It’s the final week of the 8th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!
Just six more days to support this site, and help keep all the best and brightest bike news coming your way every day!
Sadly, though, not one single person donated to the fund drive yesterday; just the second time that’s happened this year.
So let’s all thank Douglas M, Devin D and Steven F for their generous donations on Friday and Saturday to bring you the latest bike news and advocacy every morning.
So don’t wait. Donate today via PayPal or Zelle!
Every contribution, no matter how large or small, is truly and deeply appreciated. And very needed.
Today’s photo: A very sad fund drive spokesdog and chief fundraiser vows to keep staring until you give in and make a donation today.
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This is why people keep dying on our streets.
A Victorville man was busted for DUI while he was already out on bail for another DUI arrest in October.
This is how the Victorville Daily Press described the arrest.
While speaking with Woodward, the deputy said the suspect was “uncooperative,” and several liquor bottles were seen inside the suspect’s vehicle. The deputy determined that Woodward was driving under the influence of alcohol…
Woodward was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol over .08%, reckless driving, and obstructing a peace officer. He was cited and released on Thursday.
Because of the reckless driving charge, Woodward’s vehicle was impounded for 30 days.
Go back and read that again.
The driver’s vehicle was impounded after his arrest — not because he was driving drunk, but because he was driving recklessly.
After his first drunk driving arrest, they apparently just handed his license back to him, and sent him home to do it again.
And chances are, this was just the first time he got caught again.
So if you’ve ever wondered why people keep dying on our streets, you can start with lawmakers who think it’s too dangerous to let reckless drivers keep their cars, but perfectly okay for drunks to keep driving.
Thanks to Victor Bale for the heads-up.
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This is who we share the road with.
"Innocent driver killed in crash at end of chase in Westminster involving OC sheriff's deputies"
Why does this keep happening? We need speed governors in all cars. @streetsforall @StreetsblogCal @EntitledCycling @BikeLanesLA @bikinginla https://t.co/sfo5kDOrQQ
— How The West Was Saved (@HowTheWestWS) December 17, 2022
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‘Tis the season.
A Madera, California Ford Dealership gave away 300 bikes, tricycle and mountain bikes assembled by volunteers earlier this month.
The Butte County, California sheriff’s department is giving away 50 donated or refurbished bikes to local children.
An Albuquerque bike shop teamed with nonprofit group More Butts on Bikes to give away a free balance bike every day this month.
The Texas A&M women’s basketball team held their first ever bike build, assembling 53 bikes for kids in need before their latest game.
An Oklahoma City TV station gave away over 200 bikes to kids, thanks to help from donors and Walmart.
An Ohio nonprofit gave away four truckloads of bikes to kids up to 17 years old; they’ve distributed over 20,000 bikes in the past 17 years.
Over 200 people turned out, many dressed as Santa or other holiday characters, for a 5.5-mile Ohio bike ride to benefit the victim of a dog attack earlier this year.
Continuing our Ohio trifecta, a local church donated 550 new bikes and 600 toys to families in need for the holidays.
A pair of Louisville, Kentucky women worked though the nonprofits they founded to donate bikes to kids who didn’t have one.
A Pennsylvania Toys for Tots program thanked the local community for coming through for them after thieves stole 25 bicycles that were schedule to go to local kids in need; Dick’s Sporting Goods alone donated 25 bicycles to the program.
Former Washington Commanders pro football receiver Charlie Brown gave away more than 100 bicycles to kids in need through his charitable foundation.
A Baton Rouge, Louisiana attorney handed out 430 bikes and helmets to kids in need for the holidays.
Hats off to the owners and employees of a Dublin, Ireland bike shop, who have donated 1,500 bicycles to Ukrainian refugees.
An Aussie couple turned their own living room into a workshop to refurbish eleven bikes for kids in need.
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
Italian bicyclists are up in arms after a judge ruled that hate speech directed at them is not a crime, after someone wrote “Hit one cyclist to educate a hundred” in response to a Facebook post. Although that wouldn’t even be a consideration in the US, where the 1st Amendment protects the right to make stupid and hateful comments.
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
There’s not a pit in hell deep enough for the bike-riding man who attacked a 63-year old man in New York’s Central Park while shouting antisemitic comments and “Kanye 2024.”
Police in Belfast, Northern Ireland are looking for a pair of killers who rode their bicycles to assassinate two different men just under a year apart; investigators have connected the cases, but are still looking for a motive.
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Local
No news is good news, right?
State
Police in Newport Beach gave in to the cliches, and gave coffee and donuts to the adults to improve community relations, and bike helmets for their kids.
San Jose leads the Silicon Valley in bicycle crashes, injuries and deaths, with 3.5 times as many bike crashes as second place Palo Alto. Then again, it also has almost 15 times the population.
Sad news from Sacramento, where an Ohio man was killed in a collision while riding his bike.
National
Bad news from Oregon, where pedestrian and bike deaths have topped last year with a month to go.
The author of the Seattle Bike Blog has a new book coming out titled Biking Uphill in the Rain: The Story of Seattle from behind the Handlebars, available for preorder for $29.95.
Heartbreaking news from Denver, where a woman battling leukemia lost her husband the same day she received a stem cell transplant, when a hit-and-run driver ran a red light and smashed into him as he rode his bike; a crowdfunding page has raised over $78,000.
A group of Minnesota bike riders aims to prove that people do ride bikes in the snow.
A band of vigilantes is riding and walking around New York, clandestinely fixing license plates intentionally damaged or obscured by their owners to avoid traffic cams and toll scanners.
Frank Sinatra’s namesake Hoboken street is getting a Complete Streets makeover, complete with raised sidewalks and protected bike lanes, although drivers will have to sacrifice 126 parking spaces.
A Virginia man is under arrest for sexually assaulting a 13-year old girl and stealing her bicycle, after the victim managed to take a photo of his truck as he drove away. See pit, deep enough.
That’s still more like it. A New Orleans man had his sentence reduced for the drunk driving crash that killed two people when he plowed into nine bike riders at a 2019 Mardi Gras parade; Tashonty Toney’s sentence was lowered from 91 years to 65 years behind bars after the appellate court rejected the original sentence.
Hats off to Mississippi history teacher Ed Abdella, who rode his bike for 24 straight hours to raise funds for the school’s band program, covering 343 miles in the process.
Ivanka Trump is one of us, as she took her two sons to a Miami bike park.
A Florida sheriff’s deputy dressed as the Grinch and handed out onions to drivers speeding in a school zone. Although speeding tickets would have been more appropriate, but less fun.
International
Three friends from Argentina rode their bikes 6,200 miles through 15 countries in hopes of securing tickets to the World Cup final, won by Argentina in penalty kicks; no word on whether they actually got in.
Canadian Cycling Magazine offers inspiration for when your Christmas Tree has to reflect your passion for bikes.
It’s going to take five months and $400,000 to rip out a popular bike lane through a Vancouver park. Popular with bike riders, anyway; angry drivers, not so much.
Police in the UK are defending the people installing new bike hangers, after conservative politician complained about the approval process.
A British husband and wife team set a new record for biking around the world on a tandem bike, passing through Berlin’s famed Brandenburg Gate — in a blizzard, no less — just 180 days after setting off from the same spot, presumably in better weather. Thanks to Mike Wilkinson for the link, who assures us he and his wife will not be challenging the new record.
In yet another example of authorities keeping a dangerous driver on the streets, an 81-year old English driver walked without a single day behind bars and got to keep his driver’s license, despite hitting a bike rider during a failed pass attempt — then doing it again moments later.
No surprise here, as bike riders in the Netherlands ride their bikes twice as much as Germans do doing the winter.
Famed Italian bikemaker Ernesto Colnago’s greatest bikes will go on display in a permanent museum.
Competitive Cycling
UCI is making sweeping rule changes to World Cup mountain bike racing.
Finally…
That feeling when a stand of cottonwoods explodes next to the bike trail you’re riding. A two-mile bike ride could pay for your next hotel stay.
And someone out there definitely knows how to get my attention.
https://twitter.com/LisaNSanders1/status/1604356361323974663
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Happy Chanukah to everyone celebrating tonight. Or a happy Hanukkah, if you prefer.
Chag Urim Sameach!
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Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.
Oh, and fuck Putin, too.
