LA’s Bike to Work Day.
And for the fifth year in a row, the Anthony Martinez Jr. Memorial Bike Ride will be held in Oxnard to remember victims of traffic violence. The ride is named for a six-year old boy who was tragically killed while riding his bike on Thanksgiving Day in 2011; his father is now a tireless advocate for bike safety.
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The Irish Times goes all in on bicycling, with a series of stories looking at riding from almost every conceivable angle.
Bicycling has become cool again, rising to become Ireland’s third most popular sport, in addition to thousands of bike commuters.
A team of road safety officers visit schools and colleges all over the country to teach the dangers and demands of road safety for those on two wheels.
Why motorists and cyclists should be friends, and how a little basic courtesy from both sides can reduce the risk of road rage.
The head of Ireland’s Road Safety Administration says a reduction in speed limits would save lives and improve health by encouraging more walking and bicycling, and even boosting tourism.
How to deal with the challenges of Irish roads, from obstinate sheep to Kraken-hiding potholes and decomposing badgers.
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As long as we’re doing bullet points, let’s keep it going with a look at bikes in the news.
Architectural Digest reports on five of the most innovative new bikes on the market. Which would seem to have little to do with the topic of their publication, but maybe that’s just me; thanks to joninsocal for the heads-up.
Or how about a $28,000 ebike built to military-grade standards that can do over 40 mph. Except in California that makes it a motorcycle, rather than a bicycle, requiring an operators license and a helmet.
Then again, doesn’t everyone need a bike that can store an entire bottle of whiskey in the down tube, and dispense it from a spigot near the bottom bracket? Perfect for taking a break on those long rides if you want to ensure you won’t make it home.
And going the clickbait route, Outside Magazine says these eight products are the future of bicycling. Or not.
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Local
Not only will we be getting a protected bike lane on Los Angeles Street, it will also be LA’s first curb-protected bike lane. Maybe that will actually be enough to keep the LAPD from parking their patrol cars in it. We can hope, right?
Taylor Swift may be one of us, as she keeps what looks like a three-wheeled pedicab stashed outside her Beverly Hills home.
Santa Clarita is hosting an open house tonight to discuss the future of pedestrian and bicycle trails between Saugus and the Santa Clara River trail.
Long Beach photographer John Montich opens a new exhibit looking at unrideable bicycles.
You’re invited to a costumed Tour de Phat People bike ride visiting some of their favorite Highland Park watering holes this Saturday.
State
So much for equity on our streets. Two bills in the California legislature calling for equity in transportation funding and accessibility for low-income communities die lonely deaths for lack of support.
A San Diego cyclist is injured in a collision with a homemade three-wheeled “Star Trike” motorcycle; the driver naturally puts all the blame on the bicyclist, even while an on-screen graphic notes the trike — and presumably, the man riding it — has been involved in eight previous wrecks.
Murrieta police bust three transients and recover several stolen bicycles after responding to a burglary at a bike shop and spotting a man ghost riding another bike.
Caught on video: A New York cyclist offers a high-speed look at his ride to work, catching nine traffic violations by motorists on a single 12-minute commute.
Aussie model Elyse Taylor is one of us, as she rides her retro-style bike through the streets of Gotham in her high-waisted jeans.
A DC church is hosting a bicycle blessing next month to try to mend fences between cyclists and churches that fought over bike lanes.
A new British study says nearly half of all hit-and-run drivers wouldn’t have fled if they only knew it was illegal. To which I politely respond, bullshit.
Caught on video 2: A pair of Brit thugs wrench a bike from the arms of a 13-year old special needs kid the day before his bar mitzvah.
Caught on video 3: An Edinburgh cyclist posts video of the taxi driver who attacked him last year after they exchanged words following a too-close pass; the driver was fined after pleading guilty to careless driving and assault.
Former heavyweight champ and current mayor of Kiev is now one of us as he rides his folding bike to work, to the ambivalent reactions of his constituents.
Ride your ebike on the sidewalk in Tel Aviv, and face a $70 fine.
April 19, 2016 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Uproar over dope-tinged Strava KOMS, a bike lane by any other name, and Nessie viewing by bike
No major stories today, so let’s just get right to it.
Local
The Times looks at the uproar over Strava KOMs held by convicted PED dealer Nicholas Brandt-Sorenson.
The NoHo Arts District is looking for participants for the Reseda Arts Walk this June, including the possibility of a bike ride if anyone wants to put one together.
A champion Mixed Martial Arts fighter teams with a group of volunteers to give away 70 bicycles to needy families in Lucerne Valley, as well as feeding 200 people and providing complimentary haircuts.
A Merced candidate for mother of the year flees the scene after running down a cyclist in front of multiple witnesses — including an off-duty cop — with her three-year old daughter in the car, sans child seat, of course.
Caught on video: A San Francisco bike thief uses power tools to steal a bike in broad daylight in front of multiple witnesses. And as usual, no one seems to notice or care.
Marin County attempts to bypass the usual bikelash by renaming bike lanes as “stripped shoulders” in a coming road reconfiguration.
I want to be like him when I grow up. A Sonoma Valley triathlete is still training for the future at age 78. I mean, besides the whole running and swimming part.
Seattle demonstrates the wisdom of building protected bike lanes quickly, going from temporary paint and bollards to permanent planter barriers in just four months.
My hometown continues to get better for bikes by sacrificing business parking to convert what was once a risky route through town into a bike friendly street. Sadly, it only comes a few decades too late for me. Although the story does mention the joint where my mandolin maestro brother plays bluegrass from time to time.
High-end hair stylist Frédéric Fekkai is one of us, fracturing his wrist when he fell off his bike not far from Poughkeepsie NY.
A staff columnist for the student newspaper at North Carolina State U, who apparently has never ridden one, says bicycling is the worst form of transportation, in part because he has personally seen two bike wrecks; apparently he’s never seen cars collide. Thanks to former Bicycling Magazine editor-in-chief Peter Flax for the link.
This is the cost of driving under the influence. An Atlanta driver was allegedly high when he hit a car, then jumped the curb and hit three young boys riding their bikes on the sidewalk, killing one and leaving the other two in critical condition.
Cycling Weekly offers six tips on how to properly wear a cycling cap. Or you could just wear one any way you damn well want, which is what style is all about.
Nothing like encouraging responsibility on the roads.
An English driver was so concerned about the safety of others, she started a petition calling for all bicyclists to be required to wear a helmet and fluorescent clothing, mentioning in passing that she’d been involved in a collision with a cyclist who died.
Of course, she failed to mention that she was drunk at the time. Or that she fled the scene, leaving her critically injured victim lying alone in the street.
But sure, let’s blame the victims.
Maybe a better petition would require drivers to put fluorescent lights on their cars to warn us if they’ve been drinking, since we can’t seem to keep drunks off the roads.
Or get them to take responsibility for their own actions.
Motor doping may be more common than we might think, as the European press use a heat detector to discover what appears to be seven hidden motors in two different races.
I want to be like him when I grow up. A 100-year old man crossed the finish line in this year’s Tour de Yorkshire on an assisted bicycle, 63 years after he founded a British bike club.
And Wolfpack Hustles’ annual Short Line Crit is less than three weeks away.
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Local
A Tuesday meeting in Pacoima will discuss a bike and pedestrian friendly makeover of Van Nuys Blvd in a bid to improve safety on one of the city’s more dangerous streets.
One of the best things about bicycling is the people you meet. CiclaValley encounters a Korean couple taking a break in LA on their 10-year journey around the world.
A writer for the Gazettes takes a free adult cycling class as part of the efforts of Danny Gamboa and Empact Communities to make Long Beach safer for cyclists.
A San Diego man receives a life sentence for fatally shooting a bike-riding 46-year old father of six for no apparent reason last year.
Now that the Chargers plan to abandoned their stadium in Mission Valley one way or another, a San Diego city council candidate calls for building a bike path along the river.
San Bernardino police are looking for a driver who allegedly intentionally ran down a cyclist, circling around him before reversing and pinning him to a wall.
A Fresno letter writer says parents should be charged with child abuse for allowing their teenage children to ride their bikes on a busy street. I think he means child endangerment, which is still an absurdly myopic windshield perspective.
A Monterey CHP officer calls on drivers to share the road with cyclists during this past weekend’s Sea Otter Classic. But mistakenly says bike riders can be cited for impeding traffic for riding too slowly or failing to move over so cars can pass; the latter only applies on two lane roadways when five or more vehicles are following behind and unable to pass. Unfortunately, the CHP frequently misinterprets this law, as well as the requirement that cyclists ride as far right as practicable. Which puts cyclists at risk of underserved tickets, and retaliation from angry drivers who’ve been misinformed about the law.
A Sacramento artist finds new life for old bike chains, turning them into dog sculptures. Meanwhile, both major candidates for mayor of Sacramento pledge to make the city a vibrant place people can safely navigate without a car.
National
NACTO’s new Transit Street Design Guide offers a blueprint for how to incorporate transit and protected bikeways on city streets. Let’s hope LA officials read it.
Federal authorities question whether Baton Rouge LA officials misspent $2.2 million, including $400,000 used to build a bike path along the Mississippi River.
International
Caught on video 2: A road raging British driver repeatedly brake checks and swerves at a cyclist, apparently incensed that the bike rider had filtered past a line of cars at a red light.
Seriously? The Guardian says don’t wear your bike shorts in public, especially not in front of children. So presumably, you’ll need to throw on a pair of pants or a skirt before you dismount.
The grammatically challenged Telegraph asks what cycling tribe are you? Because evidently, it’s not possible to just ride a bike without being some sort of stereotype. Or to get that whole singular/plural thing right.
Apparently, life is cheap in Britain, where an 80-year old British man gets a suspended prison sentence and lifetime driving ban for killing a cyclist. Not that it will likely keep him off the road, since he was already driving without a license — and his glasses — after failing previous eye tests.
In the US, drivers are allowed to turn right on most red lights; in Denmark, bike riders just got approval to do the same at 33 intersections.
The United Arab Emirates considers locking dangerous drivers up for 24 hours; that’s in addition to a fine, 12 points on their license, and having their cars impounded for 30 days. Nice to see someone take traffic crime seriously, anyway.
A New Zealand railroad tunnel is repurposed as the Southern Hemisphere’s longest bicycle tunnel after lying dormant for over 60 years.
April 15, 2016 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Hit-and-run in Harvard Heights, protected bike lane coming to 1st St, and 10-Freeway victim ID’d
Police are looking for the cowardly schmuck who took off after running down a bike rider in LA’s Harvard Heights on Wednesday.
The collision occurred around 3 pm at the corner of Venice and Hobart Blvds as the cyclist reported he was blindsided by the collision. Fortunately, he suffered just cuts and bruises, along with a head wound that required six staples.
The driver was caught on a security camera stopping several blocks away to remove the mangled bike from underneath his minivan before getting back in and driving away.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the LAPD’s West Traffic Division at 213/473-0222.
If you hurry, you may still have time to make it up to the Sea Otter Classic in time to race your Brompton this evening. Coat and tie or dresses are required, although nothing says your attire must be gender appropriate.
Russian cyclist Eduard Vorganov can unretire now that doping officials say he gets a do-over. On the other hand, Italian rider Luca Paolini got an 18 month ban for doing coke during last year’s Tour de France, apparently mistaking the French countryside for Studio 54 in the ’80s.
An Aussie writer says organized teams of weekend warrior MAMILS are ruining amateur bike racing.
Richard Risemberg employs his best WTF! in an attempt to comprehend why the Second Street bike lanes simply stop at Beverly Blvd, dumping riders into a complicated intersection with unforgiving traffic. Not unlike, say, most bike lanes in LA’s disconnected and discombobulated non-network.
LA considers returning a portion of parking revenue to the neighborhoods where it was collected, and where it could be used to fix sidewalks or stripe bike lanes.
The LA Sheriff’s Department has made an arrest in the hit-and-run that injured a woman in her 70s riding her bike in Agoura Hills last month; the detective said the juvenile driver was sorry, but he screwed up. Gee, you think?
State
Oceanside will study a proposal for a road diet on the Coast Highway, narrowing the roadway from four lanes to two while adding buffered bike lanes.
A Montana paper looks back on 133 years of bicycling in Yellowstone National Park; the first riders to visit the park were three men from Laramie whose sag wagon actually was one.
Caught on video: An Omaha driver claims she was the victim of bike rage, as a man on a bike goes off on her for blocking a bike path.
A Wisconsin woman faces a homicide charge with up to 10 years behind bars for running down a bike rider while texting; she allegedly deleted her texts in an attempt to cover-up her crime.
Good news from Tennessee, as the controversial bill that would have barred the use of gas taxes for parks and bike lanes has been pulled by it sponsor.
Rather than develop compatible systems, Jersey City votes to limit commercial bikes from using city bike racks for more than two hours to keep Hoboken bikeshare users from hogging them. This could offer a hint to LA’s future, as Metro’s coming system won’t compatible with Santa Monica’s or systems planned for Beverly Hills, West Hollywood and Westwood.
Security video proves NY cops hit a cyclist as he rode in a bike lane, after which they accused him of riding on the sidewalk, then lied on the accident report to shift the blame to him. Thanks to Michael Byerts for the heads-up.
New York considers a bill that would allow cops to use a device to scan drivers’ cell phones after a crash, and automatically suspend their licenses if they refuse. Checking cell phone use should be standard practice after any injury collision, anywhere.
Bike trails have unexpectedly become Philadelphia’s must-have real estate amenity, as developers are opting for bike paths instead of parking lots.
President Obama uses an air horn to kick off this year’s Wounded Warrior Ride to raise awareness of military vets suffering from physical and psychological disabilities as a result of their service.
Now that’s more like it. Washington DC lowers the cost of an annual membership for their bikeshare program to just $5 for low income residents.
April 13, 2016 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Bike lanes get blame in West Hills, East Side Riders profiled, and Bev Hills goes auto autonomous
Somehow bikes always seem to get the blame.
Even when they’re nowhere around.
In yet another horrible sacrifice to LA’s car culture, a woman and her adult daughter were killed, along with their dog, while attempting to cross Roscoe Blvd in West Hills Monday night.
Yet instead of blaming the dangerous drivers who residents say speed through the intersection, the Daily News points the finger at a recent road diet, saying westbound Roscoe was narrowed to provide a buffer for cyclists.
Except it wasn’t.
That road diet, like every other road diet, was done to slow those speeding drivers and improve safety for everyone. Bike lanes are just a tool to accomplish that; providing a buffer for people on bikes is just an added benefit.
Which means the problem isn’t the bike lanes.
It’s the culture that says it’s okay to drive 10 miles, or 20, or even 30, above the 40 mph speed limit, then cut over at the last second when the roadway narrows.
Police say the driver wasn’t intoxicated, and wasn’t talking on his cell phone. So the question is how fast was he going, why didn’t he see the two women and their Labrador retriever in a zebra crosswalk, and why he couldn’t stop in time.
And why in God’s name is a 40 mph speed limit allowed in a residential neighborhood to begin with.
There may be a lot of factors that led up to this tragedy.
But bike lanes isn’t one of them.
Thanks to Mike Wilkinson for the heads-up.
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Bicycling Magazine offers a great interview with John Jones III, founder of the East Side Riders bike club, who is using bikes to change Watts for the better.
We have this thing we implemented with the police, the sheriff’s office, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, and the Watts Labor Community Action Committee, called Life Lanes. Basically, it means gang members know not to bother folks on bikes around Watts. We went out and talked to gang members and told them, “You’re gonna see people who don’t look like us riding through here, people from different ethnic groups—don’t mess with them.” And we told law enforcement, “You’re gonna see people from outside the community riding through here—protect them.” And everybody listened! …
Now we ride through some of the projects, and folks don’t bother us. Some of the people in our club are in gangs, but when we’re on bikes, they get a pass from other gangs because they know we’re doing something good for the community.
Nice to see one of LA’s unsung bike heroes get the attention he deserves.
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Beverly Hills, which fought the Purple Line subway extension tooth-and-nail, is now planning an autonomous vehicle program to solve the first mile/last mile problem with a fleet of self-driving cars once it opens in 2026.
Never mind that they could solve a lot of that by just putting bike lanes on Santa Monica Blvd.
Thanks to John Dammon for the link.
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Cannondale pro cycling team leader Jonathan Vaughters discusses the future of pro cycling in the US.
Pretty Little Liars star Shay Mitchell is one of us, as she tweets about how she loves riding her bike along the beach.
St. Vincent Meals on Wheels is hosting their 21st annual Walk/Bike-A-Thon on Sunday the 24th, including a 10 mile ride along the beach to raise funds for Meals for Wheels. Maybe you’ll see Shay Mitchell there. Or maybe not.
State
Concern for equity reaches the state level, as bills in the state legislature would shift priority for transportation funding to disadvantaged communities to ensure everyone has access to safe walking, biking and transit infrastructure.
Streetsblog looks at how the San Diego Association of Governments falsely sold a package of highway expansions under the promise of improving the environment, while kicking bike and walking projects down the road.
The Voice of San Diego says a recent road diet on the Coast Highway in Oceanside marks the end of the road for the car-only highway. We can only hope.
The next time you head to Ikea for a bookshelf, you can pick up a unisex, belt-drive bicycle, too. No word on whether you have to assemble it yourself.
Seattle’s Transit Blog tells drivers to relax about cyclists blowing through red lights.
Robin Leach, of the Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous fame, calls gambler Dan Bilzerian’s successful $1.2 million bet a “dangerous and nearly impossible ride” through the brutal Mojave desert. Even though countless other cyclists have done it for free.
Charleston cyclists call for a trial bike and pedestrian lane over a bridge to be made permanent since it’s the only safe and, so far, legal route over the river; the local paper says so far, so good.
Louisiana considers a vulnerable user law with real teeth, establishing a $2,000 fine and three months in jail for injuring a bicyclist, pedestrian or motorcyclist, and up to $5,000 and five years in prison for killing someone who isn’t in a motor vehicle.
A Toronto bike blog imagines how treating traffic collisions like we do aircraft or marine disasters, where human life has absolute priority, would change our driving culture. Thanks to Chuck Castillo for the tip.
A British opposition MP says there’s a real gap between the government’s words and their actual support for cycling.
A Brit woman says she was just driving alone minding her own business, giving a man walking his bike plenty of passing room, when he just randomly picked up his bike and threw it at her car for no apparent reason. Sure, that seems credible. Let’s go with that.
A Chinese man is under arrest for allegedly riding his bike up to a car, taking his clothes off, and lying under it to pretend he’d been hit by the driver and demanding compensation. But can someone please tell me what being naked has to do with it?
The 82-year old founder of the world’s biggest bicycle maker is now the poster boy for Taiwanese bicycling; oddly, he didn’t take up bicycling himself until he was 73.
April 12, 2016 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Counting distracted drivers, join Team LACBC for Climate Ride, and SoCal women’s bike racing
If you’ve ever wondered if distracted driving is really a problem, don’t.
They’re still looking for more riders who want to support the environment and the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition while enjoying what could be the ride of your life. Or you can support some of the peoplealready committed to riding it.
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We’ve featured a lot of news stories about bike racing the past few days.
Benjamin Goyette says there’s plenty of action right here at home, forwarding video of last weekend’s Pro Women US Cup race #1 at Bonelli Park in San Dimas.
Despite her fresh injury after crashing hard last week, local favorite Larissa Connors collected precious UCI points with her 10th place finish in a strong field of Olympic athletes.
And American legend Davis Phinney lists his dream cycling team from back in the day. While he includes a lot of great riders, my favorite would have to be Raul Alcala, one of the most exciting riders I’ve had the pleasure of seeing race in person.
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Local
The Times offers a great graphic explaining why it’s so hard to get bike lanes built in California.
The Orange County Transportation Authority has partnered with Caltrans to identify problem areas on PCH, including several that put bike riders and pedestrians at risk. As anyone who rides the highway probably could have told them.
The OC Register’s David Whiting says Orange County is missing out on millions of dollars in revenue it could earn as a mecca for mountain biking. Nice to see Whiting is still hanging in there with all the changes at the paper; while I may have disagreed with him at times, he’s definitely one of the good guys.
The lawyer for a Yolo County driver accused of intentionally running down three bicyclists withdrew his plea of mental incompetency after it was pointed out the man has a documented history of feigning mental illness to avoid criminal charges.
That bike-hating Seattle radio guy is at it again, finding a city councilmember to support his contention that the city shouldn’t kowtow to “the more extreme elements of the bicycle community” by repealing its ridiculous mandatory helmet law. Even though Seattle is one of the few cities in the country that forces grownups to wear a skid lid every time they get on a bike.
Yes, bike riders are required to stop for school buses just like drivers, whether in Washington or anywhere else.
Texas police identify the schmuck who ran away after pinning two children in a bike trailer under his car. Thanks to Steve Katz for the heads-up.
Missouri legislators join cyclists for an annual ride around the capital to call attention to bike legislation and the benefits of bicycling.
Chicago is in the midst of a protected bike lane boom, with plans to build nine miles this year and another 50 within three years; they currently have 290 miles of bike lanes, protected and otherwise, throughout the city.
A DC paper seems surprised to find there’s actually a lawyer specializing in bicycle personal injury cases. You can thank the two great attorneys on the right who sponsor this site, and find a bunch more on the Resources page.
A British grass track bike race was first held in the 1860s. But there won’t be a 125th edition this year.
Unbelievable. An Aussie man gets just 19 months behind bars for a fatal hit-and-run, despite not having a license — and despite a previous conviction for hit-and-run. And despite facing charges involving dishonesty 26 previous times. More proof that the failure to take traffic crimes seriously isn’t just an American problem. Thanks to David Huntsman for the link.
April 10, 2016 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Even more bike racing news, fix LA traffic by biking to school, and FL gets serious about bikeways
Once again, there’s just too much bike racing in the news.
Speaking of which, 41-year old Kristin Armstrong won the women’s title in the Redlands Classic, finishing 33 seconds ahead of defending champ Mara Abbott, who was riding with a broken collarbone; Matteo Dal-Cin wins for the men.
New Echo Park Adult Literacy Coordinator Richard Risemberg complains about LA’s disconnected bike network, noting that bike riders have to keep going even when the bike lane ends. Which it usually does. And congrats to Rick on the new gig.
As if there wasn’t enough drama on the streets, a Beverly Hills play centers on the death of a London cyclist in 1958.
Metro CEO Phil Washington makes a surprise appearance at an El Monte workshop to explain plans for the new transportation tax.
In a seriously cringe-worthy incident, a San Clement BMX rider was impaled in the abdomen when the seat came off his bike.
The Desert Sun says a planned Palm Springs road diet is likely to annoy the local anti-bike contingent, but isn’t likely to affect many drivers. And really, isn’t annoying the bike haters what it’s all about?
A local charity gives a 13-year old Cathedral City boy with cerebral palsy a new adaptive bicycle.
When his bike lock won’t open, a Spokane man learns you can use bolt cutters to free your bike with patrons from a crowded restaurant looking on, and no one will care. Somehow, this is not comforting.
No bias here. A Montana letter writer says the tiny minority of thrill seeking cyclists shouldn’t be allowed in wilderness areas, because mountain bikers are incapable of riding safely.
A New Hampshire driver is fined just $2,000 and loses her license for a whole 90 days for killing an 83-year old bike rider. And she can get that back if she just makes an equal donation to Safe Routes to Schools. Evidently, the life of an old man isn’t worth much in the Granite State. At least not if he rides a bike.
A Columbia University student learns it can be challenging to review a bikeshare system if you don’t know how to ride a bike
Now that’s more like it. Florida establishes a $25 million annual fund for building bicycle trails, financed by vehicle registration fees; the money will be used to complete a coast-to-coast trail across the state, possibly followed by twin 800 mile trails from Pensacola to Key West on either coast.
Brit bike scribe and historian Carlton Reid explains to motorists that the reason bike riders don’t always use bike paths is because they’re usually terrible. Which is often the case here, as well.
Local residents threaten disruption and possible violence in response to a bike event in the UK next weekend. The best way to tell you’re dealing with NIMBYs is when they assure you they’re not NIMBYs. And violence? Seriously?
An Irish mother refuses to ride a bike and won’t let her children ride on the streets after she was knocked off hers by an aggressive cyclist; maybe she should talk to some Aussie women about overcoming their fears.
He was pronounced dead at the scene; the LA Times reports the impact knocked him onto the train tracks in the center divider. The speed limit there is 65 mph, so there was virtually no chance of survival.
Bicycles are banned from most freeways, and the 10 through Los Angeles County is no exception. Even where it is allowed, bikes are not permitted in the traffic lane, let alone in the far left lane.
There’s no word on why he was there, or where he may of entered the highway. Or whether he had lights on his bike at that hour.
This is the 32nd bicycling fatality in Southern California, and ninth in Los Angeles County.
Update: The victim has been identified as 40-year old Eduardo Castillo, who is described only as a transient.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Eduardo Castillo and his loved ones.
A Tuesday meeting in Pacoima will discuss a bike and pedestrian friendly 
