Snopes says Pete really did ride, witness looks for victim in Venice hit-and-run, and NIMBYs gear up to fight 4th Street again

Yes, he really did ride to the cabinet meeting.

NBC reveals an ability to read the room, noting that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is winning fans just by riding a bicycle and talking with the public.

But needless to say, conservative media had a completely different take on the former Mayor Pete’s recent ride to a cabinet meeting.

However, even Snopes got involved to confirm it wasn’t staged, despite their accusations.

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Once again, we have a witness looking for the victim of a possible hit-and-run last week.

This time, on Abbot Kinney in Venice.

This is what the Reddit post has to say.

If you are the cyclist who was hit by a white BMW today at Abbot Kinney and Westminster, I have a photo of the plate.

You had just fallen off your bike when I approached the intersection so I didn’t see the incident, but based on the way you and a couple of other folks gestured towards the car, it seemed like that driver may have hit you and run.

The car turned in front of me from Westminster onto Abbot Kinney and I snapped a photo once we came to a stop down the road.

I can send it to you if you like.

Update: Thanks for the advice, I called it in to LAPD. They didn’t have an incident report for the time/location but they will share the information with the traffic cops in that area in case anything comes up with that vehicle description.

If you were the victim, or know someone who was, click on the link about and reply to the original post, since they didn’t leave contact information.

And always report a hit-and-run to the police, even if you aren’t seriously injured.

You never know who else they might do it to next time.

Thanks to Bean and David Wolfberg for the heads-up.

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Keith Johnson forwards news of what could be yet another contentious public meeting in Hancock Park, as local residents continue to fight changes that would improve safety for bike riders on 4th Street.

Even though the improvements would benefit their neighborhood, as well. Whether or not they ride a bike.

  • Neighborhood Traffic Changes!  Hancock Park and Windsor Sq. will host a Transportation Town Hall on April 14, at 6:00 PM. We expect the LA Department of Transportation to explain their reasoning behind their recently posted survey regarding Bike Lights and Restricted Turns on 4th Street at Highland and Rossmore.  Make your voice heard! AGAIN!  Join the meeting at this Zoom link.
    https://zoom.us/j/96677001434

Local residents have a long history of fighting what was once called the 4th Street Bike Boulevard, over mistaken fears of increased traffic and difficulty of emergency vehicles getting through.

The reality is that the changes would eliminate cut-through traffic, while allowing continued emergency access.

And likely increase property values, too.

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Pasadena is looking for input on safety improvements for the segment of North Lake Ave directly above the 210 Freeway, which can certainly use it.

Thanks to Megan Lynch for the tip.

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Leimert Park talks electric mobility, including ebikes, on Thursday.

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Nice to see some overdue attention to a long marginalized segment of the bicycling community.

I’ve heard far too many tales of people size shamed at their local bike shop or by other riders.

And here’s that short film in case you missed it.

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Here’s the video of a Vancouver man using his bicycle to attack an obnoxious anti-masker we mentioned last week.

Thanks to Tim Rutt for the tip.

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The aforementioned Megan Lynch forwards a photo of Burbank cops teaching bike safety from 1957.

Check out that nifty mixte in the background, which would have been considered a girl’s bike back in the day. 

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Ebikes to the rescue!

No, literally.

But don’t bother clicking the link unless you can read Dutch.

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

A New York restaurant owner installed his own DIY speed bumps on the protected bike lane next to his in-street outdoor seating; fortunately, the city ordered them removed before he killed someone.

A Scottish woman was pelted with rocks, bottles and other items by a group of teen boys as she rode beneath the wall they were standing on, then was drenched with a soft drink when she stopped to call police.

Sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

Las Gatos police are looking for the racist bike rider who shoved a 40-year-old Filipina medical worker to the ground without warning as she walked along a sidewalk, then shouted “Go back to (expletive) China.” Seriously, there’s no excuse for that. Ever. And not just mistaking someone from the Philippines for a person from China. 

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Local

The Los Angeles City Council will consider resolutions in support of state legislation allowing bicyclists to treat stops as yields, and state and federal bills to provide up to $1,500 in ebike tax credits at Tuesday’s virtual council meeting.

Streetsblog recaps Metro’s presentation of current plans for a more walkable, bikeable and livable, transit-oriented Colorado Blvd in Eagle Rock; as usual, opponents try to paint supporters as not having a real stake in the community.

Metro is hosting an online class on how to clean your bike Wednesday evening. Thanks to Keith Johnson for the link.

Singer Chris Brown’s seven-year old daughter is one of us, as she goes for an unsteady barefoot bike ride in Los Angeles.

 

State

A 71-year old man suffered serious injuries when he was struck by a cowardly hit-and-run driver while riding his bike in San Marcos Thursday evening.

Fresno police are looking for a bike thief who used a slingshot to bust out a car window, then reached inside to grab the garage remote and make off with a bicycle.

A new Santa Cruz county supervisor booted two members off the county Bicycle Advisory Committee, replacing them with his own candidates.

Speaking of Santa Cruz, a Texas letter writer makes a poignant plea for a proposed bike trail, noting his brother was killed crashing his ebike into a median, on a street he wouldn’t have been riding if that Santa Cruz trail had been built.

East Bay bicyclists are complaining about armed robbers who are lying in wait to steal bikes from unsuspecting riders in the hills around Oakland and Berkeley.

 

National

NPR takes a look at the bike theft epidemic and what you can do about it; the story also notes that over half a million bikes are now registered with Bike Index.

A writer for Wired is no fan of a three-wheeled e-cargo bike from Bunch, calling it awkward, graceless and uncomfortable, even though her husband insists on liking it.

A car website wonders if an ebike tax credit would be enough to get your out of your car.

This is who we share the road with. A Portland man faces a hate crime charge, as well as attempted assault, reckless driving and unlawful use of a weapon charges, for attempting to run down another driver after yelling a racist slur, in what may or may not have started as a road rage incident.

Now bike thieves aren’t even waiting for new bikes to hit the market before stealing them, as someone stole a one-of-a-kind pre-production Canfield mountain bike from the back of a vehicle in Salt Lake City.

Family and friends of a San Antonio, Texas man are still waiting for justice, two years after he was run down by a drunk driver while riding his bike.

Transgender cyclocross legend Molly Cameron says cyclists need to take a strong stand against recently passed anti-trans legislation in Arkansas; the state is slated to host a ‘cross World Cup event this October, and the cyclocross world championships the following year. As usual, you can read it on Yahoo if Bicycling blocks you.

Kindhearted community members in upstate New York pitched in to buy a 14-year old autistic boy a new, customized three-wheeled bike — complete with his name embossed on the rear basket — after his stolen bike was recovered in an unrideable condition.

A Maryland paper reports distracted drivers killed nine people every day in the US in 2019. Far too many of those victims are the ones who aren’t wrapped in a couple tons of glass and steel.

In Florida, drivers don’t even have to be alive to hurt a bike rider. A speeding driver was killed after losing control and smashing into a tree; the car then careened on to hit someone riding a bike, who had to be flown for emergency care.

 

International

Cycling Weekly suggests eleven ways to give your faithful bicycle that new bike feeling. Without, you know, re-adjusting it so nothing fits quite right.

Road.cc offers tips for Brits on how to buy a new bike this year, despite the bicycle shortage driven by the pandemic bike boom.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever stole an autistic English boy’s bicycle as he was delivering newspapers; the victim was dedicated enough to finish his route on foot.

It takes a major schmuck to steal a British man’s bike after he was rushed to the hospital after getting hit by a driver.

Irish thieves are using axel grinders, muggings and home break-ins to fuel a surge in stolen bikes; police warn people not to take matters into their own hands if they spot their stolen bike for sale online.

A Malaysian newspaper looks at the coming digital trends in bicycling.

 

Competitive Cycling

Danish cyclist Kasper Asgreen won his first Tour of Flanders on Sunday, with a perfectly timed attack to overtake leader Mathieu Van der Poel with about 800 feet to go.

Twenty-eight-year-old Annemiek van Vleuten won the women’s Tour of Flanders, ten years after the Dutch rider claimed her first Flanders title at 18.

Swiss cyclist Michael Schär became the first rider busted under UCI’s new prohibition on littering during Sunday’s Tour of Flanders. Which is an odd thing to call tossing a water bottle to fans lining the route.

Schär wasn’t the only rider to get the boot, though, as Astana’s Yevgeniy Fedorov and Alpecin-Fenix’s Otto Vergaerde were both DQ’d when Fedorov brake checked Vergaerde, who responded by slamming himself into Fedorov.

Cycling Weekly offers five talking points from the race.

French pro Nacer Bouhanni insists he’s not a thug after slamming Britain’s Jake Stewart into the barriers during a mad sprint to the finish at the one-day Cholet-Pays de la Loire last week, even though he faces a potential ban for dangerous sprinting. Is it just me, or does his “I’m not a thug!” sound a little too reminiscent of Nixon’s “I am not a crook!”?

 

Finally…

No, bike lanes aren’t supposed to be passing lanes, regardless of what some drivers seem to think; then again, bike trails aren’t for cars, either. Before sharing a bicycle ride with a fellow Bollywood star, make sure he knows how to ride one.

And that feeling when a headline typo cuts a little too close to the bone.

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Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask

One comment

  1. Ralph Durham says:

    I can read a little Dutch since I know some Deutsch. However I just right clicked on the story to get the page to translate in Google.

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