Tag Archive for Bike Week LA

Morning Links: Bike Week wraps up at Downtown’s Union Station, and Phinney kicks ass at the AToC

May 15, 2014 / / 6 comments

Bike Week ain’t over until the fat lady sings.

And chances are, she’ll be in Downtown LA tonight, along with just about everyone else but me for the first ever Metro Bike Night at Union Station.

The event runs from 5:30 to 8:30 pm, with a full schedule of activities for the bicycling community.

This free event will feature special guests, live music, food trucks, outdoor booths, free bike valet, bike short films, trivia, bike portraits and a fashion show. There will also be a raffle for a chance to win a Tern folding bike, a one year supply of Clif Bar products, Abus U-locks, 30-Day Metro passes, Bike Week LA special edition t-shirts and more!

And did I mention it’s free?

It’s not that I don’t want to be there. But the wife is keeping me on a shorter leash than the Corgi until this diabetes thing gets more under control.

So let me know how it goes.

And have one for me.

………

Aussie Michael Matthews wins Stage 6 of the Giro d’Italia as a massive crash delays the peloton. He leads the overall standings, with Cadel Evans just 21 seconds behind.

Cycling scion Taylor Phinney takes Stage 5 of the Amgen Tour of California in a thrilling solo breakaway; bike prodigy Peter Sagan is second. Between the two of them, you could be looking at the future of bike racing. Wiggins leads overall.

Meanwhile, Pasadena’s Bike Week will culminate with the penultimate stage of this year’s Tour of California and a mini-ciclovia on the closed streets. And here’s 10 things to know if you’re planning to watch the final stage of the ToC in Thousand Oaks.

………

Local

Figueroa For All looks at last week’s highly staged public meeting about the North Figueroa road diet and bike lanes, which appears to have been so slanted against the proposal it’s a wonder the speakers didn’t slide right off.

A writer for City Watch is apparently competing to see how many things he can get wrong in a single article politely decrying LA bike lanes. For one, there is no law requiring bike riders over 18 to wear a helmet. And who can legally use a bike lane has long been defined, even if it’s often ignored, just like every other traffic regulation.

The Daily News profiles a physician who planned to ride his bike 60 miles from his Ventura home to Cal State Northridge for Bike to Work Day, then take the train back home. Yet they somehow file the story under Recreational Cycling.

The Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition calls on the city to pass a bike and pedestrian anti-harassment ordinance; you can sign the petition here.

Newly bike-friendly Rancho Cucamonga will host the Annual Cucamonga Challenge ride, run and walk on Saturday.

 

State

San Diego ‘s Bike to Work Day scheduled for today has been postponed two weeks due to the city’s fires.

Santa Rosa plans to substitute a greenway for a once-planned freeway extension that was canceled after public outcry.

A Los Osos woman has been biking to work for over 20 years.

 

National

NPR says bike commuting is picking up speed across the US, while a writer for the network explains the lingua franca of the bike world. So that’s where the term shoaling came from.

People for Bikes says a bicycle whizzing past stalled cars in a protected bike lane at rush hour is as powerful an ad for cycling as a 10 pm TV spot is for Taco Bell.

The Washington Post says America is anything but bike friendly.

Tragically, Portland suffers its first bicycling fatality since 2012, a record any other major city would envy.

Kansas City police dip into their own pockets to buy a boy a new bike after his was stolen.

New Jersey ups the ante by considering a four-foot passing law.

A DC real estate agent runs her business by bike.

 

International

A Vancouver writer offers advice on how to enjoy biking to work. As I’ve said before, though, the hardest thing about bike commuting is just deciding to do it.

Sad news, as legendary British long-distance cyclist Billie Fleming passed away just days after her 100th birthday.

A new film presents the tragic story of the late, great Italian racer Marco Pantani.

Aussie cyclists are outraged when a road safety official writes that bicycling does not fulfill an important transportation function; he later claims the comment was a clerical error.

 

Finally…

Some cool, beautiful and just plain bizarre bikes and riders from the early days of bicycling. But did they have bike locks that could alert you if someone tries to mess with your bike or use your cell phone to call for help if you wipe out?

And for every group-riding cyclist who ever said they can’t ticket us all, a Tucson cop would beg to differ.

Category: Bike Events, Morning Links / Tags: , , , ,

Morning Links: Wiggo wins, but it’s two and done for women at the ToC; even the Mayor bikes to work this week

May 12, 2014 / / 2 comments

While we celebrate Bike Week, the rest of the world seems to be racing.

Case in point, while the Giro takes the day off, Wiggo wins the Stage 2 time trial in the Amgen Tour of California; Aussie Rohan Dennis is second and Taylor Phinney third.

UnitedHealthcare’s Allison Powers takes the women’s time trial, with Brianna Walle second and Taylor Wiles third. The bad news is, while the men’s ToC goes on, the women are done until next year.

Now that’s scary. Dublin police found and disarmed a fertilizer bomb just hours before the finish of Sunday’s third stage of the Giro d’Italia. Speculation is the bomb was planted by defiant Northern Irish terrorists republicans.

Brit cyclist Emma Trott retires at age 24 after the death of two friends changes her priorities.

……..

Local

Downtown News looks at Bike Week, while Streetsblog covers Monday’s kickoff event.

The new Los Angeles Register asks if it’s possible to make LA friendlier to bikes, and notes that the MyFigueroa project is in the final stretch before construction.

LA’s favorite traffic maven offers advice on how to load your bike on a Metro Bus.

Even Mayor Garcetti bikes to work this week.

 

State

BikeNewportBeach calls for extending the beach boardwalk to the Wedge.

FOX-11 reports a bike rider was shot and killed in San Bernardino early Monday morning, just one in a string of three shootings minutes apart. Even if the sex of the victim changed twice in a single paragraph.

Redlands riders will get 16 miles of new bike lanes.

 

National

Gizmodo offers advice on how to keep your bike from getting stolen and how to get it back if it is.

AAA is now offering bike roadside assistance in Colorado, Washington State, Minneapolis and Southern New England. No word on when or if they’ll offer it here; I’d be happy if they’d just stop using members’ dues to lobby against bike safety legislation, which is why I cancelled my membership.

Dallas gets closer to repealing their ill-advised helmet law in advance of a planned bike share program.

Writing about San Antonio, Strongtown says if you need a reminder that bikes can use the full lane, it’s a clear sign biking and walking are just an afterthought.

An elderly Texas man gets five years probation for killing a cyclist. The penalty doesn’t even begin to fit the crime; on the other hand, what’s the benefit to society in sending an 87-year old man to prison?

Reviewing a Cycling Savvy course, a St. Louis blogger says we don’t need bike lanes, we need drivers and cyclists to learn how to interact better with one another. Thanks to Karen Karabell for the heads-up.

Turn out that Massachusetts hit-and-run driver who was caught after speeding through an apartment complex with a bike still stuck under his car stopped to throw it into a river — the bike, not the car — before threatening a witness, yet only faces $15,000 bail. Just what does a maniac driver have to do to get the courts to take traffic crimes seriously?

The Police Unity Tour reaches Washington DC to honor fallen officers.

 

International

A Montreal writer says urban cycling is worth whatever risk there might be.

Not a good weekend for notable bike riders, as the Liverpool record executive behind the Coral and the Zutons, as well as number of other bands, died after suffering serious head injuries while riding his bike, and an Australian wine maker was killed in a cycling collision, both on Sunday.

An Irish woman goes online to replace her father’s stolen bike. And finds his missing bike, instead.

 

Finally…

A road-raging DC-area driver Jerry Browns a cyclist in an attempt to force him off the road, then causes a collision by brake checking the rider. So naturally, the police ticket the cyclist for following to closely.

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , ,

Morning Links: The dawn of a new LA Bike Week, men’s & women’s racing news, and bike riders under fire

May 11, 2014 / / 2 comments

Blessing of the Bicycles 2014It’s finally Bike Week in LA!

You can find links to dozens of local events throughout the LA area in this week’s Calendar.

And don’t miss tomorrow’s decidedly non-sectarian Blessing of the Bicycles honoring Ghost Bikes LA at Good Samaritan Hospital.

………

Mark Cavendish ekes out a victory in the first stage of the Amgen tour of California, while Carmen Small wins the women’s circuit race.

Marcel Kittel wins the third stage of the Giro d’Italia on his 26th birthday, edging out Ben Swift at the last second; Dublin comes out to show its support despite the rough roads local cyclists have to ride.

Marianne Vos captures the inaugural Tour of Britain, while a man in a mobility scooter just avoids colliding with the peloton.

Meanwhile, Capital Public Radio says the appeal of bike racing is the interaction of between the riders and the fans; on the other hand, KCET says it’s because it’s exhilarating. I vote for the latter, myself.

………

Local

Councilmember Gil Cedillo is now suggesting sharrows on North Figueroa in place of the previously approved road diet and bike lanes, despite being captured on video saying just the opposite when he needed our votes.

A 25-year old man was shot in the back while riding in Pasadena early Saturday morning; thanks to Complete Streets Pas for the heads-up.

San Marino Rides looks at the draft San Marino bike and pedestrian plan; there will be a meeting of the San Marino Traffic Advisory Commission to discuss the plan on Monday, May 19th at 7 pm at the San Marino Center, 1890 Huntington Drive.

Bicycle advocacy group Pedal Movement offers free bike valet and tune-ups at the Long Beach farmer’s market.

 

State

A man in his 40s was found shot to death next to a bicycle in a Huntington Beach alley, though police aren’t sure if the bike was his.

Why would a Bay Area bike thief steal 26 bikes, only to leave them behind when he moved?

A new book profiles the artistry of 88 bike makers from around the world, including seven from Northern California.

When Mountain View balks on building a bike undercrossing, Google offers to over take the project. I wonder if they’d be willing to take over the North Figueroa road diet from Gil Cedillo?

 

National

Bicycling offers up the 10 best guided bike tours in the US, including the LA Taco Tour.

Nice Bike to Work video from Denver’s Regional Council of Governments.

In a nice gesture, a Texas college awards a posthumous degree to a bike rider killed by a drunk driver just shy of his graduation.

This is why you don’t chase after the guy who just stole your bike, as a New Orleans teenager is robbed at gunpoint by the thief.

Continuing a disturbing weekend trend, an eight-year old bike rider was accidently shot in the leg when a Pennsylvania man fires his gun off his deck.

Once again, a study shows women resist riding out of safety concerns; this time in New York, as over 76% of Citi Bike riders are men.

 

International

Most Alberta, Canada residents support separated bike lanes. As long as they don’t have to pay for them.

There seems to be an epidemic of road raging Brit cyclists these days.

London Cyclist explains why many bike riders wear jerseys.

Bike riding is cool again, even in India.

Riding a bike in rural Nigeria is a part of life; in urban Lagos, it can mean risking yours.

 

Finally…

If you’re going to flee the scene of a Massachusetts hit-and-run with your teenage victim’s bike still trapped under your car, don’t speed through an apartment complex parking lot.

And Russell Brand — yes, that Russell Brand — gets out of his car to hug an angry cyclist after the rider is clipped by a passing van.

 

Category: Bike Events, Morning Links / Tags: , , ,

Calendar: Cyclofemme LA, the Amgen Tour of California and a jam-packed roster of Bike Week events

May 11, 2014 / / Comments Off on Calendar: Cyclofemme LA, the Amgen Tour of California and a jam-packed roster of Bike Week events

Blessing of the Bicycles 2014Bike Talk airs every Saturday at 10 am; listen to it live or download the podcast from KPFK.

Bike Long Beach hosts Bike Saturdays every weekend; ride your bike to participating local shops and business throughout the city to get special offers and discounts.

Downtown’s Just Ride LA bike shop hosts weekly no one left behind Monday evening and Saturday morning shop rides, 1626 South Hill Street.

Sunday, May 11th marks the Cyclofemme LA Mother’s Day Bike Ride and Brunch, from 9 am to 1 pm at Grand Park, 200 North Grand Ave. Take a socially paced ride around Downtown LA to celebrate and honor women around the world, ending with brunch at the Angel City Brewery. Another ride takes place in Ojai, with mountain bike and road rides starting at 11 am, with an after ride festival to follow.

The San Fernando Valley Bike Club offers a twice monthly Compagni Group Ride — Italian for companion — on the second and fourth Sunday of every month; the next ride takes place on Sunday, May 11th. Click here for details and other rides; lots of other great sounding rides on the list, too.

……….

It’s Bike Week!

The annual Bike Week Los Angeles celebration unfolds the week of May 11th through 18th.

Metro wraps up Bike Week with the first Metro Bike Night @ Union Station from 5:30 to 8:30 pm on Friday, May 16th at — you got it — Union Station, 800 North Alameda St. in DTLA. The free event will feature special guests, live music, food trucks, outdoor booths, free bike valet, bike short films, trivia, bike portraits, fashion show and a raffle.

Pasadena starts off their own Bike Week celebration on Monday, May 12th as CICLE hosts a Taste of Pasadena Ride from 6:30 to 9:30 pm; Memorial Park Pasadena at Raymond Ave and Holly Street for a tour of local eateries. There’s a Women on Bikes Night on Wednesday, May 14th, and a Bike-In Movie Night on Friday, May 16th. And they finish Bike Week off with a mini-ciclovia from 11 am to 1:30 pm on Saturday, May 17th with Ride, Roll and Stroll, sponsored by Kaiser Permanente, RSVP here. CICLE offers the full schedule of Bike Week Pasadena events here.

Glendale is hosting Bike Week events including Bike to Work Day and a Bike From Work Happy Hour on Thursday, and the 2nd Annual Jewel City Fun & Fitness Ride on Saturday the 18th.

Bike SGV invites you on a Bike Week Emerald Necklace Ride on Wednesday, May 14th from 5:30 to 8 pm. Meet at the El Monte Metro Bus Station on Center Ave. The family-friendly ride will offer a guided tour of the Rio Hondo and San Gabriel River bike paths.

Santa Monica puts their own spin on the week, including a Veggie Grill fundraiser for Santa Monica Spoke on Monday, Lady’s Choice / Coffee Talk / Ride on Tuesday and a Bike From Work Handlebar Happy Hour on Thursday.

Even UCLA is getting in on the act with a full roster of bike events and pit stops throughout the week.

………

The Amgen Tour of California runs from Sunday, May 11th to Sunday, May 18th, starting in Sacramento. Three SoCal stages are planned, Friday May 16th, Santa Clarita to Mountain High; Saturday May 16th, Santa Clarita to Pasadena, and the final stage on Sunday the 18th in Thousand Oaks. There are also two women’s races scheduled, in Sacramento on May 11th and on the 12th in Folsom. Santa Clarita plans a series of events around their two stages.

………

The Advocacy and Education Subcommittee of the LA Bicycle Advisory Commission is holding a joint meeting with the Pedestrian Advisory Committee Education Subcommittee on Wednesday, May 14th at the Automobile Club of Southern California, 2601 South Figueroa Street.

Just in time for Bike Week, Just Ride LA hosts a free 90-minute Street Cycling Skills Workshop on Wednesday, May 14th at 6:30 pm, 1626 S. Hill Street.

Saturday, May 17th, the LAPD Topanga Community Police Station is hosting a free Kids Bike Safety Fair from 10 am to 1 pm; 21501 Schoenborn St in Canoga Park.

Also on the 17th, Team LUNA Chix Los Angeles Cycling is hosting a Road Riding Skills Clinic. Check in ready to ride at 8 am at the Sports Chalet, 2 Chalet Dr in La Cañada Flintridge. 

Santa Monica’s Helen’s Cycles host a no-drop Women’s Only Group Ride on the third Saturday of each month; the next ride is scheduled for 8 am on Saturday, May 17th, details TBD.

Mark your calendar for Glendale’s 2nd Annual Jewel City Fun & Fitness Ride on Sunday, May 18th, with rides ranging from seven to 45 miles.

The authors of Where to Bike Los Angeles are teaming up with the LACBC and the Pomona Valley Bicycle Coalition for this month’s exploration of one of the best rides in the LA area along Glendora Mountain Road, called one of the “50 rides of a lifetime” by Bicycling Magazine. Meet at the Claremont Metro Station, 201 W. 1st Street at 8:30 am, rolling at 9 for the six hour, 45-mile intermediate level ride

KCRW’s Design & Architecture joins with the Helms Bakery complex, 8723 Washington Avenue, to host Reinventing the Wheel on Sunday, May 18th at 1 pm. The forum of the future of mobility includes space-age cars from the Petersen Automotive Museum, Linus city bikes and mobility exhibits, as well as live music, food trucks and complimentary beer; admission $15.

The San Marino Traffic Advisory Commission will hold a meeting on Monday, May 19th at 7 pm to discuss the city’s draft Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan at the San Marino Center, adjacent to the Crowell Public Library, 1890 Huntington Drive.

The semi-scuttled plan to install desperately needed bike lanes on Santa Monica Blvd in the Biking Black Hole of Beverly Hills comes back before the BH City Council on Tuesday, May 20th at 2:30 pm, 455 N. Rexford Drive.

The California Bicycle Coalition is hosting a Bike Advocacy Day to influence elected officials in Sacramento on Wednesday, May 21 in Sacramento.

Discover LA’s world famous street art on the Northeast Los Angeles Mural Ride on Saturday, May 24th. Meet at the Heritage Gold Line Station, 3545 Pasadena Ave at 9:30 am, rolling at 10.

Walk ‘n Rollers, Bike SGV, City of El Monte Health & Wellness and Day One team up to host the free El Monte Bike Festival on Saturday, May 24th from 9 am to 1 pm at Mountain View High School, 2900 Parkway Drive. Activities include a Bike Skills Course, Bike Repair, Group Rides, and Fitness Obstacle Course.

LACBC Empowerment WorkshopsThe Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition is hosting a series of workshops aimed at empowering local advocates. The next workshop, focusing on winning campaigns, is scheduled for 10 am on Saturday, May 31st at LACBC Headquarters, 634 S. Spring Street in DTLA; see poster at left for additional dates, times and topics.

The California Bicycle Coalition, aka Calbike, will host a Los Angeles Better Bikeways House Party from 6 to 9 pm on Saturday, May 31st at a secret, undisclosed location which will hopefully be revealed upon registration. Donations will be requested to support their campaign for better bikeways throughout California.

The Los Angeles Bicycle Advisory Committee, the city’s only official voice for bicyclists, meets on the first Tuesday of every even-numbered month; the next meeting takes place at 7 pm on Tuesday, June 3rd at 6501 Fountain Ave. I’ll be celebrating the Corgi’s birthday that night.

Learn the basis principles of bicycle and traffic safety with CICLE’s free Traffic Basic Safety Class on Saturday, June 7th from 11 am to 1 pm, in conjunction with the Caltech BikeLab; Caltech Y Ground Floor Meeting Room, 505 S. Wilson Ave in Pasadena.

Helen’s Cycles host a no-drop Men’s Group Ride on the first Saturday of each month; the next ride is scheduled for 7:45 am on Saturday, June 7th, at the Santa Monica location, 2501 Broadway.

LA’s most popular fundraising bike ride rolls on Sunday, June 22nd with the 14th edition of the LACBC’s Los Angeles River Ride. Ten rides of varying lengths, with starting points in Long Beach and Griffith Park, including two centuries, a 15-mile family ride and a free kid’s ride; discount prices available through May 27th.

Mark your calendar for the Peace Love & Family Ride for Crohn’s and Obesity in South LA on July 5th and 6th. Great cause; more details when they become available.

Bike racing returns to Downtown LA on Saturday, July 12th with Wolfpack Hustle: The Civic Center Crit; racing takes place from 1 to 8 pm on the streets surrounding LA City Hall, 200 North Spring Street.

The Honor Ride Irvine rolls at 8 am on Saturday, August 2nd, starting at A Road Bike 4U, at the corner of Main St & Red Hill Ave in Irvine.

The year’s second CicLAvia takes place on Sunday, October 5th with a new variation on the classic Heart of LA route through Downtown LA, from Echo Park to East LA.

Paso Robles hosts a Wine and Roses Bike Ride on Saturday, October 11th; the event is limited to the first 350 riders to sign up.

Calbike is hosting the inaugural California by Bike Surf ’N Turf Tour. The multi-stage ride travels from Santa Barbara to San Diego, starting on Halloween and ending November 5th; registration is now open.

The first winter — or late fall, anyway — CicLAvia is also the first to roll through historic South LA on Sunday, December 7th, from the cultural center of the Southside in Leimert Park to the birthplace of West Coast Jazz on Central Avenue.

Find bike racing schedules and other cycling events at SoCal Cycling.

 

Category: Bike Events / Tags: , , , ,

Today’s post, in which I follow Metro’s lead and issue a challenge to bike lane-averse merchants

March 18, 2013 / / Comments Off on Today’s post, in which I follow Metro’s lead and issue a challenge to bike lane-averse merchants

I’ve been surprised by the opposition from local businesses to the planned bike lanes that could bring them more business.

Yes, I fully expected some blowback to plans to install bike lanes on busy streets like Westwood, Bundy and Figueroa. Auto-centric residents who can’t comprehend any other means of getting to and from their homes can be counted on to rise up in NIMBYist opposition to any suggestion of reducing traffic flow to a more rational level, or providing a safe alternative to getting behind the wheel.

Even though they don’t have to get out of their cars to enjoy the benefits. But just make it practical for other people to leave their cars behind so they can move more freely in theirs.

But the vehemence of the opposition from the merchants who would benefit from bike lanes has come as a very unpleasant surprise.

It doesn’t take a Masters in Business Administration to realize that anything that enables more customers to come to your door is good for the bottom line. Never mind that bike riders have been shown to visit merchants more often, resulting in higher sales over the long run.

Or that calming traffic — one of the many secondary benefits of bike lanes — can make a shopping district more attractive to everyone, And at the same time, replacing cut-through drivers with destination traffic more likely to actually stop and spend money.

So I was intrigued this morning when I received an email from Metro announcing that this year’s Bike Week will take place from May 13th to 19th. And that a new feature in 2013 will be the first Bike Weekend, in which merchants will be encouraged to offer a discount to bike riders.

Metro invites you to be part of Bike Week LA by offering discounts to any bicyclist who mentions “Bike Week” during Bike Local Weekend, Friday, May 17 through Sunday, May 19, 2013. This is a FREE advertising opportunity to attract and encourage customers to eat, shop, and play locally. Metro wants to promote you as a destination location for Bike Local Weekend through our website, social media network, and other media channels.

Did you know that bicycling is great for local business? Studies show that people who travel by bicycle actually make more visits to small businesses than people who travel by car. These visits add up – cities all across the U.S. are discovering that when bicycling increases, sales revenue does too. In San Francisco and New York City, for instance, retail sales along certain bike lanes is up as much as 50%! Because bicyclists travel at slower speeds than cars, it’s easier for them to stop and smell the coffee. (It also helps that they don’t have to pay for parking).

If your business would like to participate in Bike Local Weekend, please sign up here no later than May 1, 2013. The earlier you sign up, the better we are able to promote you! Please feel free to contact us with any questions at bikeweekla@metro.net or 213.922.5634.

So let me issue a challenge to business owners who oppose bike lanes in front of their shops. Especially those who have been most outspoken in their opposition, like Galcos in Highland Park and A Little Taste of Hoboken in Westwood.

Just give it a shot.

Offer a discount to bicyclists that one weekend.

If you don’t notice any difference in sales, maybe you’re right. You can come to the next meeting and argue that you tried to market your business to bike riders, and it didn’t do any good.

But if, more likely, your business goes up that weekend, you’ll have solid evidence that we bicyclists spend money at places that make us feel welcome.

And that, rather than the highway to financial ruin you fear, a bike lane in front of your business could be the pathway to higher profits. Let alone a better, safer and more livable business district.

The best part is, you have nothing to lose.

Except your misconceptions.

But don’t be surprised if we complain about the lack of bike parking.

Category: Advocacy & Politics, Streets and Infrastructure / Tags: , , , , , , ,
 
Wordpress Theme by ThemeZee