To be honest, Thursday was a rough day. From the collective emotions of 9/11, to being painfully poked and prodded in yet another attempt to figure out what the hell is going on with my body.
But mostly, it’s the realization that Friday marks seven years to the day since I encountered a massive swarm of bees while riding along the beach, and ended up spending the night in the ICU.
And in between, suffered what undoubtedly would have been the worst bicycling incident in memory, if only I could remember it. Let alone the most serious injuries of my riding career.
I even wrote about it for a leading magazine, only to have the manuscript returned to me, unread.
C’est la vie, mais non?
In retrospect, it changed the direction of my life. And led me to dedicate whatever time I have left on this planet to making it a safer place to ride a bike.
Even if there’s not a lot you can do about bees on the beach.
It also reminds me to be grateful for the men and women who dedicate their lives to helping others. Even if they’re just doing their jobs.
Because without them, I probably wouldn’t be here to write this.
Moving story from Pasadena City College about a woman biking across the country to raise awareness for victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. Just ignore the inappropriate, victim-blaming headline.
Santa Clarita kids can get a free ice cream just for wearing their helmet when they ride a bike.
A crazed driver in a Range Rover speeds up and crosses onto the wrong side of the street just to try — and fail — to spit at Cycling in the South Bay’s Seth Davidson as he rode to the Milt Olin protest ride; he encourages everyone to write the DA to protest the decision not to file charges in the Olin case. And too bad he didn’t get video of the other jackass.
This is why you don’t respond physically to dangerous drivers. A Newport Beach rider faces a felony vandalism charge after allegedly throwing a water bottle at a woman’s car.
He gets it. US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx says a new bike/pedestrian initiative is critical for the future of the country.
Heartbreaking letter from the mother of a fallen Seattle area cyclist who did everything right — yet the driver who killed him was fined just $175 for a crosswalk violation.
Clearly, he doesn’t get it. A road raging Seattle driver shoots a bike rider in the arm as he tried to ride away following a traffic dispute; if the driver had just run him down with his truck instead, he probably wouldn’t face charges.
Is deadly force appropriate for salmon cycling? Quebec police reportedly pinned a badly injured bike rider to the ground after they ran him over attempting to make a traffic stop; he died later at a hospital.
Clearly, hit-and-run is not just an LA, or even an American, problem, as an Irish driver gets three years for fleeing the scene after running down a cyclist — without ever taking his foot off the accelerator.
No. Just, no. A Brit cyclist punches out a 75-year old man after exchanging words while riding on the sidewalk, leaving the victim with fractures to his face and collarbone. And an Ottawa driver is lucky to get off with a stern talking to after dooring the deputy police chief.
As it turned out, I missed Wednesday night’s ride and vigil calling for justice for Milt Olin when complications from my diabetes once again knocked me on my ass.
Fortunately, a lot of riders didn’t.
According to Streetsblog, roughly 75 riders made the 30 mile journey from Calabasas, where Milt Olin was run down by an admittedly distracted sheriff’s deputy last December, to the District Attorney’s office in Downtown LA to demand justice for Olin after the DA refused to file charges. That number swelled to an estimated 125 as other voices joined in.
Meanwhile, you can read the full three-page letter from the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition urging the DA to reconsider the decision not to file charges.
But perhaps more than anything else, this simple tweet from the Milt Olin Foundation says it best.
Over the past seven years, Jen has overseen the growth of the coalition from a single employee — herself — to 12, as well as the birth of a lucky 13 local chapters throughout the county. And helped make the LACBC Southern California’s dominant voice for cyclists; the boom in local bike-friendliness occurred, not just on her watch, but in large part thanks to her leadership.
I am heartbroken to see her go.
In the five years I’ve been involved with the coalition, Jen has always been a vital part of it, adding her warmth, insight and humor to whatever issues confronted the organization, and leading the group through all the many ups and down. Such an important part, in fact, that I can’t imagine the LACBC without her.
And yet, she leaves it positioned for even greater growth and success in the years to come.
The coalition will undoubtedly find a new Executive Director, one with the leadership skills to build it into one of the nation’s leading bicycle advocacy organizations, as it should be for a city this size, and with a ridership as vast and varied as we enjoy.
Full disclosure: I am a board member of the LACBC; however, I have been inactive for most of this year as I’ve dealt with health issues that have kept me largely incapacitated; I hope to return to my duties on the board before Jen leaves, and help with the transition to a new director.
Bicycling shocks everyone by naming New York the nation’s Best Bike City with Chicago second; Portland is demoted to number four while my hometown clocks in at number nine.
A bigger surprise is the city found at number 28 — yes, not only did Los Angeles actually make the list, we came in just five notches below Long Beach and five above Thousand Oaks. Surprisingly, bike friendly Santa Monica didn’t make the cut.
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Phillip Young, President of the San Diego Wheelmen, sends a reminder that cyclist Juan Carlos Viñolo and his family needs our help.
Viñolo suffered a severe spinal cord injury when he was hit, along with several other riders, by a drunken wrong way driver on San Diego’s Fiesta Island. In an act of bravery, he pushed another rider aside and took the full impact of the collision himself, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down.
The Juan Carlos Fund has raised over $172,000 for medical expenses and to support his family, but much more is needed. Your generosity could make all the difference.
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Lots of events and opportunities to learn how to ride, or ride better, coming up.
Join CicLAvia for an afternoon of open houses and events exploring the newly pedestrian friendly Broadway in DTLA this Saturday, followed by a screening of Mulholland Drive at the spectacular Million Dollar Theater.
Bike riders are invited to attend a party celebrating the launch of Eddi, a new mobile marketplace app that promises to change the way we buy and sell things. The free event takes place in Pasadena this Saturday, from 7 to 10 pm.
Seven suspects have now been arrested in a string of assaults on Santa Clarita bike paths; two have already been sent to juvenile camps.
State
CABO confusingly clarifies their opposition to AB 1193, the badly needed new law approving protected bike lanes currently awaiting Governor Brown’s signature.
The Orange County Register says this is the best time of the year. I couldn’t agree more; now that the tourists are gone, we can have the often overcrowded beachfront bike paths to ourselves.
It’s all the way down in the last sentence. But the Denver Broncos will be hosting a 500-space bike valet at their games this year.
Bike friendly Colorado continues to be the thinnest state in the Union; bike unfriendly West Virginia and Mississippi, not so much. Not surprisingly, people are healthier where more walk or bike to work.
In a truly heartbreaking story, a cyclist is fatally stabbed by a homeless man in Florida as he neared the finish of a cross-country ride to propose to his girlfriend.
And no bikes involved, fortunately, as a driver is arrested for a Santa Ana hit-and-run — by the same cop as he was for another hit-and-run at the same intersection 19 years earlier.
When a prosecutor really wants to file charges in a traffic case, they’ll tear the vehicle code apart until they find something that sticks.
So when the DA’s office examines a case and concludes there’s nothing there, it’s more often an indication that they don’t want to prosecute, for whatever reason.
Like when it’s a cop who ran down a cyclist, for instance.
When the LA County DA’s office announced last week they weren’t filing charges against the sheriff’s deputy who killed Milt Olin, they concluded (pdf) that he had not violated the state prohibition against texting while driving because police officers in the course of their duty are exempted from the law. Never mind that he’d also been texting — illegally — with his wife as recently as one minute prior to the wreck.
And yet, I’ve repeatedly been told by officers from a number of different police agencies that it’s not just the act of texting behind the wheel that’s against the law, but simply being distracted while driving. For whatever reason.
From putting on makeup or eating, to simply changing the stations on the radio. And yes, some people still listen to the radio when they drive.
Anything that takes the driver’s attention away from the road is distracted driving. Or as cited by the LA Times, “wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property.”
By that standard, Deputy Wood was clearly distracted when he ran down Olin’s bike from behind.
In fact, by his own admission, he never even saw Olin or knew he was driving in the bike lane when he hit him at somewhere around 48 mph, which was his last recorded speed prior to the impact.
He could just as well have been charged with making an illegal lane change. Or driving in a bike lane.
Or even the catch-all violation when police can’t come up with anything else to charge a driver — or too often, a bike rider — with, violating CVC 22350, the state’s basic speed law.
After all, no speed is safe when you have no idea where you’re driving or what’s in the road directly in front of you.
And any or all of which could be used to support the sheriff’s investigator’s recommended charge of vehicular manslaughter.
So the question becomes one of why they’re not willing to file charges. Any charges.
It could, as many have speculated, be a case of looking out for their own; the District Attorney relies on police officers to build their cases, and may be reluctant to prosecute an officer as a result.
Or it could simply be that the death of a cyclist — even one as prominent as entertainment lawyer and former Napster executive Milt Olin — just isn’t worth their time.
Or it could be a cover-up.
By prosecuting Wood, the deputy could be forced to testify in his defense that, even though using the onboard computer while driving is officially against sheriff’s department policy, the unofficial policy encourages officers to do just the opposite.
Which would make higher-ups in the department complicit in Olin’s death. And could have led them to pressure the DA not to file.
Maybe there’s a more innocent explanation for the failure to charge the driver with something.
Anything.
But the official explanation doesn’t hold water.
And the fact that they’ve left themselves open to this kind of speculation shows just how wrong that decision was.
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If this case pisses you off as much as it does me, you’ll have your chance to demand justice for Milt Olin, and all of us, tonight.
The LACBC, Yield to Life and Ghost Bikes LA are hosting a ride and vigil for Milt Olin to call on the DA to revisit the case and press charges.
This is an all-hands-on-deck demand for justice.
If there’s any way you can be there for all or part of it, you owe it to yourself to attend. Because the more people who participate, and the more varied the riders who attend, the better our message will penetrate the insulated offices of the District Attorney.
I’m going to do my best to attend the vigil, at least. If you don’t see me there, it means my health has knocked me on my ass once again.
4:00 p.m. Meet at crash site (around 22532 Mulholland Hwy, Calabasas, CA 91302)
4:15 p.m. Moment of silence
4:30 p.m. Start ride
6:30 p.m. Leave from the L.A. Zoo parking lot (5333 Zoo Dr, Griffith Park, CA 90027). Other riders can meet up here.
7:30-8:00 p.m. Arrive at District Attorney’s office (210 W Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012)
8:00 p.m. Candlelight vigil
The public is invited to join us at the beginning, ride with us, join us for the vigil, or meet us at any point along the way (exact route to be determined).
The route follows major streets through the San Fernando Valley and Griffith Park to Downtown Los Angeles. Riders will be expected to stay alert and follow all traffic laws. The ride is scheduled to arrive in Downtown just after sunset, therefore lights are required by law.
The route is 30 miles. Riders should come prepared with water and snacks to stay fueled.
Shorter options:
Start at the L.A. Zoo parking lot (5333 Zoo Dr, Griffith Park, CA 90027) for an approximately 10-mile ride into Downtown. Please arrive no later than 6:15 and be ready to ride by 6:30 p.m.
Start in Calabasas, ride 17 miles to the Universal City Red Line station (located at Lankershim Blvd and Campo de Cahuenga), and take the Red Line to Civic Center, where the D.A.’s office is located (210 W Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012). Riders who lag behind the main group will be asked to take this option.
Join us for the vigil. People are welcome to skip the ride and meet us at the D.A.’s office. The ride is expected to arrive between 7:30 and 8:00 p.m.
Meet us along the way. We will do our best to live-tweet our location with the hashtag #rideformilt. Follow us @lacbc.
Getting to the ride:
The start is on a suburban section of Mulholland Highway with little to no on-street parking (approximate address: 22532 Mulholland Hwy, Calabasas, CA 91302). We recommend taking the Metro Orange Line or Orange Line Bike Path to De Soto or Canoga and riding from there. Free park-and-rides are available along the Orange Line.
Check out the Facebook event and feel free to post feeder rides there.
Getting from the ride:
The best option is always riding (with lights!) or taking transit.
If you parked at a Metro Orange Line park-and-ride, take the Red Line from Civic Center to North Hollywood. Then either transfer to the Orange Line (limit 3 bikes per bus) or ride along the Orange Line Bike Path to your car.
Questions? Post them in the Facebook event or call the office at 213-629-2142 and we’ll do our best to respond before the ride.
An interesting question came up on Monday, when someone asked me who to contact if a pothole on a city street damages a rim on your bike, or worse.
Fortunately, KNBC-4 answered that question earlier this year, if from an auto-centric perspective. And yes, it’s the same process if you were injured, as well.
Office of the City Clerk 200 North Spring St. Room 395, City Hall Los Angeles, CA 90012
The office will accept originals only. Don’t try to fax it or mail in a copy.
You can also deliver it in person to that same address anytime between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The phone number is 213-978-1133.
Be sure to document the damage to your bike, along with any resulting injuries, as well as possible. That means photos and receipts for repair work, parts and/or medical care, or at the very least, a signed estimate for the cost of repair if you can’t afford to have it done.
As the story implies, it can be a long and complicated process, and one that can often end in a rejection of your claim.
But by going through the process and documenting your claim, you at least set the stage for filing a case in small claims court if it’s denied.
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Sad news, as a La Habra cyclist is in a medically induced coma after suffering a major head injury when he somehow crashed into a street sign while riding on the sidewalk.
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Nice to see new bike racks in front of my favorite Mexican restaurant; evidently, they recognize bikes are good for business.
The Daily Breeze offers a detailed look at the state’s new three-foot passing law, even if they can’t quite manage to get all the facts straight. It was one governor who vetoed the law twice, not the other way around. And while the first version of the law would have allowed drivers to cross the center line to pass a cyclist, no version of the law ever required them to do so.
A memorial was held for Chula Vista randonneur Matthew O’Neill, who was killed while riding in Santa Maria by a son of former Lt. Governor Abel Maldonado.
A truck driver gets eight-and-a-half years for killing two cyclists who had just begun a cross-country tour of the UK when he fell asleep at the wheel. In the US, that would probably be written off as an “oops.” Thanks to Jim Pettipher for the heads-up.
A drunken Indian constable steals a police car and crashes into a bicyclist, pedestrian and an auto-rickshaw before he’s arrested. A reminder not to text and drive, as a Colorado motorist slams into a guard rail, which penetrates the car’s headlight and impales her butt cheek before jamming into the back seat.
And no, you can’t inject yourself with noble gasses any more. Although in my experience, ignoble gas emissions are more of a problem for most cyclists.
None remove the incentive for drunk drivers to flee the scene by making the penalty for hit-and-run equivalent to drunk driving penalties. And none call for seizing the vehicle used in a hit-and-run upon conviction.
Instead of paying $100 or more to ride the Beverly Hills Gran Fondo, donate the money to Better Bike to support the fight for better inclusion in the bike-unfriendly community — including desperately needed bike lanes on Santa Monica Blvd.
Speaking of Better Bike, they look at Strava to reveal where cyclists really ride through the Biking Black Hole.
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The sheriff’s department will conduct an internal investigation into the Milt Olin case; according to the story, at least one cyclist doesn’t have much faith in their impartiality.
There are no words. The junior world time trial champion, 18-year old Igor Decraene of Belgium, took his own life on Saturday.
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Local
Streetsblog’s Joe Linton offers five things he learned at the city council Transportation Committee meeting this week, including that protected bikeways may or may not be on the streets of LA in the coming year.
Writing for Orange 20, Richard Risemberg looks at how Westside road diets and walkable/bikeable streets encourage people to linger, shop, eat and spend more, despite what some less-informed councilmembers seem to think.
Proposed Redondo Beach redevelopment promises a 30 to 40 foot wide pedestrian and bike path along the waterfront; hopefully, they’ll get rid of that damned “cyclists dismount” zone in front of the pier while they’re at it.
State
I wonder how many drivers will be deterred by the whopping $35 fine for violating California’s new three-foot passing law.
A Washington state driver was drunk and texting when he drifted off the road and rear-ended a cyclist.
Tragically, a Seattle cyclist is killed in a left cross less that two weeks before the dangerous bike lane she was riding in was due to be replaced with a protected lane.
NHL defenseman Cory Sarich gives up bicycling and may never play hockey again following a horrific left-cross crash with an 85-year old British Columbia driver.
For those who want to do more than sit and seethe, a protest ride and vigil will held next Wednesday, sponsored by the LACBC, Yield to Life and Ghost Bikes LA.
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Despite difficult to understand opposition from CABO, the protected bikeways bill sponsored by the California Bicycle Coalition passed the legislature Thursday and awaits the governor’s signature. The bill will allow protected bikeways, which are currently considered experimental under California law, as long as they adhere to NACTO guidelines.
Meanwhile, two hit-and-run bills sponsored by Glendale Assembly Member Mike Gatto passed, as well; AB 47 will create a Yellow Alert system to notify the public about significant hit-and-runs, while AB 1532 would automatically suspend the license of any driver convicted of hit-and-run. Thanks to Finish the Ride for the heads-up.
Bicyclists in the City of Angeles will ride in solidary with the Afghan women’s cycling team “and all women who ride bikes in the face of adversity” this Saturday.
A jogger is critically injured running in the bike lane on PCH in west Malibu when he’s hit by a car, which doesn’t bode well for cyclists using the lane intended for them. Correction: It turns out that’s not a bike lane, after all.
Sadly, a Roseville rider is killed by her own SUV when it rolls over her while she’s trying to remove her bike from the back.
National
Momentum Magazine lists the next great bicycling cities, while Bicycling is about to offer an updated list of the nation’s top 10 bike cities. Do I really need to mention that LA didn’t make either list?
A 91-year old Oregon WWII and Vietnam Vet plans to keep riding despite being hit by a car.
Milt Olin isn’t the only cyclist to lose his life to a sheriff’s deputy, as a 15-year old Florida boy is run down for no apparent reason by a patrol car driven by a Lee County deputy.
International
Calgary defenseman Cory Sarich puts his NHL career on hold to recover from serious injuries suffered in a frightening bike collision last month.
When you’re leaving an Ohio drug house with crack on your bike, put a damn bell on it if that’s what the law requires; the bike, not the crack. Now that your GoPro bike cam can give you a dog’s eye view of the world, expect to see a lot of butt close-ups.
And evidently, a pair of Laguna Beach cyclists are selling something to raise funds for Alzheimer’s research. Unless the local paper meant pedal, instead of peddle, of course.
The LACBC explains how they helped Mad Men writer/producer Tom Smuts and company ride to Monday’s Emmy Awards, while Streetsblog offers a first-person photo essay.
A San Francisco cyclist gets his stolen bike back, thanks in part to the city’s voluntary bike registry. I tried to put together a similar free countywide bike registry for the LACBC a few years back, but gave up do to the conflicting demands of too many disparate cities and agencies.
About time, as Scott Sports introduces Lycra bikewear designed to prevent road rash. I just wish they’d had it a few decades back when I hit a puddle while leaning into a hard right at 25 mph, and ended up with road rash from ankle to chin. And was literally two thin spandex threads from being naked from the waist down.
An off-duty Albuquerque firefighter is honored for using a bike inner tube to save a cyclist’s life after a collision with a garbage truck.
What’s good for General Motors really is what’s good for the country, as the massive car manufacturer opens a bike share program on their 330-acre Detroit tech campus.
A North Carolina para-cyclist doesn’t let having one arm stop him. Though it does make it much harder to flip off aggressive drivers.
International
A UK rider is back home after being seriously injured while on a charity ride from Seattle to LA; he only made it as far as Shelton WA before he was hit by a pickup.
A Brit writer says bicycling through Detroit just makes too much sense, despite the fearful warnings of his friends.
No, really, I can understand a local newspaper commenting on a cyclist’s lack of helmet following a serious solo fall. But what difference could it possibly make that he didn’t have headlight on his bike in broad daylight?
It’s a bittersweet moment in Colorado when one of pro cycling’s toughest and most aggressive riders calls it a day, as Jens Voigt retires after an amazing 17 years. Typically, he almost won his last race in a breakaway before being reeled in by the peloton with just one mile to go.
The Atwater Village Neighborhood Council opposes a bike-friendly road diet on the Glendale-Hyperion bridge, despite support for the proposal from other local NCs.
Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach want your input on where to place mini bike corrals — that’s mini corrals for bikes, not corrals for mini bikes — on Thursday, September 11th.
State
Interesting idea, as an architect proposes converting one half of San Diego’s University Ave in the Hillcrest neighborhood into parking and bikeways, with the remaining portion one lane of traffic in each direction.
Santa Maria area riders complain about victim blaming and the dangers cyclists face on the road. Then again, so does virtually every rider, everywhere.
Bloomberg maps the nation’s 25 top bike commuting cities — though inexplicably mislabeling it as a bike share map. Santa Monica is the only SoCal city to make the list.
After a seven-year old Albuquerque boy refuses to loan him his bike, a man pushes him off and takes it anyway. Fortunately, police arrested the schmuck shortly afterwards.
August 23, 2014 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Weekend Links: Three LA riders shot, one killed in separate attacks; Mad Men producer will bike to Emmys
Then again, let this be a reminder to always be aware of your surroundings, especially when you’re alone at night.
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According to the LA Times, two motorized bike riders were shot in South LA Saturday evening; sadly, one of the victims, a man in his 30s who has not been publicly identified, was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
The reason for the shooting is unknown. A report on KABC-7, not yet available as this goes online, says it did not appear to be gang related.
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For the first time in my knowledge, a nominee for a major Hollywood award will arrive by bike, as Mad Men writer/producer Tom Smuts will ride 15-miles from his Santa Monica home to Monday’s Emmy Awards at Downtown’s LA Live. He’ll be riding with a group of fellow attendees on a route designed with help from the LACBC.
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Barring catastrophe, Teejay van Garderen wrapped up his second consecutive victory in Colorado’s USA Pro Challenge by setting a new course record in the individual time trial. Uphill. And in the rain.
As the Pro Challenge wraps up, the Vuelta a España kicks off; Bicycling tells you who to watch.
Streetsblog’s Damien Newton takes councilmember Gil Cedillo to task for honoring an 84-year old Korean War vet killed while crossing North Figueroa, despite killing the street safety improvements that might have prevented his death. Meanwhile, Orange 20 says when Cedillo won, LA lost.
Original LA bike advocate and recent father Joe Linton offers advice on when, where and why to bike or walk with a baby.
The final Crank Mob ride rolls on Saturday, September 20th with The Last Crankmass.
OC riders are invited to meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday in Seal Beach and Fullerton, respectively, to discuss a proposed 66-mile bikeway loop through the county.
