Once again, a bike rider is a hero.
And this time, it’s LA’s own Will Campbell.
Longtime readers of this site will remember Will as a popular bike blogger, as well as a bike-riding non-caped crusader dedicated to being a hero to animals in need — going so as to carry dog food on his long-distance bike commutes to entice strays close enough to rescue.
Or at least ensure they get one good meal, anyway.
And he was a hero to our feathered friends, famously rescuing a pelican that found itself wrapped in fishing line along the Ballona Creek bike path.
Even though the pelican seemed to have no desire to be rescued, thank you very much.
(Unfortunately, that story appears to be lost somewhere deep in the BikinginLA archives, somehow evading all my searching skills.)
Then in a truly brilliant move, Will made a midlife career change, turning his avocation into a vocation as a licensed, gun-toting animal control cop for the Los Angeles chapter of the SPCA.
But this time, he was a hero to a human, putting that police training to work rescuing a woman, instead.
Or her purse, anyway.
We’ll let him tell the story.
Photo of hero chainring by Rahul from Pexels.
An LA bike rider was the victim of an LAPD motorcycle cop who allegedly cut into the bike lane he was riding in without signaling.
Then again, LA bike cops don’t appear to be any safer from their fellow officers. Thanks to Evan Burbridge for the heads-up.
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LADOT wants your feedback on the new plastic delineators for protected bike lanes they tried out at Sunday’s CicLAvia.
https://twitter.com/LADOTofficial/status/1145506092685783040
You can email your thoughts to bike.program@lacity.org.
While I was forced to miss this CicLAvia, judging from the pictures, it looks a lot prettier than the usual plastic posts. And should do a much better job of keeping drivers the hell out.
On the other hand, it looks pretty awkward to exit if you have to leave the bike lane for any reason.
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Talk about not getting it. Mountain View police stopped a bike rider because his three-foot pool noodle was supposedly blocking traffic.
Which is kinda the point, since it marks a safe — and legally required — three-foot passing distance.
The pool noodle continues to draw attention. This morning, a Mountain View cop pulled me over and asked if I could adjust that thing.
"It indicates the 3' passing zone."
"When you ride in the lane it blocks traffic."
(1/2) pic.twitter.com/CzbPlvyyiv
— @dannyman@sfba.social (@dannyman) July 1, 2019
Fortunately, they learned a lesson.
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This is who we share the roads with.
Evidently, stopping your car to poop in a Santa Clarita parking lot — or poop in a stranger’s driveway — is a thing now.
So is threatening another driver with a military-style knife.
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Local
The Los Angeles City Council made it official, voting to make the lane reductions and bike lanes on Rowena Ave permanent following a hard-fought battle to save them, as well as extending the bike lanes and make at least a portion of them protected. Maybe that could be the first installation of those new wavy delineators.
You could be a hero to your fellow bicyclists by helping improve LA’s crappy streets and sidewalks, as Mayor Garcetti invites you to become a member of the StreetsLA Stakeholder Advisory Council.
Curbed remembers the famed turn-of-the-20th-Century elevated bike path that was supposed to run from DTLA to Pasadena, eventually forming the basis of the Pasadena Freeway.
The LACBC is hosting number of bike safety classes throughout LA County this month.
Yes, it’s a little late to link to the Militant Angeleno’s epic guide to Sunday’s CicLAvia. But here’s what you might have seen or missed along the route.
Retired basketball great and TV announcer Reggie Miller is one of us, frequently seen riding his roadie and mountain bike through the Malibu Hills. Thanks to Jeff Vaughn for the heads-up.
State
Great idea. The local minor league baseball team has teamed with Bike Bakersfield to host a bike to the ballpark night. So when will the Dodgers — or any other LA sports team — hold a similar promotion?
Sad news from Berkeley, where a 24-year old bike rider died a week after he was left-crossed by a driver. Thanks to Megan Lynch for the link.
National
Bike Snob says owning a car is the path to financial ruin. Tell me about it. I’ve paid over $1,500 for car insurance alone in the last 18 months, even though I haven’t driven an inch in that time. So if anyone wants a good, cheap car, let me know. Seriously.
A former bike messenger and repeat cross-country rider discusses how an e-cargo bike helped her get her mojo back after becoming a new mom.
Just days after Denver announced a $100 fine for exceeding the 15 mph speed limit on local bike paths, a bicyclist was critically injured in a head-on bike crash with another rider on one of the city’s most popular bikeways; the city responded by increasing enforcement. Thanks to J. Patrick Lynch for the tip.
New York bicyclists are fed up with blocked bike lanes after yet another bike rider was needlessly killed. Not to mention the NYPD’s habit of cracking down on bike riders, rather than the people in the big dangerous machines, after nearly every fatal crash.
International
They get it. A Toronto newspaper says slowing cars is the quickest way to safer streets.
A Canadian pedestrian learns the hard way that not only are crosswalk flags worthless and humiliating as safety devices, they can be used as a weapon in a robbery.
The Guardian offers a cartoonist’s guide to bicycling in the city. And if you like what you see there, you’ll find more here.
Call it a win-win. For the equivalent of just $350, you can buy an up-cycled, heavy-duty British postal bike. And give one just like it to someone who needs reliable transportation in Malawi.
Competitive Cycling
It’s a changing of the guard in US cycling, as Alex Howes finally broke through and won the US men’s road cycling title after a number of close finishes, while Ruth Winder edged out defending champ Coryn Rivera for the women’s title. Emma White and Travis McCabe won the national crit titles.
The US Junior and Elite Track National Championships will take place right here in our own backyard at the VeloSports Center in Carson, starting today through the 9th. The Paracycling Track Nationals will be held at the same site next Monday and Tuesday.
Finally…
Before you sell an old bike at a garage sale, make sure it’s not your wife’s irreplaceable family heirloom. Now you, too, can build your very own steam-powered steam punk bicycle.
And who says you need two legs to ride a bike?
https://twitter.com/Bicicleto_ZGZ/status/1145418506659356677
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Last week was a rough one, both because of my own health issues, and because the news wasn’t good in the Corgi’s visit to the vet for a serious illness.
So let me offer my sincere thanks to Gold Leaf Films, Ken Rudman Consulting, and John H for donating to support this site in an effort to cheer me up. And thanks to Matthew R for setting up his own monthly subscription payment.
As always, donations are always welcome and appreciated, in any amount. And for any reason.
And if anyone would like to say a prayer or offer a good thought or two for a good little dog, that would be appreciated, too.
Glad you’re back! You missed a very nice Ciclavia. Here’s my add to your comments:
LADOT’s new plastic delineators, are made by Saris, and look pretty nice. Since the kinda roll up and down, like the wave the’re named after, it looks easy to escape the bike lane if necessary. They are at ground level sequentially, so I think one could just turn out pretty straightforwardly. Other good feature – quick to install and move about. Least liked feature – a car doesn’t get damaged running one over. Might lead to car/pickup abuse. A good idea, LA needs these.
The delineators should have bigger gaps between the waves. Big enough for bikes/peds to move in and out if necessary, but too small for a car. Maybe 3ft between waves?