Tag Archive for bike theft

San Diego riders fight theft with Bike Index, bike-friendly Raman wins LA’s CD4, and Pendleton path closed this weekend

November 5, 2020 / / Comments Off on San Diego riders fight theft with Bike Index, bike-friendly Raman wins LA’s CD4, and Pendleton path closed this weekend

A San Diego weekly says bicycle riders are taking bike theft into their own hands by registering them with Bike Index, the world’s “most widely used and successful bicycle registration service.”

“There’s a large uptick in apartment building break-ins,” Bryan Hance of BikeIndex.org said to me. “So many new apartment buildings make residents park in their ‘secure’ bike parking areas, which aren’t that secure, and we are seeing so many instances of thieves forcing their way into these at night and then just robbing them blind. Often the bike anchors and racks in these spaces are quite weak, so once they’re inside, it’s like a bike buffet for these thieves. There’s an uptick in bike shop break-ins. With covid-19, job loss, and a pullback by law enforcement, we’ve seen enormous numbers of bike shops get robbed.”

You can get free lifetime registration for your bike right here, as well as report stolen bikes and check the nonprofit organization’s nationwide stolen bike database.

And no, I don’t get a dime for hosting them on this site.

Except for the satisfaction of giving you a fighting chance against bike thieves.

………

After opposing bike and pedestrian safety projects for most of his first term — and apparently only — term, it looks like you can now append ex-LA City Councilmember to David Ryu’s resume.

Meanwhile, Streetsblog offers a round of where the LA-area vote stands the day after.

………

Things are moving forward in Pasadena.

………

Once again, bike riders will face a temporary ban on riding through Camp Pendleton.

Please note that a portion of the bike route within the San Onofre Beach State Park (see attached photo) will be closed for military training during the night/early morning. This closure will only interrupt bicycle travel at night time or early morning (prior to 7 AM). During the time of the bike path closure, cyclists may ride on the I-5 shoulder if needed.

Closure Date and Time

Date: November 7 to November 8

Time: 7 PM from November 8 to 8 7 AM on November 8

Thanks to Robert Leone for the heads-up.

………

More proof that cars weren’t SoCal’s first love.

Thanks to Megan Lynch for the forward.

………

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

An English man faces charges for beating another man to death, then wheeling him on his bike before dumping and burning his body.

A Dublin, Ireland man used his bike as a weapon by throwing it at a man who was being attacked by several other men in a running battle between gangs.

………

Local

Urbanize looks at the new pedestrian bridge over busy La Cienega Blvd that was the final link in the 13-mile Park to Playa Trail.

Hats off to the students of Culver City Middle School, who have collectively walked and biked over 450 miles — more than the distance from Culver City to Sacramento.

Pasadena police wrote 118 tickets for traffic violations that could endanger bicyclists and pedestrians during their latest crackdown; 88 went to drivers, while only 11 bike riders were ticketed. Thanks to Tim Rutt for the link.

A writer for the Argonaut complains that the one thing missing from Santa Monica’s al fresco social distancing efforts on Main Street is the distance itself, after shrinking the size of dining parklets, as well as bike lanes.

 

State

San Marcos is beginning work on a new bike and pedestrian pathway, along with a number of other safety improvements.

Heartbreaking news from San Diego, where a three-year old boy had both legs amputated despite several attempts to save them, after developing a MRSA staff infection when he fell off his bike and scraped his knee; now doctor’s are just hoping to save his hands and arms.

Burlingame cops bust a bicycle fencing operation, recovering 18 hot bikes in the process.

Sad news from NorCal, where a Florida man was killed after riding off a steep trail near Downieville in Sierra County. Rescuers initially were unable to reach him in the rough terrain; he died before they could return by helicopter the next day. Thanks to Phillip Young for the tip.

 

National

Transportation issues won big in Tuesday’s election across the US.

Bicycling readers share their most embarrassing rookie mistakes. As usual, you can read the story on Yahoo if you’re blocked by the magazine’s paywall.

Data from Lime’s Seattle operations suggests that e-scooters can give a boost to bikeshare usage.

The husband of the Las Vegas woman killed when she was pushed off her bike decried the senseless and unnecessary tragedy that also took the life of the van passenger who pushed her.

Here’s your chance to become the executive director of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association.

A Buffalo NY judge suspended the license of a pizza driver who plowed into a bike-riding protester, then kept driving as she fled the scene before calling 911; she faces up to seven years behind bars if she’s convicted.

A bike-riding man in New York state was fatally right hooked by a school bus driver after allegedly running a stop sign in the bike lane; unfortunately, the victim isn’t around anymore to give his side of the story.

The New York Times considers the best bike gear for foul weather commuting. Something even SoCal riders have to contend with from time to time.

She gets it. The NYPD’s new street safety chief opposes licensing bike riders, saying bicycling “is the American way,” and licensing riders would make it less accessible.

Here’s another one for your bike bucket list, as a Maryland writer recommends exploring the historic Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge by bicycle, with ties to Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. Unless maybe you’d rather go mountain biking in Iceland.

This is the cost of traffic violence. The victim in a Louisiana collision that took the life of a bike rider was the 28-year old head coach of the waterskiing team at the University of Louisiana Monroe.

A kindhearted Georgia cop gave a total stranger his own barely used bicycle after learning the man was walking to work because someone had stolen his bike.

Camilla Cabello is one of us, as is her boyfriend Shawn Mendes and their wonder dog Thunder.

Some things you’d rather not find, like the Florida bike rider who found human remains while looking for a spot to relieve himself in the woods.

 

International

The pandemic bike boom isn’t just making bikes harder to find, it’s also making them more expensive.

Road.cc recommends holiday gifts for people who bike for $65 or less.

A new Canadian study suggests that face masks don’t inhibit breathing during vigorous exercise. So stop making excuses and put your damn mask on, already.

Working with the 529 Garage bicycle registration program, police in Ottawa, Canada shut down five bike shop shops, recovering 44 bicycles in the process.

English E-scooters will be required to emit artificial noise to warn pedestrians of their approach. Sort of like putting a bell on a cat.

A writer for The Guardian says she just wants to learn how to ride a bike during the lockdown.

A British man gets a well-deserved 27 months behind bars for seriously injuring a man on a bicycle while driving distracted — then tossing his phone into some bushes and returning to the scene to blame the victim.

Bike shops in the UK are once again being allowed to stay open as essential businesses as the country enters a new lockdown.

Mumbai’s mayor calls for limiting certain roads to bicycle-only once a week in an effort to reduce the city’s crushing smog.

Life is cheap in New Zealand, where a distracted driver got a lousy six months community detention for killing a man riding a bicycle — or what Americans would call home arrest.

Bikes are booming Down Under thanks to the coronavirus lockdown, too.

 

Competitive Cycling

Another American is making a statement in this year’s Grand Tours, as 24-year old Idaho native Will Barta came within one second of winning Tuesday’s Vuelta time trial.

Good news, as Dutch cyclist Fabio Jakobsen is preparing to get back on his bike, just a month after suffering major facial injuries in a horrifying crash at the Tour de Pologne. Cycling Tips Angry Asian questions whether road racers should wear helmets with full face protection to prevent facial injuries like Jakobsen’s.

French cyclist Yoann Offredo reluctantly confronts the question of who he is if he can’t race bikes, after a lingering ankle injury forces him into retirement.

Bike Radar looks at the “humble” custom time trial bike that set a new record for a sub-three hour century.

 

Finally…

A 93-year old man rides around the world without actually going anywhere. Probably not the best idea to tell a cop to suck your dick when getting busted for biking while drunk — especially if you have two previous DUIs.

And seriously, don’t try this at home, kids.

Thanks to Keith Johnson for the heads-up.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

Man killed struggling with Venice bike thief, Whittier hit-and-run driver jailed, and driver busted for South LA hit-and-run

November 2, 2020 / / One comment

We’ve got a lot of ground to cover after missing the final two days of last week.

Thanks for your patience while I dealt with a seemingly endless string of medical tests and exams, which is finally drawing to a close today, just in time for tomorrow’s Election Day. 

So let’s get right to it. 

And remember, if it society devolves into complete and utter chaos after the polls close, a bicycle is your best way of bugging hell out of here.

Wherever here happens to be. 

Today’s photo comes courtesy of David Drexler, who spotted this bike wheel table in a high-end WeHo furniture store. 

Just in case anyone has me on their Secret Santa list after this is all over. 

………

Just horrible.

A 73-year old man is dead after a struggle with a Venice bike thief.

The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was standing with his bike on the corner of Victoria Ave and Beethoven Street around 1:45 pm Wednesday, when a man identified as 33-year old Dylan Brumley tried to wrestle the bicycle out of his grasp.

The victim fell to the ground as he clung to his bike, hitting his head on the pavement; he died at a hospital early Saturday morning.

Brumley only held his ill-gotten prize half an hour before he was busted by sheriff’s deputies.

No word on what he’s charged with. But murder sounds good to me.

………

We may finally see justice for a Whittier bike rider, nearly three years after he was killed in a hit-and-run.

Andrea Dorothy Chan Reyes was arrested in Australia and extradited to the US for allegedly fleeing the scene after killing Agustin Rodriguez Jr. in January, 2018.

Rodriguez was dragged nearly the length of three football fields under his killer’s car.

Investigators located Reyes’ car in Idaho, with other evidence found in Las Vegas. The FBI tracked her first to Hong Kong, before she moved on to Australia.

She faces felony counts of hit-and-run resulting in death and vehicular manslaughter; charges will likely be added for fleeing the country.

Thanks to John Damman and my friends at Mumford Brewing, as well as an anonymous source, for the heads-up.

………

In yet another fatal hit-and-run, Moises Iscaya was busted three months after fleeing the scene when he allegedly killed Jose Guerra, as Guerra rode his bike with his daughters in South LA.

Iscaya reportedly slammed into Guerra’s bike while traveling at a high rate of speed, taking his life in full view of his two young daughters, who may never get over the emotional and psychological trauma.

He’s currently being held on $2 million bail.

Which sounds about right.

………

Let’s keep our fingers crossed for a bike rider who was struck by a semi driver in Hacienda Heights Thursday afternoon.

The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was taken to a hospital in undisclosed condition.

………

Remarkably, a bike rider jumped back up after going over the roof of a car whose driver was doing donuts during the impromptu Dodgers World Series celebration in DTLA Tuesday night.

Needless to say, the driver didn’t bother to stick around afterwards.

Here’s another view.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI7Kg3McFAw

………

If you had a bike stolen near Tilt Coffee in DTLA recently, you may be in luck.

Thanks to Jojo for the tip.

………

Old Pacific Highway will be closed through Camp Pendleton during daylight hours this week, from 7 am to 6 pm; bicycles are allowed on the shoulder of I-5 during the closure.

Thanks to Robert Leone for forwarding the news.

………

Take a moment to voice your support for protected bike lanes on San Vicente Blvd in the Pico neighborhood.

………

You can now officially bike from the Baldwin Hills Parklands to the beach at Playa Vista, on LA County’s newly completed 13-mile Park to Playa Trail, connecting to numerous parks and recreation areas along the way.

………

Mountain bike legend Gary Fisher says we should all check out his son’s El Prado bar in Echo Park.

And thankfully, it has take out service.

Because after tomorrow, we’re all going to need it.

Thanks to David Huntsman for the forward.

………

Speaking of Huntsman, he found a Jack O’Lantern that must be absolutely terrifying to many LA drivers.

………

A reminder to Bike the Vote, if you haven’t already.

Although I maintained tradition and Corgied the Vote, as usual.

But cast my vote for the most bike-friendly candidate on this year’s ballot.

………

Add a little gravel to one of SoCal’s most iconic climbs.

………

The worst ways to end a bike ride.

………

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

There’s not a pit deep enough for the Seattle man who dragged a cat behind his bike for an unknown distance; police took the cat to a local vet, and threw the schmuck behind bars.

………

Local

Good news, as Bike Index is now the official bicycle registration partner of the LAPD.

A Lancaster bike safety program is urging school students to See and Be Seen. Because that’s so much cheaper than actually building safer streets.

Kate Hudson is one of us, as is her dad Kurt Russell, as they go for a ride through LA along with her longtime boyfriend.

Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins is one of us, going for a mountain bike ride in Calabasas (scroll down…keep scrolling…no, further…).

 

State

The San Diego Union-Tribune profiles the San Diego Bicycle Coalition’s Oliver Zuniga, saying the San Diego man is using his passion for bikes to make bicycling more inclusive and accessible. Thanks again to Robert Leone.

A Temecula man was booked for DUI after slamming into a 13-year old boy riding a bicycle, leaving him with non-life-threatening injuries.

Sad news from Santa Cruz, where a 48-year old man was killed after apparently losing control of his bike and getting hit by a pair of drivers.

San Francisco bike riders are understandably up in arms over the removal of a raised bike lane from plans for a revised Market Street, due to budget cuts resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.

 

National

PeopleforBikes offers tips on how to keep biking throughout the fall.

Bloomberg examines whether bikes can keep booming post-coronavirus.

Short bicyclists can ride big wheels on the trails, too.

Writing for Outside, a bike-riding woman describes what it’s like to hit someone on a bicycle with your car.

Bike lawyer Bob Mionske considers when you should ride with daytime lights, concluding it’s better to just use them all the time. And reminds us that a lack of lights at night will be used against you in the event of a collision.

The victim who was killed when she was pushed off her bike in Las Vegas last week was remembered for her kindness; the man who killed her fell to his death, while the driver of the van is being held without bail. Her husband called it “an unnecessary tragedy that was 100% avoidable;” Michelle “Shelli” Weissman had just started riding a bike during the pandemic. Thanks to Steve Hansen and John McBrearty for the links.

After some coldhearted schmuck stole a trailer containing 18 bikes and helmets used by students at a Colorado middle school, the community pitched in to replace them — donating nearly 50 bicycles and helmets to the school.

A Colorado man is facing a pair of vehicular homicide charges for the hit-and-run death of a man riding a bicycle. The 18-year old driver was allegedly drunk and stoned on weed, speeding, weaving in and out of traffic, and driving on the shoulder when he slammed into the victim.

A Texas man spent nearly two months riding over 3,000 miles around the perimeter of the state.

My new hero. An Ohio fourth grader rode his bike in the rain to pick up a curbside lunch for his brothers and sisters.

He gets it. A Brooklyn prosecutor says it’s time for cops to stop blaming the victims in fatal crashes.

Angry DC residents protested when a mo-ped scooter rider was killed in a collision while he was being chased by police for…wait for it…not wearing a helmet. Seriously.

This is the cost of traffic violence. A hit-and-run driver took the life of a prominent Ohio criminal defense attorney as he was riding his bike.

A South Carolina bikemaker says only automation can bring factories back to the US.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever pulled a gun on a 13-year old Mississippi boy to steal his bike; fortunately, an outpouring of community support ensured he got a new one.

 

International

Bike Radar considers just how green bicycling really is, determining it compares favorably to walking, transit and cars, and ebikes are even better.

A London bike rider lost control while riding with no hands, flipping over a parked motorscooter, then getting up and riding off as an angry delivery chased after him on the damaged scooter.

A London bicyclist was awarded the equivalent of nearly $64,000 after suffering permanent brain damage going over the handlebars when a dog ran in front of his bike.

Carfree neighborhoods are the surprising new frontline in the UK’s culture wars.

That’s more like it. A British appeals court added the equivalent of a $23,000 fine after concluding that a driver got off way too easy for crashing into two bike riders while driving at four times the legal alcohol limit.

A new Dutch study concludes that ebike riders are no more likely to suffer serious injuries than people on regular bicycles.

Wall Street is suddenly in love with bicycling, as Germany’s 30-year old Canyon cashes in.

An eye-raising Indian government report says bicycle riders killed 195 pedestrians last year; traffic safety experts say not so fast.

Seniors in India’s Goa state are pedaling their way to better health.

 

Competitive Cycling

Irish cyclist Sam Bennett had his victory in the Vuelta’s ninth stage stripped after he was relegated when helicopter footage showed him repeatedly body checking another rider; Bennett said anyone who races would understand his actions.

Next year’s Vuelta will be the first bike race to actually start inside a cathedral.

No surprise here, as the first major bike race of the 2021 season has been cancelled; the Tour Down Under hopes to roll again in 2022.

The former Dirty Kanzaa gravel race has rebranded itself as Gravel Unbound, after the belated realization that the name was slur against a Kansas Native American tribe.

 

Finally…

When you specialize in using loopholes to get guilty drivers off the hook, maybe you’re not the best authority on how bicyclists should ride. Your next bike helmet could be one big solar cell to power your electronic devices.

And no. Just…no.

………

Thanks once again to Matthew R for his very generous monthly donation, which is very appreciated. 

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

Ped superhero Peatónito studies LA Vision Zero fail; Slow Streets win at LA Council, and bike rider busted for Metro murder

October 20, 2020 / / Comments Off on Ped superhero Peatónito studies LA Vision Zero fail; Slow Streets win at LA Council, and bike rider busted for Metro murder

I’ve never been one for the whole superhero genre, preferring to find heroes in real life.

But I make an exception for Mexico City’s caped protector of pedestrians, the legendary Peatónito.

So I was pleased when he popped up in my inbox today, courtesy of an email from pedestrian advocacy group Los Angeles Walks.

Nowadays it feels like we can all use a hero or shero. So we’re happy to introduce Peatónito! He comes to us from Mexico City, where he began his masked work saving lives and slowing traffic. And Peatónito has traveled beyond, from NYC to Los Angeles, fighting against the crime of poorly designed streets & sidewalks and reckless driving through creative public demonstrations and street theater.

This summer, Los Angeles Walks partnered with the crime fighter as we trained future generations of peatónitos and organized for safe street changes. He finished his training at UCLA’s Institute of Transportaiton Studies, where he penned a pedestrian manifesto (or his graduate capstone paper) titled The Pedestrian Battle of Los Angeles: How to Empower Communities to Plan and Implement Pedestrian Road Safety Infrastructure.

And what a manifesto it is.

Even a brief summary nails the city’s gaping equity gap, as well as the experience most of us have had in fighting for a safer city, for people on two feet or two wheels.

• Walking in a non-white census tract increases the probability of being killed or severely injured by a motor vehicle in Los Angeles (Figure 1). Black people are only 8% of the population, but 20% of all pedestrian fatalities. Meanwhile, median income, vulnerable age (children and older adults), and the number of cars in a household do not have a statistically significant relationship with pedestrian road safety.

• City council members are responsive to residents’ demands and threats opposing pedestrian-focused traffic safety. Even when other city agencies and LADOT support these improvements, the city council has more power over deciding the outcome of road safety infrastructure plans. Consequently, there is a need to balance this power dynamic.

• Affluent, car-oriented residents tend to have stronger influence over council members, who prioritize their concerns over those of underserved people. This power dynamic in LA permits small groups of noisy stakeholders to hijack a conversation; they manipulate the narrative to make it seem convenient for everyone. It is vital to give more power to the people that fight for safe streets, whose voices

“The pedestrian is nobody in this city, he has been forgotten by authorities and our own citizenry. The curious and paradoxical thing is that we are all pedestrians at some moment. As such, we have forgotten ourselves.” – Peatónito

 

Here’s how Los Angeles Walks succinctly sums up Peatónito’s recommendations.

• The City must recommit and strengthen the Vision Zero program, a city-wide initiative to reduce traffic fatalities to ZERO by 2025.

• The City budget should adequately fund and staff all of Vision Zero’s goals, including the Dignity Infused Community Engagement (DICE) project.

• The state should get rid of the 85th percentile rule, a state rule that requires speed to be set at the average of ongoing traffic, which has led to what many call “speed creep.”

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

Let’s hope he sticks around. LA pedestrians — and bike riders — could really use our own superhero.

Photos and quotes courtesy of Los AngelesWalks. 

………

Speaking of which, it looks like people won out over cars in the City of Angels for a change.

………

They got her.

Twenty-five-year old Los Angeles resident Irma Monroy was busted for the murder of a Metro employee at DTLA’s 7th Street train station, after she allegedly stabbed the victim in the chest following a heated dispute.

………

There’s truly a special place in hell for the Arkansas driver who — allegedly — rammed a woman jogging on the side of the road with his pickup, then carried her off and sexually assaulted her before burying her beside a rural road.

Let’s hope he ends up in a very deep, dark pit for a very long time. Thanks to Robert Leone for the heads-up.

………

The bike swap meet scheduled for this weekend by the Mid City West Community Council has been postposed until the following weekend.

Which could come in handy now that the bike boom has cleaned out many bike shops.

MCW Neighborhood Bike Swap
Sat. Oct. 31st, 2020 Halloween!!
7765 Melrose Ave, (Sportie LA parking lot across from Fairfax High)
9 am  to 1 pm. 

………

This is why you need to register your bike.

Now.

………

Here’s your biennial reminder to get out and bike the vote.

https://twitter.com/starryflo/status/1317571256456159234

And yes, I want to be like him when I grow up.

Meanwhile, it’s nice to see a community organization pressing the candidates for LA’s 10th Council District about their stands on active transportation.

………

Looks like The New Yorker is catching up on the city’s coronavirus bike boom.

………

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

Business owners in Bristol, England are calling for the removal of a new bike lane, claiming it’s killing their business. Because evidently, ripping it out makes far more sense than trying to entice the passing bike riders into their shops.

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

A bike-riding San Bernardino County man has been busted for a series of peeping, burglary and indecent exposure incidents.

Heartbreaking news, as a dog died five days after a bike rider allegedly kicked it in the head for no apparent reason as his owners were running with him on a Minnesota trail. Although something tells me there may be more to the story; bicyclists usually don’t kick at a dog unless it’s attacking them.

………

Local

Another paper from UCLA’s Luskin Center documents a century of failed efforts to reign in LA traffic.

 

State

Sad news from San Diego, where a man apparently died of natural causes while mountain biking on a canyon trail near the Miramar National Cemetery.

Santa Barbara considers installing a docked ebike bikeshare system on the city’s main street.

More sad news, this time from Porterville, after a hit-and-run driver was arrested for killing a 15-year old boy as he rode his bike Friday night.

Cities Today asks if San Jose’s new bike plan can boost bicycling rates. Only if they actually build it, as LA bike riders can attest.

The family of an fallen teenage bike rider in Elk Grove calls for changes at the dangerous intersection where he was killed; the speed limit there was recently boosted from 35 mph to 45 mph — no doubt thanks to the deadly 85th Percentile Law.

An Oakland construction site is the safest block in the city for bike riders, after workers installed a Jersey barrier on the left side of the bike lane for a change.

 

National

Actually, that new soft, squishy bike helmet looks pretty damn cool. If it actually works, that is.

Bicycling staff and readers share their spookiest bike rides ever, just in time for Halloween. For a change, there’s no Yahoo mirror site for this one, but try opening it in a private window if the site blocks you out.

A new crowdfunded grant program is designed to help BIPOC filmmakers — Black, Indigenous and People of Color — tell their stories.

C|net offers their picks for the best ebikes.

They get it. A Texas magazine says Houston’s Vision Zero program won’t succeed if it’s done one intersection at a time, and that it calls for a “reckoning that the car-heavy city does not appear ready to make.” They could write the same story about Los Angeles.

New York has completed work on a road diet and two-way cycle track on 5th Avenue through Harlem.

Another pedestrian has been injured in a crash involving New York’s Citi Bike. Except this time, a 72-year old woman was hit by a van driver servicing the bikeshare system.

Actress Famke Janssen is one of us, as she rides her bike with a massive plastic bin on the front through New York to pick up some trash bags. And looks pretty damn stylish doing it.

 

International

Cycling News recommends the best saddles for when your ride hits the rocks.

A Toronto letter writer complains that few of the city’s bike riders wear helmets, despite a mandatory helmet law. Although the headline writer deserves to get their knuckles rapped for saying “Bike lanes are only good if cyclists wear a helmet,” which is factually incorrect, and has nothing to do with what the writer wrote.

Belfast, Northern Ireland has been named the most dangerous city in the UK for people on bicycles, with a whopping 71% of people surveyed saying they’d been involved in some sort of crash in the city.

The EuroNews website wonders why Europe’s largest bike-producing country has been so slow to ride them.

This one is going on my bike bucket list. Italy is opening an 86-mile paved bike trail around the country’s largest lake. Or maybe you’d prefer a 260-mile bike path from Paris to the Normandy coast.

How Spain’s fourth largest city became a leading bike city in just 15 years by building out an entire connected bike network all at once. As LA bicyclists have learned the hard way, we’ll never get there with a disconnected, piecemeal approach. 

Now that’s scary. A Singapore driver records himself swerving at the last moment after coming up way too fast on a bike rider taking the lane.

 

Competitive Cycling

The race moto rider Julian Alaphilippe crashed into in the Tour of Flanders says he can’t help feeling guilty about the crash. Although the people who really deserve the blame are the ones who allow motorcycles near cyclists in the peloton to begin with.

Meanwhile, Alaphilippe had surgery on his hand to repair two bones that were broken in the crash.

Cycling Weekly explains what to look for in the final week of the Giro.

VeloNews looks forward to the Vuelta, with five ways this year’s race will be unlike any other. Race organizers hope to emulate the Tour de France, which went off without a single Covid-19 infection, as opposed to the Giro, which didn’t.

 

Finally…

That feeling when you take social distancing just a little too far. And maybe naming your saddle after the #1 enema maker isn’t the best idea.

Or is it #2?

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

Thieves plunder Scottish Paralympic team, drivers slam San Jose diners, and Pasadena’s first 2-way protected bikeway

October 13, 2020 / / Comments Off on Thieves plunder Scottish Paralympic team, drivers slam San Jose diners, and Pasadena’s first 2-way protected bikeway

Sadly, yesterday’s lead item has been confirmed, as a woman was killed riding her bike, and her partner injured, in a Valley Glen crash Sunday night. 

Photo by Juan Pablo Serrano Arenas from Pexels.

………

Seriously, how low can they go?

Scottish bike thieves plundered the country’s Paralympic team, making off with 20 high-tech handcycles and bicycles worth over $26,000 — many of which the victims had purchased themselves.

The bikes aren’t likely to turn up on this side of the Atlantic, but still.

The team deserves to get their bikes back. And the scumbags thieves deserve to go away for a long damn time.

Thanks to Carly Silver for the heads-up.

………

This is who we share the outdoor restaurants with.

Apparently, it doesn’t pay to dine out in San Jose, where drivers slammed into outdoor diners twice in a single day.

Thanks to Austin Brown for the link.

………

Pasadena invites you to learn more and offer your comments about the city’s first two-way protected bike lane.

………

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

No bias here. A London tabloid breathlessly reports that nearly two-thirds of bike riders were unaware of some traffic laws, while downplaying the fact that 41% of older drivers had the same problem, seemingly unaware of which group posed the most risk to others.

Once again, a British bike rider has been pushed off his bike by someone in a passing car, this time a man in his 70s. Seriously, there’s not a pit in hell deep enough.

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

A San Diego rabbi says he was attacked by a bike-riding teenager who hit him over the head with a closed fist while yelling a racial slur, part of a group of teens who have allegedly been harassing the temple. There is simply no excuse, ever. Period. 

There isn’t a pit deep enough for the man who ran up from behind a woman on an Illinois bike path and pulled down her pants and underwear, before riding off on a bicycle.

Police in New York are looking for a bike-riding thief snatching iPhones from people’s hands.

………

Local

LA Magazine looks at the race between attorney Grace Yoo and Current L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas to replace termed out Herb Wesson in LA’s 10th Council District, who they note will determine what housing projects get built and who gets bike lanes in the district.

 

State

She gets it. A La Jolla resident calls on the town to redesign its streets to curb speeding drivers.

Bay Area bike riders will have limited access to the Bay Bridge during a roadway realignment project.

Sad news from NorCal, where a bike rider was killed in a crash with an Anderson cop while allegedly riding his bike in the fast lane of a local highway; needless to say, police were quick to absolve the officer of any blame.

 

National

Wired says the US needs to adopt the industrial policies of the Asian countries we rely on for bicycles to overcome our own bike shortage.

Bicycling gives you an eight-point pre-ride checklist to help you get back home from your next ride. And yes, you can read it on Yahoo if you’ve fallen prey to the magazine’s draconian paywall.

A 70-year old Oregon bike rider was killed by a 93-year old driver who just kept going after the fatal crash. Yet another tragic reminder that driving shouldn’t be a lifelong privilege, and there comes a time when we all need to give up the keys for the sake of others around them.

Good kid. An eleven-year old Texas boy rode his bike 18 miles to raise awareness for pregnancy and infant loss in memory of a stillborn baby.

Chicago Streetsblog says the city should use the new San Jose bike plan as a model to reboot bicycling in the Windy City. Then again, it wasn’t too long ago that LA’s bike plan was hailed as a model for other cities, and you know how that turned out.

Police in Illinois are looking for a hit-and-run semi driver who kept going after injuring a pair of bicyclists, one critically.

It takes a special kind of jerk to steal the recumbent bike a Michigan man built to ride across the US after recovering from a heart attack.

A crowdfunding campaign has raised nearly $2,400 in a single day to help a popular Ohio handyman replace his bike after he was struck by a driver.

A pair of teenaged Virginia drivers face up to 20 years behind bars for killing a 59-year old bike rider while allegedly street racing.

 

International

Fast Company says sleek e-cargo bikes represent the future of delivery.

It takes a major schmuck to steal the flowers from a roadside shrine to a young English woman killed in a collision while riding her bike.

A British man overcame physical and mental obstacles to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, just over a year after he was nearly killed when a driver slammed into his bike. Then again, he could have just ridden his bicycle up the mountain.

Heart-stopping video of London boy riding his bike out from behind a large truck, only to get hit by a van coming from the opposite direction — then he just picks his bike up and walks away.

A Scottish man dusts off his old bike, and learns to overcome his fears and love bicycling again.

Bicycling looks at Afghan women defying the country’s embedded patriarchy by taking to their bicycles. As usual, you can read it on Yahoo if the magazine blocks you out.

 

Competitive Cycling

Cycling Tips goes deep into how on Jon Ornée set a new record for the fastest century, set while drafting a minivan on a NASCAR track at an average speed of 42.6 mph, just one year after he was struck by a driver.

American cyclist Chloe Dygert tells her local paper she has no regrets about her horrific crash while defending her world time trial championship, and remains focused on recovering in time for next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Sky Sports considers the unfulfilled career of Britain’s first Black cycling champ, who never made the country’s Olympics team despite winning three national titles, for reasons they suggest should be obvious.

 

Finally…

Yes, he may be a bike thief, but at least he’s wearing a mask. Is there anything cargo bikes can’t carry?

And now you, too, can have your very own replica of this year’s Tour de France winning bike for the low, low price of thirty grand.

For that price, I want the real thing. And the yellow jersey that comes with it.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

LA Times endorses Ryu’s policy ripoffs, a genuine Good Samaritan, and Amazon is or isn’t selling a cheap Peloton knockoff

September 23, 2020 / / Comments Off on LA Times endorses Ryu’s policy ripoffs, a genuine Good Samaritan, and Amazon is or isn’t selling a cheap Peloton knockoff

I’m having major problems with my neuropathy tonight, and really struggling to get today’s post online. 

So let’s go with a little shorter edition today, and save anything we missed for tomorrow. 

The cool thing about neuropathy is you get to enjoy the sensation of demons ripping the flesh from your bones, without the inconvenience of actually dying and eternal damnation and all that. 

………

Somehow, the LA Times endorsed David Ryu for reelection in LA’s 4th Council District, despite noting that many of his recently adopted progressive policies were taken from challenger Nithya Raman.

Ryu’s Road to Damascus conversion from one of the council’s most auto-centric, anti-bike councilmembers to one of most progressive members of the body has come in just the last several months, as he faced a serious challenge from a genuinely progressive, environmental and bike friendly advocate for the homeless.

It’s surprising that the Times fell for what looks to be a self-serving attempt to hold onto his job at all costs.

And it raises a serious question of sexism, when the paper’s editorial board prefers the man who stole his policy positions over the woman they admit actually originated them.

It makes far more sense to follow the endorsements of Calbike, Bike the Vote LA and Streets For All and cast your ballot for Nithya Raman.

I know I will.

………

After a Michigan woman posted on Facebook that her bike was stolen during her ten-hour shift at an Ann Arbor medical center, a total stranger spotted it listed for sale online.

So he set up a meeting with the seller, who wanted $850 for the bike. When the man refused, the seller tried negotiating. But the man again refused, saying he knew the bike was stolen.

The thief finally apologized, but asked for help because he’d fallen on hard times.

So the woman got her bike back.

And the thief got a $100 gift card from the man, along with an offer for a job at one of his auto shops.

If you ever wondered what it means to be a Good Samaritan, that’s pretty much it.

Although it may be awhile before the thief can take advantage of the offer, since they turned him in to the police to answer for his crime.

………

Amazon is now selling their own Peloton knockoff in partnership with fitness startup Echelon for just $499.

Or maybe they’re not.

………

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

Police in Ohio are looking for a man who stole a cash drawer from a local thrift store, before tucking it under his arm and riding off on his bike.

………

Local

Attorneys for Dijon Kizzee say the Compton bike rider was lying on the ground when sheriff’s deputies shot him 15 times.

Streetsblog’s Joe Linton says the new Elysian Valley walk/bike bridge is really taking shape.

 

State

A San Diego County Supervisor teams with local advocacy groups to establish a program loaning out ebikes to reduce automobile use, with an option to own them at the end of the two-week program.

 

National

After he calms down, a very forgiving writer for Singletrack refuses to blame the thief that stole his Surly mountain bike, and is just glad it wasn’t one of the bikes belonging to his bike courier neighbors.

After completing a 750-mile ride through the Rockies to talk with average Americans, a reporter for an Idaho public radio station concludes that the US is an unwieldy quilt slowly being torn apart by forces yanking at the threads until they fray.

Bike friendly Portland isn’t so friendly this year, as a rising traffic death toll shows the pandemic isn’t changing driving habits.

A Minnesota city settles an environmental lawsuit by agreeing to mitigate damage from a planned mountain bike trail through through one of the last known habitats of the critically endangered rusty patched bumblebee. Although a better solution would be to build the damn trail somewhere else.

A bike ride will follow the route of the Chicago Race Riot of 1919 to commemorate the victims and raise funds for a community bike shop dedicated to Chicago’s most underserved communities.

 

International

An Indian woman tried biking to work once, and swears she’ll never do it again.

Residents of Mumbai and Kolkata marked Tuesday’s World Car Free Day with a group bike ride.

They get it. The Queensland, Australia DOT shuts down an argument over whether bicyclists should pay registration fees by reminding readers that bicyclists pay for road upkeep through their taxes, just like everyone else.

Yikes. A review of a Sydney, Australia popup bike lane installed during the coronavirus lockdown found several conditions that pose an “intolerable” risk of injury or death.

 

Competitive Cycling

A North Carolina student newspaper says surprise Slovenian Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar’s victory ranks among the greatest in cycling history. Meanwhile, Road.cc examines the Colnagos he rode to a last-minute victory.

A pair of writers for The Conversation say cycling’s entrenched macho culture means head injuries too often go ignored.

Life is cheap in Lesotho, where the kingdom’s the top cyclist is finally back on his bike, six months after he was seriously injured when an unlicensed taxi driver slammed into a group of four riders near the finish of a race; needless to say, the driver walked with a suspended sentence.

 

Finally…

Maybe using a hammer to retrieve your lost Air Pods from someone else’s wall isn’t the best idea — especially if you’re carrying heroin on your bike. Then again, trying to drive a Jeep on a mountain bike trail isn’t the best idea, either.

And bicyclists find lots of things when they ride.

But a burning car with a body in the trunk usually isn’t one of them.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

LA shrinks All Black Lives Matter mural because cars, how Vision Zero should work, and bike thieves in action

August 27, 2020 / / One comment

LA had a chance to do the right thing for once.

The city had the perfect opportunity to respond to community demands and build a pedestrian plaza around the All Black Lives Matter mural at Hollywood & Highland.

Instead, the city decided to shrink the mural painted on Hollywood Blvd for the massive June March down to a single lane in the center of the roadway, so as not to take a single inch of the roadway from drivers.

So yes, all Black lives will still matter on the streets of Hollywood.

They just seem to matter more if they’re in a car.

………

This is how Vision Zero is supposed to work.

Boston suburb Cambridge, Massachusetts is installing a quick-build separated bike lane, just weeks after a man was killed in a collision with a semi driver while riding his bike.

Needless to say, this is the exact opposite of what usually happens in Los Angeles.

In fact, I can only recall one time a bike lane was installed after a bicyclist was killed. And even then, it took over two years.

………

Former UFC champ Connor McGregor is one of us, riding shirtless in the Monaco rain.

………

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

As we mentioned yesterday, Baltimore police are looking for a pickup driver who dangerously harassed people participating in a community bike ride, before intentionally slamming into a group of riders, seriously injuring one man.

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

Once again, a British bike rider has been charged with killing an elderly pedestrian; the 22-year old bicyclist faces a manslaughter count for knocking down a 72-year old man as he was walking home from his job with the National Health Service.

………

Local

Metro wants your input on proposed first mile/last mile improvements around the Sepulveda station on the erstwhile Orange Line, to make it easier and safer to walk to and from the station.

Streets For All will host a virtual happy hour with LADOT head Seleta Reynolds on September 9th.

 

State

California state legislators amended Assembly Bill 1286, removing a poison pill provision banning liability waivers that could have forced bikeshare and e-scooter providers out of business.

No surprise here, as bike thefts are up in San Mateo.

 

National

Outside tells you what you need to know about bike lights. I can attest to the benefits of daytime lights, which dramatically reduced the rate of close calls once I started using them.

Bicycling offers everything you need to know about wearing bike shorts, but were afraid to ask. As usual, you can read it on Yahoo if the Bicycling site blocks you out. But seriously, just skip the underwear. 

I’m not sure what it means when Bicycling drops its paywall to tell you “how to handle spit and snot safely” during the coronavirus pandemic. Hint: Just don’t.

CNN says cargo bikes are the Swiss Army knives of bicycles, and could be the SUV of the future. Which is a hell of a lot better than saying they’re the new toilet paper.

A new Portland study shows that if just 15% of drivers switched to ebikes, it could result in a 12% reduction in carbon emissions.

This is how it’s supposed to be done, too. Portland is replacing car parking with separated bike lanes after a street gets repaved. Unfortunately, while Los Angeles has sped up repaving projects, they haven’t been installing bike lanes, even on streets that call for it in the city’s Mobility Plan.

A new Green Bay, Wisconsin coffee shop and cafe will deliver your meal by ebike.

An upstate New York man rode his bike continuously for 24 hours straight to raise funds for his grandson, who is suffering from leukemia; so far he’s raised over twice the $5,000 goal.

New York’s famed Metropolitan Museum of Art is offering a free bike valet service for the next month, starting with Saturday’s official reopening.

Over 100 New Yorkers are riding south to Washington DC to raise awareness about the dangers of Biking while Black, while advocating for “safer cycling opportunities for all people of color;” the group plans to arrive in time for Friday’s March on Washington.

A DC high school teacher is asking for bicycles and helmets to help make kids currently cooped up inside by the pandemic more active and keep them off the streets. By getting them on the streets, evidently.

When a first-year student at North Carolina’s Appalachian State University shipped a new, unassembled bicycle to herself at the school, she didn’t expect kindhearted staffers at the university post office to put it together for her.

It’s a sad commentary when the life of a Florida bike rider is only worth four damn sentences in the local newspaper. And one of those is about his lack of a helmet.

 

International

Cycling Weekly thinks you need to up your sock game. And your bike-riding kids could dress better, too.

A travel site recommends the five best bike paths in Columbia for your next trip to South America.

How Rad went from box office bomb to BMX cult favorite, even if it was shot in Canada.

Life is cheap in the UK, where a driver walked with just a warning for the wrong-way crash that left a bike rider with a broken back.

No bias here. Sixty-four percent of Brits think people on bicycles should be forced to carry liability insurance; surprisingly, even bike riders were split on the issue.

Dubai is rapidly becoming a bike-friendly city, with plans to build over 400 miles of cycle tracks within the next five years.

 

Competitive Cycling

McLaren is taking its ball and going home, after just one year co-sponsoring the Team Bahrain McLaren cycling team.

Staffers for Britain’s Cyclist magazine offer their picks for the Tour de France, going well beyond the yellow jersey to categories like most stage wins and biggest surprise. Although I’d have to agree with the guy who doesn’t think the race will actually happen. Or finish, anyway.

A Kenyon sports site says the word impossible doesn’t exist in four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome’s cycling road of success. Maybe it should, because it’s literally impossible for him to win a fifth Tour this year, because his team didn’t even enter him in the race.

 

Finally…

Seriously, if you’re carrying meth and a pipe on your bike, stop for the damn stop sign, already. If you’re going to tell the cops you borrowed a bike from a friend after stealing it at knifepoint, make sure the victim isn’t still carrying the receipt.

And this is what bike thieves look like. Or would be, if they knew how to use their own power tools.

https://twitter.com/blogTO/status/1298616358754816001

 

……

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

CA bill could effectively ban bikeshare and e-scooters, ride for Black and Indigenous mental health, and hot bikes on LetGo

August 25, 2020 / / Comments Off on CA bill could effectively ban bikeshare and e-scooters, ride for Black and Indigenous mental health, and hot bikes on LetGo

An op-ed in the LA Daily News op-ed questions why the California legislature is targeting dockless bikeshare and e-scooters.

The piece, written by Santa Monica Spoke director Cynthia Rose; Circulate San Diego ED Colin Parent, Finish the Ride and Streets Are For Everyone ED amian Kevitt, and Streets For All founder Michael Schneider, says that regardless of its intent, AB 1286 would “create new rules so onerous that micromobility operators may no longer be able to operate in California.”

Which doesn’t sound like the intended outcome.

Or the right one.

This bill doesn’t just impact newer micromobility like electric bikes and scooters, but extends to traditional, city-sponsored bike share programs as well, including the long running Bay Wheels system in the Bay Area and Metro Bike Share in Los Angeles. As our state grapples with so many pressing issues, including the economic and climate crisis, why is the legislature threatening our most sustainable and lowest cost transportation options?

First and foremost, this bill prohibits micromobility operators from using waivers of liability – the same waivers everyone signs when renting a car or taking a yoga class. No other industry is subject to a waiver provision such as the one proposed by this bill. By gratuitously singling out micromobility operators, the legislature is opening the door to unnecessary litigation, and operators have made clear they will likely have to leave California if they are not able use these waivers. Our cities will be harmed in the process, as waivers shield cities from frivolous lawsuits as well. California law already holds operators accountable and responsible for faulty devices to rightfully protect consumers, so there is simply no need to pursue these changes.

It’s understandable that legislators would want to improve liability laws regulating micromobility.

But this is like using a cannon to kill a mouse in your living room.

Hopefully, cooler heads will prevail, and the legislature will give itself a timeout to work with advocates and company representatives, and consider more carefully just how to improve safety without forcing users back into their cars.

………

Former international pro basketball player Damen Bell-Holter, who was with the Boston Celtics just long enough to grab a sandwich, is hoping to have a greater impact by riding to raise funds and awareness for mental healthcare for Black and Indigenous men.

The founder of Break the (Bi)Cycle, Bell-Holter will be leading a 1,500-mile ride from Bellingham, Washington to San Diego, stopping to speak with various tribes along the way.

Bell-Holter said he’d seen similar campaigns, but the topic is one he’s long held close, speaking and raising awareness of across Alaska and elsewhere. There’s a large gap in the availability and effectiveness of mental health care for Black and Indigenous men, especially in Alaska, Bell-Holter said, resulting in intergenerational trauma that can lead to some of the highest rates of death by suicide and substance misuse in the country.

“I’ve been bouncing my head off the wall about this for a few years. There’s so much violence and abuse in Alaska. What does prevention look like,” Bell-Holter said. “There’s a lot of trauma that outside people don’t understand. Non-Native and non-Indigenous people don’t understand there’s a lot of intergenerational trauma that’s not visible from the outside.”

The goal is to raise $100,000, which will be split 20 ways, resulting in just $5,000 each for the various tribes and communities.

You can contribute through the group’s crowdfunding page. So far, they’ve raised just over $3,600 in seven weeks.

Maybe we can all share this one, and get some support for a worthy cause.

………

A bike theft victim calls attention to an online chop shop hawking hot bikes on LetGo. And the problem of stolen bikes being sold on the platform in general.

https://twitter.com/erictomtom/status/1298046267910524929

………

This is what Share the Road really means.

https://twitter.com/BendyBen999/status/1297225830813376518?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1297225830813376518%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Froad.cc%2Fcontent%2Fnews%2Fcycling-live-blog-24-august-2020-276747

………

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

After an 18-year old Virginia man’s bike was hit by a pickup driver while riding with a group of other riders, he responded by breaking the driver’s mirror. And the driver responded by attacking him with a stick.

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

See above.

Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof rode to the rescue in his Swedish hometown, tackling a bike-riding purse snatcher who’d just robbed a 90-year old woman. Although the thief probably took a dive in hopes of drawing a penalty kick.

………

Local

Streetsblog looks at the new left side, parking protected bike lanes on Grand Street in DTLA, which continues to get safer and more rideable, while most of Los Angeles languishes.

That last item said “most of Los Angeles,” because of two new protected bike lanes on Broadway and Avalon Blvd in South LA, which is the other area currently seeing safety improvements in the city.

A Pasadena website offers more information on last weekend’s Black Lives Matter ride, which visited the sites of five violent police encounters in the Rose City.

 

State

A Huntington Beach real estate agent and rock drummer remembers his halcyon days as former Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rogers bike buddy.

Newport Beach Police will be focusing on bike and pedestrian safety enforcement next month. So ride to the letter of the law when you’re in the city. And maybe even put a foot down if you see a patrol car. 

Imperial Beach has approved construction of a new 6.4-mile bike path connecting the international border with San Diego County’s Bayshore Bikeway.

The Bay Area Bike to Work Day will be changed to Bike to Wherever Days, after being moved from the usual May date to September 24th. That compares to Los Angeles County, where this year’s Bike to Work Day has apparently been postponed to when hell freezes over.

 

National

Bicycling suggests six “crazy easy” ways to welcome rookie riders into the wonderful world of bicycling; as usual, you can read the article on Yahoo if the magazine’s paywall shuts you out.

A men’s website suggests hitting the road on one of the “seven best bicycles available now.” As usual, the list isn’t remotely accurate or comprehensive; on the other hand, any list that includes a fixie, a foldie and Schwinn’s reborn Krate bike can’t be all bad.

ZDNet offers advice for the ebike curious.

Apple’s new iOS14 is finally making Apple Maps useful for people on bicycles, allowing you to select the fastest route, or one using busy or less busy roads.

A brick building in St. Louis collapsed unexpectedly over the weekend, likely destroying many of the 700 children’s bikes stored there as part of a program to give kids a free bike after completing a bike safety course.

Once again, a dangerous driver managed to stay on the road until it was too late. A Chicago man was arrested for continuing to drive with his license suspended due to DUI, after killing an 83-year old man riding a bike, claiming he just didn’t see the man riding in front of him before stomping on the gas pedal. Unfortunately, he’ll likely walk away with a slap on the wrist, while his innocent victim paid with his life.

A DC woman was lucky to get her stolen bike back after she spotted the thief riding it and was able to wave down a passing patrol car; it helped that she had a photo of the bike and the serial number on her cellphone. Hint, hint.

Georgia bike riders turned out for a short 2.23 mile ride in memory of Ahmaud Arbery, six months after he was gunned down by a trio of self-appointed vigilantes.

 

International

A new study suggests that looking at happy pictures before your ride will result in less suffering during it. And unhappy pictures will have the opposite effect.

The UK’s Spectator magazine recommends 14 bicycling routes around the world they say rival the Tour de France. Which might be remotely accurate if the Tour de France was just a leisurely one-day ride around a local landmark.

London bike riders offer tips on riding a bike in the city, almost all of which apply virtually anywhere.

An Edinburgh woman calls for redesigning a floating bus stop, saying she was furious after she and her son were nearly hit by a bike rider “who came out of nowhere” as she stepped across a cycle track to get to her bus. She’s got a point. But no one ever comes out of nowhere. And nearly getting hit isn’t exactly news, especially after apparently failing to look both ways.

Berlin’s new bike lanes have failed to improve safety, as fatalities rise and advocates call for greater regulations on large trucks. Meanwhile, the city’s Green Party wants to charge SUV owners more to park their behemoth vehicles. Yes, please.

A Malaysian man is waiting for borders to reopen so he can get back on the road, two years after riding away from his law career to bike around the world.

 

Competitive Cycling

The union representing professional cyclists rejected criticism over unsafe conditions at this year’s races, after several riders questioned what good the group was if it couldn’t do something about it.

 

Finally…

If you can’t cut the lock on the bike you’re trying to steal, just take the bike rack with you. Evidently, Sgt. Preston of the Yukon would trade his dog team for an ebike these days.

And seriously, don’t ride if you have Covid-19.

Or think you might have.

Period.

……

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

Climate mayors call for 15 minute cities, thief ransacks Anaheim bike room, and trade your privacy for Road ID discount

August 3, 2020 / / One comment

A report from the C40 Cities group promotes the new Paris model of putting all necessities within a 15 minute biking or walking distance.

The climate group, currently led by LA Mayor Eric Garcetti, encourages the model as a response to municipal budgets ravaged by Covid-19.

Which makes it worth noting that the “world’s climate mayor” is doing nothing of the sort in his own city, except for encouraging greater density.

Which is problematic in itself, after a number of current and former city officials have been implicated in a bribery scheme to approve building projects.

As we’ve noted before, cities around the world have taken advantage of the lighter traffic brought on by the pandemic to make temporary, and sometimes permanent, changes to encourage more biking and walking.

Los Angeles, on the other hand, has done absolutely nothing outside of the Downtown area, where Councilmember Jose Huizar has been a driving force behind a move to Complete Streets.

He is also charged with being the ringleader behind the bribery scheme.

Which pretty much sums up the current state of the city.

………

A bike thief was caught on video ransacking an Anaheim building’s bike room. Which is exactly why I don’t recommend using them.

Bike rooms give the illusion of security while providing an enticing target for thieves. Better to find space in your home to keep your bikes inside.

And register your damn bike already.

https://twitter.com/lemusss29/status/1287897963927281664

………

Road ID is offering half off to VIP members starting tomorrow — if you’re willing to sacrifice your privacy to become one by signing up for texts.

I wear mine every time I ride my bike. And any other time I leave home.

But I also prefer to maintain a little privacy, and not get spammed with commercial messages every time I look at my phone.

………

Kiss guitarist Paul Stanley is one of us.

Orlando Bloom is one of us, too.

………

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

No surprise here, as Oregon bike riders report a rising tide of road rage incidents in recent months. Everyone is stressed because of the coronavirus and the resulting restrictions, which means too many drivers will end up taking it out on us.

Seriously? A moonlighting Arizona cop says he felt his life was threatened by a mountain biker who ignored no trespassing signs at a golf course while looking for a formerly accessible trailhead — so he tackled the rider off his bike and pulled a loaded gun on him during the scuffle, while insisting the victim somehow lunged off his bike at him.

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

Chicago police appear stumped about why a man on a bike shot and killed a Rastafarian community activist, though conservatives are quick to blame his surprising support for Donald Trump for his murder.

A New York bike rider went on a racist and homophobic obscenity-laced rant after an Asian driver honked at him, then faked an injury claiming the driver hit his “$11,000 bike.”

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CDTvX1UhjFe/?utm_source=ig_embed

……..

Local

Metro Bike is offering a bikeshare relief program through this month, with discounted passes ranging from a single $1 ride or 24-hour pass, to a $100 pass for a full year.

LA-area streets are being reimagined as outdoor dining spaces; the question is whether it will last post-pandemic. Actually, the real question is why we can find street space for restaurant patrons, but we can’t manage to find any for bike lanes.

KCRW’s Steve Chiotakis talks with Lex Roman, author of a guide to where to vote and how government works, about how you can become a more civically engaged Angeleno. Because most of us need to.

 

State

Encinitas has finished work on protected bike lanes and other infrastructure improvements, including mosaic art panels designed by local students and artists

Groups of wheelie-popping teens are ignoring the dismount signs on Santa Barbara’s newly pedestrianized State Street.

The Bay Area’s East Bay Times recommends more than a dozen “great, scenic bike trails” crisscrossing the region.

Yreka’s Leslie Burley-Cobb has been nominated for the BMX Hall of Fame; she was one of the first women in the sport in the late ’70s, collecting 268 trophies before she retired in 1985. Raise your hand if you knew there even was a BMX Hall of Fame. And yes, mine are firmly in my pockets. 

 

National

A Harvard professor is nearing the end of his cross-country bike ride to call attention to Black Lives Matter and Black Birders Week.

A writer for Gizmodo says riding an ebike has changed her entire perspective on how we get around.

Yahoo Life! says you don’t need bike shorts or clip-in shoes for these “cute” commuter bikes. Then again, you don’t need them for any other bikes, either.

“Beloved” international security expert and self-defense trainer Dave Acosta was killed in a Utah mountain biking crash last week.

Beloit, Wisconsin’s Bike Elves program has refurbished and given away 5,380 bicycles over the last nine years, after being founded by a man suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s.

An Illinois driver is being held on $1 million bail for reckless homicide after killing one bike rider and critically injuring another while fleeing from police.

Minnesota has found a used for abandoned mine pits by converting them to 30 miles of mountain bike trails.

This is the cost of traffic violence. A well-known Memphis minister died after being taken off life support following a bicycling collision last week.

The worldwide bike boom continues, as Boston bike shops are running out of bicycles.

Now that’s more like it. The New York Times offers tips on how to stay safe on mass transit — and includes bikeshare as a recommended alternative.

Drive-in movies are popping up all over New York; bike-in movies, not so much.

A New York novelist says riding through the pandemic has changed her perspective of the city.

 

International

Road.cc previews the bike tech trends for next year.

Rapha was justifiably criticized for water bottles printed with a message that could lead to eating disorders if anyone actually followed it.

After a London cabbie posted photos of Dutch parents riding their kids to school on cargo bikes, sarcastically asking if that’s really the kind of morning school run people want to see, the public responded with a resounding “Yes.”

A Croatian expat living in London says helmets, Lycra and flashing lights have become part of his new reality exploring the city by bike in the wake of the coronavirus lockdown.

Five Northern England bicycle trails to add to your bike bucket list. Unless maybe you’d rather combine beer and bikes on five trails surrounding Prague in the Czech Republic. I’ll take both, thank you. And they make some pretty decent beer in the UK, too.

The Irish Times recounts 12 reasons to start riding a bike, almost all of which apply equally well on this side of the Atlantic.

Take a nearly 1,250 mile ride over trees and beneath the water on the trails of the Belgian home of stinky cheese.

Bicyclists have been unofficially banned from the highways of Jalandhar, India, even though it’s legal to ride there; despite the law, riders are being told to stay off the roads following the death of a bike rider.

A Philippines foundation is changing lives one bicycle at a time by donating mountain bikes to people struggling to hold onto their jobs in the face of the pandemic.

Red Bull Australia picks their ten favorite gravel bike shoes, as well as eleven cycling jerseys that apparently don’t care where you wear them.

Competitive Cycling

Dutch cyclist Ellen Van Dijk won the Strade Bianche gravel race on a bike borrowed from a teammate, after her Trek-Segafredo team was struck by thieves the night before the race. Meanwhile, Wout van Aert won on the men’s side.

Former Tour de France winner Vincenzo Nibali suffered an injured hand in the Strade Bianche, just one of the 124 cyclists who abandoned the race in 104° temperatures out of the 166 who started; only 45 cyclists finished the women’s race.

 

Finally…

High-end bike options for people who have more dollars than sense, and are willing to part with a lot of the former.

And don’t dare ride a whole six miles below the speed limit after lunch with you mom.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

Paralyzed Long Beach man’s handcycle stolen, dangerous Circle K parking lots, and carrying a kid across China on a bike

July 27, 2020 / / 2 comments

Seriously, what kind of schmuck would steal a disabled man’s handcycle?

Long Beach’s Richard Dahl was paralyzed two years ago, just a month after graduating from college, and used the recumbent bike to take him places his legs no longer can.

According to KABC-7,

Dahl had received the bike through a $6,000 grant.

He says the thief didn’t just steal his bike, but also took part of his independence.

“What this individual stole wasn’t just a bike, it wasn’t just a handcycle, it wasn’t just a $6,000 object, it was my independence. It was my ability to ride,” Dahl said.

Hopefully someone will spot the bike before it gets sold or dismantled.

If not, if anyone wants to start a crowdfunding campaign to buy him a new one, I’ll be happy to feature it here.

………

Apparently, shopping at a Circle K convenience store can be bad for your health.

A Colorado man faces a murder charge for a fight that began with a dispute over a gold bicycle in a Circle K parking lot.

And two Florida men are charged with attempted murder for attempting to smash their car into a man on a bicycle after spotting him shopping at Circle K, then shooing him when they caught up with him again.

………

Think your cross-country ride was tough?

A Chinese dad took a 71-day bike ride across the country with his young daughter in a child seat.

………

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

British police are investigating an alleged hate crime where a group of teenagers verbally abused a man riding a bicycle and threw rocks at his bike. Although in typical British fashion, they fail to mention what racial, ethnic, religious and/or sexual group he was being targeted for.

Police in Perth, Australia are looking for a pair of moped riders who pushed a man off his bike on a local bike path.

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

Not every violent assault starts in a convenience store parking lot, though; a British Columbia man got a measly five years for killing another man, stopping his bike to kick the victim in the head with steel-toed boots, in a dispute over encroaching on his preferred panhandling spot.

………

Local

Call it yet another LADOT fail. At a time when new bike riders are begging for safe bikeways, the city gives them these sad North Hollywood sharrows — even though there’s more than enough room for a protected bike lane instead. As we’ve noted before, sharrows appear to exist only to help drivers improve their aim.

The Malibu Times wants to introduce you to the wealthy beachside city’s mountain bike-riding mayor.

Long Beach’s Studebaker Road is getting a five-mile long protected bike lane, thanks to funding from Metro.

 

State

The Canyon News looks at California’s bike boom, and says hopefully it won’t take another crisis to get people riding. Although maybe they shouldn’t illustrate a story about LA collisions rising with a photo of a mangled New York police cruiser.

A Bakersfield op-ed says the San Joaquin Valley city benefits from having more people on bicycles, and is lucky to have a robust bicycle network.

Mammoth Mountain wants you to come there to ride your new offroad ebike, opening a new trail for ped-assist mountain bikes.

 

National

At last, a Segway you might actually want to ride. Even if it doesn’t have pedals.

Livestrong offers a step-by-step guide to start riding a bike for people over 50. Although a writer for the Wall Street Journal says it can be hazardous to your dignity. If you can get past the Journal’s paywall, that is. And as if I had any left.

Refinery 29 wants to keep you looking your best on your bike, with eight cool and comfy women’s outfits without a shred of Lycra.

This is why you should always carry ID on your bike. Police in Lone Peak, Utah are struggling to identify a man who was struck by a driver while riding his bike on Saturday.

Gear Patrol recommends buying a premium used bike from Colorado’s online Pro’s Closet marketplace.

That’s more like it. A Montana drunk driver will spend the next eight years behind bars for killing a woman riding her bike while driving home from a Christmas party.

A Montana food distributors organization teamed with the local Rotary club to build and donate 195 bicycles for members of the Crow Nation.

Once again, bike riders are heroes, after a San Antonio TX couple jumped off their bikes to help rescue victims from a burning plane crash.

A 61-year old Minnesota man is riding 6,000 miles from LA to New York to raise funds for breast cancer research.

They get it. A Michigan town is offering residents a $150 rebate on the purchase of an ebike to help the city achieve carbon-neutrality in the next ten years.

A bighearted stranger gave a seven-year old Ohio girl a new bicycle after someone stole hers.

A bike-riding New York priest is planning his first century ride to inspire people and raise funds for a Catholic food pantry.

Probably not the best idea to try to steal a bike cop’s bicycle during dueling pro and anti-police protests in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Kindhearted Savannah, Georgia cops gave a seven-year old boy a new bicycle after Covid-19 cancelled his birthday party.

No, “anger issues” is not an excuse to fight a cop who tried to stop a Florida man for riding his bike into traffic.

 

International

Pez Cycling News looks at the brief rise and fall of spine bikes, made in the early years after the turn of the century with half-carbon/half steel frames. Like my 2004 LeMond, for instance.

How to get the best stopping power from your rim brakes.

Bike Radar makes the case for why you only need a gravel bike.

Four people have been arrested for a hit-and-run crash that injured an off-duty British cop as he was riding his bike, though police say he wasn’t targeted.

A Glasgow paper takes a ride through the city to see what’s changed thanks to the city’s the new bicycling measures.

A massive e-cargo bike is patrolling the streets of The Hague on a mission to collect abandoned plastic products.

Hundreds of Turkish bicyclists rode to call for safer streets after a 19-year old bike rider was killed by a drunk driver.

Bollywood star Sara Ali Khan is one of us. 

Bicycling is up in Delhi, as people respond to the coronavirus crisis by taking to their bicycles.

 

Competitive Cycling

Cycling Tips offers an on-the-ground perspective of how the coronavirus crisis affected bike racing.

The BBC retells the tale of how the Flying Scotsman Graeme Obree became a world record holder on his own homemade bicycle.

 

Finally…

Forget parked cars, now we have to deal with giant saw blades in the bike lane. Your next bike could have a built-in wine cooler and charcuterie board.

And we may have to deal with angry LA drivers, but at least we don’t have to worry about hungry bike-seat eating bears.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

The case of the purloined pedal car, a call for safe & equitable streets for all, and you really can carry anything on a bike

July 14, 2020 / / 2 comments

Maybe he was just joyriding.

Or maybe the thief figured out something things are just too hard to sell.

Either way, this sort-of bike theft turned out to be very short-lived, and the purloined pedal car was swiftly recovered.

And will soon be back with owner, if it isn’t already.

No word on who took it, though.

Thanks to Lynn Ingram, Ted Faber and The Mailer Demon for the heads-up.

………

Los Angeles may finally be fixing its streets.

But it’s leaving anyone who’s not in a car behind in the process.

Seriously.

Do it, already.

………

Remember this the next time someone says you can’t carry anything on a bike.

Thanks to W. Corylus for the heads-up.

………

Today’s common theme is improving your DIY bike repair and transport skills.

Bicycling wants to teach you how to use tire levers. They just happen to have the same ones I do, too.

Gear Junkie offers instructions on how to swap out your bike pedals in five easy steps.

An Orlando FL TV station wants to teach you how to properly carry a bike on your car. Although blocking the car’s rear license plate, like they show, is illegal in California.

………

North America’s “premier conference for walking, bicycling and placemaker professionals” is going virtual this August, along with everything else.

……..

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

A Glasgow bar owner threatened to smash a bike rider’s “fucking head in” when the bicyclist stopped to film his car blocking a bike lane, along with several other scofflaw vehicles.

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

A bike-riding Los Angeles man faces assault charges after spitting on a woman at a South Pasadena Black Lives Matter protest, then throwing a rock at her when she recognized him two days later.

………

Local

Bebe Rexha is one of us, as she goes for a ride in an LA canyon. Although the British press seems more obsessed with her behind than anything else.

 

State

A San Francisco man suffered life-threatening injuries when he was struck by a driver while riding his bike.

 

National

Treehugger says bike touring may be the perfect way to get around in the summer of Covid-19.

Mountain biking is benefitting from the coronavirus bike boom, with trail use up anywhere from 100% to 500% throughout the US.

Forbes recommends the best bicycling gear and accessories for women.

That tragic Glendale, Arizona crash that took the life of two people got even more tragic on Monday, when it was revealed that the victims were a father and his daughter, who was riding home on her dad’s handlebars.

Now that’s a bike ride. Three Colorado men rode 203 miles and climbed two 14,000 foot mountains — with a total elevation of 23,000 feet — in a single day to call attention to ending the stigma of depression and mental illness.

This is the cost of traffic violence. A Houston woman was known for carrying extra food on her bike for stray dogs; they may go hungry now, after a driver stoned on PCP ran her down as she was riding.

Kindhearted residents in a Minnesota neighborhood pitched in to buy a new bike for a young boy after his was stolen, and another bike left in its place.

Kindhearted Punxsutawney PA police officers used raffle proceeds from a bike rodeo to buy new bicycles for six kids.

 

International

Road.cc recommends the best cheap cycling computers. “Cheap” being the operative term, with prices starting at the equivalent of just $10.

Finally, someone’s taking a page from LA’s book for a change, as Montreal decides to allow bicyclists to ride in at least some of the city’s bus only lanes.

Once again, an elderly London pedestrian has been killed by a hit-and-run bike rider. A reminder that you have just as much responsibility to stop after a crash as a driver does, no matter where you ride.

The bike boom isn’t enough to offset the driving bust for Britain’s biggest bike dealer, which has the misfortune of selling auto parts and repairs, as well as bicycles.

An Edinburg writer says the city can cut bicycle and pedestrian deaths to zero if ordinary people counter misinformation with facts, and say “Enough!”

There’s a special place in hell for whoever stole the ebike a Scottish doctor used to visit sick and vulnerable patients at their homes.

A Scottish letter writer says the increase in bike riders demands the adoption of presumed liability, which assumes that the driver of the larger and more dangerous vehicle is responsible for any collision, because they have a greater duty to avoid it.

When Europe shut down due to the coronavirus, a Scottish college student couldn’t get a flight back to Greece. So he bought a bike, and spent the next 48 days riding 2,175 back home.

A new Spanish conversion kit promises to change your bike into an ebike in a matter of minutes, for just $510; a crowdfunding campaign has raised 165% of the $113,471 goal with 12 days to go.

Bike ridership in Paris has doubled over the past year. And the City of Lights is just getting started reshaping the streets.

Bike riders face the same problems all over the world, as inadequate bike paths and irresponsible drivers put Turkish bicyclists at risk. Something most of us can relate to.

Sadly, it took the death of a bike-riding man for the Kuwaiti parliament to approve a plan for bike lanes.

 

Competitive Cycling

Two-time Tour de France runner-up Nairo Quintana is back on his bike just a week after he was struck by a driver on a training ride.

The Wall Street Journal’s Jason Gay says July just isn’t the same without the Tour de France. If you can get past the Journal’s paywall, that is.

CyclingNews looks back at the most memorable bike races of the past 25 years.

 

Finally…

No, seriously, who needs a seatpost anyway? Presenting the Bay Area’s first parking protected dining lanes.

And every green building needs a cycle track on the roof.

Thanks to Robert Leone for that last link.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , ,
« Older Entries   Recent Entries »
Wordpress Theme by ThemeZee