Tag Archive for bicycle philanthropy

LA Times remembers philanthropic Burbank bicyclist Roy Wiegand, and LA wants your input on Forest Lawn Drive

August 7, 2023 / / Comments Off on LA Times remembers philanthropic Burbank bicyclist Roy Wiegand, and LA wants your input on Forest Lawn Drive

One quick note: I am now on Bluesky, in response to the increasing toxicity on Twitter/X, thanks to an invite from Todd R.

If you’re on there, you can follow me @bikinginla.bsky.social. And I’m still on Twitter, at least for now, @bikinginla. 

Photo by Luana Bento from Pexels. 

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The Los Angeles Times remembers the life and philanthropy of Burbank bicyclist and professional trumpet player Roy Wiegand, who was killed when a driver turned into him as he road his bike near Prunedale in Monterey County.

The 60-year-old ultra marathoner and cyclist was refueling after traversing 2,500 miles on his bicycle in 25 days and in the process raising $26,000 to help improve access to clean drinking water for the Navajo Nation.

Wiegand ventured through San Francisco and Yosemite and braved 110-plus degree heat in Death Valley and Las Vegas. He enjoyed stunning vistas in Arizona and New Mexico and stayed at the homes of friends and strangers alike, his posts showed…

Wiegand, a trumpet player who performed with the Who, Wayne Newton and Mel Torme among others, is survived by his wife, Angela, son Dillon, daughter Sophie and father Roy Sr.

In the last few years, he had dedicated much of his time to philanthropic causes, most recently working with the water advocacy group DigDeep to raise money for the more than 700,000 American Indian and Alaskan Native people who lack access to clean, reliable water in the United States.

Funny how killer drivers always seem to take the best of us.

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Los Angeles wants your input on whether to protect the bike lanes on Forest Lawn Drive, which seems like a no brainer on the dangerous street.

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This is a phenomenon I’ve long observed riding from Los Angeles into Santa Monica, and vice versa.

One city clearly thinsk people on bikes actually matter.

And the other is Los Angeles.

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Who’s a good boy?

A San Diego bike thief stops to play with a golden retriever who only wants a belly rub before he goes — with the $1,300 bike belonging to the dog’s owner.

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Hundreds, if not thousands, of Bay Area bike riders, mostly in their teens, marked the first anniversary of a mass ride that took over the lower span of the Bay Bridge by doing it again.

Whether because of the sentiment expressed below, or because bikes still are only allowed to ride halfway across, before being forced to turn back.

Legally, anyway.

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Let’s share a little Seattle bike joy from my friends at West Seattle Blog, as a huge mass of people take off on two wheels for a questionably named ride.

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Well, that’s one way to stay safe on the road. Although I’m sure we all understand his reasoning.

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The question is, how and why do they get there?

Is this the result of people tossing unloved and abandoned bikes into the water, or drunk tourists not watching where they’re riding?

Thanks to the incomparable Patt Morrison for the heads-up. 

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

This is who we share the road with. After someone apparently riding a bicycle was injured in a collision at LA’s West Grand Ave and Vista Del Mar, the couple posting the video to Citizen observe the aftermath of the crash, and you can hear the man say “This is why you stay in the bike lane.” Never mind that he apparently has no idea what caused the crash, or why the victim may or may not have been in a bike lane, but automatically assumes the bike rider was at fault. I’m not sure if the link will work; unfortunately, I can’t embed the video. Thanks to Margaret W for the link. 

A 28-year old Toronto man faces charges for allegedly deliberately slamming his car into a bike rider after the two men argued at a red light. A reminder once again that motor vehicles are ready, locked and loaded weapons in the hands of the wrong people. 

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

A bicycling Montreal columnist says he’s had it with shadow-hidden potholes, and scofflaw ebike and e-scooter riders with little or no experience.

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Local 

Streetsblog’s Joe Linton, who understands these things a lot better than I do, takes a deep dive into the complicated, wonky subject of freeway mitigation, which requires Metro to take active steps to offset any increase in driving on future freeway, under California law. And hopefully, he’ll correct me if I didn’t explain that right. 

Burbank bike rider Doug Weiskopf once again calls on the city to allow people to walk bicycles on the Mariposa foot bridge leading to Griffith Park, seven years after the city caved to equestrians by banning bikes entirely.

More on Manhattan Beach’s decision to crack down on teenage ebike riders who violate traffic laws, instituting a zero-tolerance approach to scofflaw ebike riders. Although that sounds like illegally biased enforcement, unless the same zero-tolerance applies to motorists and pedestrians, as well as regular bike riders; if not, that could get all the tickets tossed if the kids get a good lawyer.

 

State

An East Bay bike ride demanded justice for the death of an unarmed, 20-year old Hayward man killed by CHP officers and Alameda County Sheriff’s deputies responding to an alleged stolen car.

 

National

A writer for The Verge says it’s not hard to convert a cargo bike to an ebike, as long as you have the right tools and expect the unexpected.

Apple Insider likes the design and features of the new Lumos Ultra ebike helmet, if not the $200+ price.

An RV writer gets a good life lesson from learning to ride her ebike, discovering that you need to look where you want to go, not at the obstacles you want to avoid.

Anchorage, Alaska took a number of steps to become more bike friendly, approving measures to allow bike riders to treat stop signs as yields, as well as eliminating requirements for lights and brakes and noise signals, and for children 16 to wear helmets; the city also eliminated penalties for jaywalking.

The Colorado highway where 17-year old cycling star Magnus White was killed is slated to get a 12-foot-wide separated bike path next year, a year too late to save his life.

A writer likes the new bike path over Colorado’s Vail Pass, despite — or maybe because of — a section known as The Wall, with its 14% incline.

A Dallas, Texas youth soccer coach is raffling off tickets to see soccer legend Lionel Messi to benefit the family of a 12-year old girl killed in a right hook as she rode her bike on the sidewalk.

A Corpus Christi, Texas woman got the feeling that city council members weren’t listening to a woman of color making the case for protected bike lanes, so she used AI to create a white male avatar to make her case, instead.

After a Chicago man used his bike to fight boredom and find solace during the pandemic, he honored it by having it tattooed on his thigh.

When a ten-year old Michigan boy won a new bike in a raffle, he raised funds to buy one for his friend so they can ride together.

The Michigan woman accused in the DUI killing of two people participating in a fundraising bike ride across the state has had her trial postponed until October; it had been scheduled to begin today.

Gear Patrol raves about TriBeCa-based Priority Bicycles new 16-pound, $1,299 “speed demon” fixie.

 

International

Road.cc offers advice on how to beat the cost of living crisis, and feel healthier and happier, by riding your bike to work.

How to tell when a city actually gives a damn about people on bicycles. Montreal now has a 24/7 hotline to report vehicles blocking bike lanes.

There’s a special place in hell for the British teens who threatened a 13-year old boy with a machete to steal his bike.

The Verge looks are who’s in the bidding to buy what remains of bankrupt Dutch ebike maker VanMoof.

 

Competitive Cycling

No surprise here, as Mathieu van der Poel overcame a late crash to win the world road cycling championship, becoming the first Dutch world champ since 1985; Belgian Wout Van Aert finished second, and Solvenia’s Tadej Pogačar beat out Denmark’s Mads Pedersen for third. No surprise here, either, as no American made the top ten. 

A French cyclist described the Glasgow road course for the worlds as “dizzying, dangerous and designed by a drunk person.”

The race was halted for a full hour as protesters blocked the roadway on a remote climb just 48-miles into the race, with environmental group This is Rigged taking the credit and/or blame for the incident to oppose new fossil fuel projects in Scotland.

Katie Archibald overcame grief over the death of her romantic partner, mountain biker Rab Wardell, to lead Britain to gold in the team pursuit, dedicating the win to Wardell.

Aside from Chloe Dygert’s victory in Thursday’s women’s individual pursuit, the US has failed to podium in any other race so far.

 

Finally…

Meet the training wheel “Bike Whisperer.” Although Britain’s PM probably didn’t need them for an indoor, Taylor Swift-themed LA cycling class.

And it’s hard to imagine these kids would be in their 80s by now.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Morning Links: Bicyclists help make a better world, and York Blvd is thriving

January 18, 2016 / / One comment

It’s a light day for local news.

So get out there and ride your bike. But take a few moments along the way to remember why you have the day off. Assuming you do, of course.

We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools. — Dr. Martin Luther King

And don’t forget, this is the last day to nominate some deserving person to win a new bicycle. So get your entry in by midnight tonight, and tell us why they deserve to win a free bike from Beachbikes.net!

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Today’s common theme, appropriately enough for the day, is compassion for others.

El Paso TX cyclists collect and distribute blankets for people in need.

A Baton Rouge LA non-profit allows children to earn a bike by putting in sweat equity and learning how to fix it.

British prison inmates are refurbishing donated bicycles, which are then sold to raise money for a local hospice.

Abandoned bikes at a Cambridge University college are finding their way to Africa to help people who have to travel long distances for food, water and work.

And a pair of Palestinian–Canadian sisters are selling up-cycled Japanese frames to raise funds to buy bikes for children in refugee camps around Ramallah and on the border between Syria and Turkey; they’ve already donated over 30 bicycles. Credit Peter Flax with the link.

So in case you’ve ever wondered, bicycles, and the people who ride them, really do help make this a better world.

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Local

Richard Risemberg says York Blvd has thrived since the road diet and bike lanes were added, so signing the petition to keep them will be your good deed for the day.

As of this writing, the petition to get rid of the York bike lanes has 324 supporters; the petition to keep them has over twice that many. And despite what opponents claim, they don’t seem to be hurting business.

An OpEd in the Times calls for a bike ferry across the “Del Rey Straights” separating the South Bay section of the beachfront bike path from Venice, as well as stairs allowing baseball fans to walk from Chinatown to Dodger Stadium.

 

State

Inland Empire bicyclists ride to remember Steven Ortiz, who was killed in a collision with a 92-year old driver earlier this month.

San Francisco’s proposed Idaho stop law lands on the desk of the mayor, who has promised to veto it.

 

National

New research shows more parking spaces actually causes more driving, rather than just accommodating those who already drive.

A bike blogger and licensed cycling instructor takes the contrarian view by writing in defense of sharrows.

A Las Vegas paper recommends active commuting for people who don’t have time to work out.

A Wyoming paper calls on the city of Cheyenne to keep a bike registration law on the books to fund bike education and marketing programs. Except the amount raised from cyclists probably wouldn’t cover the administrative costs.

North Carolina cyclists call for more courtesy and respect for everyone on the road.

 

International

After supporters donate nearly £6,000 — over $8600 — to buy UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn a £475 bike, he says he’ll buy it himself and give the money to charity. Meanwhile, a man explains why he started the campaign.

A new Dublin greenwave will guarantee bike riders get all green lights along a bus corridor, as long as they maintain an average 12.5 mph speed; buses will be limited to the same speed, so bicyclists shouldn’t have to worry about obstructing them or being passed.

A pair of French cyclists become instant celebrities in India’s Uttar Pradesh state after riding through 11 countries to promote water conservation.

A writer for the Daily Mail recommends a leisurely 136 mile ride around the island of Mauritius off the coast of Madagascar. Or maybe you’d prefer riding through the lush scenery of St. Lucia in the Caribbean. I’ll gladly take either one, thank you. Or maybe both.

An Aussie state plans to profit off the heads of bike riders, as a tripling of fines for not wearing a helmet is expected to bring in $1.5 million.

An Australian site asks, but doesn’t really answer, what drives people to commit acts of vigilantism; an 82-year old cyclist suffered a brain hemorrhage and broken ribs as a result of someone tossing tens of thousands of tacks along a popular bicycling route for years.

 

Finally…

Evidently, bicycling is a trendy form of commutation in India. Who needs a moving van when you’ve got a bike?

And when riding your bike around the world, always stop in the city your son was named for.

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Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

— Dr. Martin Luther King

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , ,
 
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