BikinginLA

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It’s getting rough out there, especially if you’re not protected by a couple tons of glass and steel.

Capital Weekly reports overall traffic fatalities were up 7.2% last year. However, bicycling fatalities spiked 12.2%, while pedestrian deaths climbed 9.5%; advocates blame a perfect storm of distracted drivers and inadequate infrastructure.

On the other hand, SoCal bike deaths are defying the national trend by running just slightly ahead of last year at this time, which ended with a total of 73 bicycling fatalities, down significantly from 89 deaths in 2014.

A Philadelphia writer says people are giving up on bicycling as the city’s streets are becoming more congested.

Meanwhile, London is taking a step in the right direction by rating trucks on a five point scale for the danger they pose to vulnerable road users; low scoring trucks will be banned from the city’s roads.

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Let’s catch up with some upcoming events.

Celebrate the second anniversary of the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument tomorrow.

The Pomona Valley Bike Coalition hosts the Pomona Pumpkin Patch Pedal on Saturday, and teams with Women on Wheels to present the Mamas and Me Pumpkin Patch Ride this Sunday.

Go bike camping with Milestone Rides from Ventura to Santa Paula and Ojai this weekend.

Combine bikes and beer when you tour some of Torrance’s newer breweries with a casual ride on Saturday the 15th.

The LACBC is offering a Basic Bike Skills Class on Tuesday the 18th.

The next LACBC Sunday Funday Ride explores NELA and DTLA, with a stop at The Wheelhouse for coffee on November 6th.

And of course, CicLAvia returns to the Heart of Downtown, with a spur to Mariachi Plaza, a week from Sunday, on October 15th.

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Popular 38-year old US pro Tom Danielson accepts a four-year ban for doping after claiming he inadvertently ingested DHEA from a supplement containing Maca root. The two-time Tour of Utah champ could have faced a lifetime ban for a second offense, although a four-year ban effectively ends his career.

A 14-time British Paralympic champ says she won’t risk her life racing on open roads.

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Local

Metro wants to know about your experience sharing the road with buses. In my case, I’d say surprisingly good with a few glaring exceptions.

You only have until the end of this month to order the colorful new LACBC team kit.

Santa Monica is encouraging everyone to go carfree today and walk, bike, skate or use transit.

SoCal Cycling interviews LA-based pro cyclist Phil Gaimon about his upcoming Malibu Gran Cookie Dough, which combines a challenging Gran Fondo along the coast with his penchant for cookies.

 

State

A Laguna Beach writer envisions a Coast Highway where parking has been removed, lanes reduced, and people walk and bike along a newly pleasant street.

Pedal-assist ebikes bring an Irvine couple back together on the way to better health.

A homeless man rides his bike through Orange County cleaning up streets, bridges and railroad tracks on a volunteer basis.

That Canadian ebike rider finally made it to Indio for the Desert Trip music festival, 2,000 miles later — not the 1,500 he expected — and 20 pounds lighter.

A San Francisco man wisely decides discretion is the better part of valor when a woman armed with a hammer exits a car and demands his bicycle.

DIY San Francisco cyclists get tired of waiting for the city to do something, and install their own bollards to create a separated bike lane.

A San Francisco man suffered life-threatening injuries when he was chased and stabbed by a bike-riding assailant.

 

National

A globetrotting Spokane cyclist would never have discovered a rail-to-trail conversion in his figurative backyard without a traffic-shy rescue dog.

Bighearted Indiana firefighters buy a new bicycle for a boy after his was stolen off his porch last month.

A Cincinnati bike rider was hit by a car during a rally urging drivers to slow down and watch out for pedestrians; he was rear-ended four weeks after his friend was killed on the same street.

Country star Luke Bryan is one of us, as he suffers a broken clavicle in a solo fall while riding to his concert, but performs anyway.

As New York faces the shutdown of a subway line, the mayor suggests closing a major street to all traffic except buses and bicycles.

Long Island police arrest a bike-riding purse snatcher.

Vibe talks to a black bike messenger about this weekend’s North American Cycle Courier Championship in New York City.

 

International

A Montreal bicyclist learns that video of a dangerously close pass isn’t enough to issue a ticket if the driver can’t be identified on the recording. Which is exactly the problem we have using bike cam video as evidence down here.

A Quebec cop will face manslaughter charges after allegedly running down a salmon cyclist at high speed, then backing over him.

A London cop goes undercover as a bike commuter to catch drivers passing too closely.

Talk about blaming the victim. British police threaten to prosecute a bike rider for swearing after showing them video of a driver nearly knocking him off his bike in a close pass.

A Scottish city will spend the equivalent of $118,000 to rip out a cycle track that angered residents, even though it didn’t reduce any traffic capacity, after a man rowed in the lane in protest.

Hold on to this list of the city’s best bike shops for your next trip to Dubai.

South Africa’s Democratic Alliance is against bike lanes in Johannesburg, but for them in Cape Town.

A Kiwi website talks with the national cycling director about plans to convert New Zealand into a bicycling nation

 

Finally…

If your “acquaintance” tries to kill you with a tree stake and steals your bike, maybe you need better friends. Now you can get a $4,000 ebike to match your extravagantly high-end BMW e-car.

And what do you do after stealing $10 million in jewels from a reality TV celebrity? Make your getaway by bicycle, of course.

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Thanks to John Hall for his generous donation to support this site.

If everyone who visits this site today donated just $10, it would fund BikinginLA for a full year.