BikinginLA

Once again, the Nobel Peace Prize committee failed to recognize my work for bike blogging, giving the award to an imprisoned Iranian human rights activist, instead. 

Maybe next year, right?

Photo by Sora Shimazaki from Pexels.

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Both sides have rested in the trial of Mandy Benn, the alleged drugged driver charged with killing two men, and injuring three other people participating in a three day, 300-mile Michigan Make-A-Wish fundraising ride earlier this year.

Benn hit the victims head-on while attempting an ill-fated pass of a UPS truck, then said the crash scene “almost looks real,” while showing signs of intoxication.

The defense blamed her bizarre behavior on a concussion, rather than the two painkillers and an anti-anxiety drug in her system at the time of the crash.

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Calbike is responding the the recent spate of anti-ebike laws by calling out the inherent anti-bike bias.

The statewide bike advocacy org is urging SoCal cities to reverse discriminatory bicycle regulations, even as more communities are calling for stricter regulation of electric bicycles, threatening the rapidly expanding ebike boom.

Nice to see the group take a stand and get in the fight.

Thanks to Malcomb Watson for the second link.

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A photographic throwback to the good ol’ days of pre-hipster New York bike messengers.

https://twitter.com/OriginCycling/status/1709984041905037385

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

Authorities in Tacoma, Washington identified the 51-year old man police believe was intentionally run down by an SUV driver as he was riding his bike late last month; police have still not found the hit-and-run driver or the suspect vehicle.

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Local 

BikeLA introduces writer and director Shem Bitterman, co-organizer of the Writer’s Guild’s successful Bike the Strike movement.

Streets For All founder Michael Schneider applauds Beverly Hills plan to install bike lanes on a stretch of Beverly Blvd, calling it “a small, yet critical win in the right direction.”

KTLA-5’s LA Unscripted reports on bicycle explorations of the city led by Handlebar Bike Tours.

Streetsblog’s SGV Connect podcast looks forward to the coming ArroyoFest on the 110 Freeway, aka the Arroyo Seco Parkway, at the end of this month.

Palmdale is hosting a Halloween-themed bicycle parade on the 28th to promote bicycle safety and gather public opinion on city’s cycling infrastructure.

 

State

Parents in Palo Alto call on the city and school system to better protect students biking and riding scooters to and from school.

San Francisco is finally moving forward with protected bike lanes on Arguello Blvd between Golden Gate Park and the Presidio after securing $1.2 million in state funding; the long-delayed project follows the April death of cycling champ Ethan Boyes on the street, although just what kind of protection will be offered remains to be determined.

Momentum looks at San Francisco’s proposal to ban right turns on red lights, saying it could really keep bicyclists safe.

The parents of a fallen four-year old girl say Oakland leaders have been very responsive to their demands to improve bike safety, after she was doored while riding in a child’s seat on her father’s bike.

A Sacramento man is starting a bike ride to raise funds and awareness to fight breast cancer, following the death of his wife from the disease 22 years ago.

 

National

Bicycling recommends places around the US to do a little gravel grinding, asking of it’s just them, or if this gravel biking thing is really catching on. As usual, read it on Yahoo if the magazine blocks you. 

A Seattle public radio station introduces listeners to the guerrilla gardener of the city’s 520 bike path, who spends his spare time keeping the pathway safe and clear because the local government isn’t doing it.

A Salt Lake City op-ed says the area’s the state-of-the-art wide, green bike lanes look nice but put bike riders on dangerous streets, with the writer calling for physically separated pathways instead. Hint: If it isn’t completely protected, it ain’t state-of-the-art.  

Wisconsin Republicans are responding to a photo suggesting a child may have participated in Madison’s edition of the World Naked Bike Ride by introducing a pair of bills banning public nudity, as well as another banning children from any event featuring nudity.

He gets it. A longtime London and New York bike commuter says between problems like cars parked in bike lanes and a lack of secure bike parking, it’s no wonder people don’t want to bike to work.

New York has a box truck problem, after a 56-year old man riding a bicycle was killed by a truck driver in Brooklyn yesterday, and a man riding a moped was killed in a collision with a truck driver on the Upper East Side less than seven hours earlier.

New York’s 26 bicycling deaths this year is the most since the city adopted Vision Zero nearly ten years ago.

A Lancaster, Pennsylvania man faces multiple felony counts for the hit-and-run crash that killed a man riding his bicycle to his family’s farm to tend to their animals last month; the victim’s brother discovered his body and what was left of his bike in a cornfield when he went searching for him. Thanks to Mike Bike for the heads-up, who quite appropriately calls the driver a scumbag.

 

International

Momentum asks if North America can follow Europe’s example, after the EU issued an official declaration in support of bicycling.

Life is cheap in Edinburgh, where a stoned driver was sentenced to just two years behind bars for killing an intensive care nurse as he rode his bike to work during the pandemic.

A new French company is introducing a low-tech foldie with full-sized wheels, designed to fit under your desk.

An Indian city is responding to the death of a bike-riding dentist at the hands of a speeding autorickshaw driver with a proposal to build a dedicated cycle track.

Two men were killed, and four others suffered minor injuries, when a speeding hit-and-run driver slammed into a group of Thai bicyclists, strewing bike parts all over the roadway.

 

Competitive Cycling

Tadej Pogačar goes on a revenge ride to reclaim his KOM after noticing his 2021 Lombardia ride had been flagged.

Velo credits Strava and Twitter with saving Dutch cyclist Steven de Jongh’s life after he was knocked unconscious on a training ride, helping to find him before it was too late.

 

Finally…

Streets get road diets, bike lanes go on sign diets. That feeling when you gently shoo a driver out of a protected bike lane, complete with a bike rack on the back of their car.

And anyone who wins the women’s Tour de France earns the right to train with anyone they want on their back.

Cutest video of the year.pic.twitter.com/V9hUqDO0NZ

— Cycling out of context (@OutOfCycling) October 4, 2023

 

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Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin