Go ahead and leave you mask at home on your next bike ride.
If you’ve had your shots.
California and LA County are going along with new directives from the CDC, which conclude that masks are no longer necessary for people who’ve received both shots when you’re outside and away from crowds.
And they specifically call out bicycling as safe to do without a mask.
So feel free to breathe freely.
But maybe keep one handy in case you decide to go inside somewhere, or find yourself around people who may not have had their shots yet.
Just to be safe.
Photo by Yaroslav Danylchenko from Pexels.
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Kenneth Rasmuson was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the cold case murders of a couple of six-year old boys in the 1980s.
Jeffrey Vargo was riding his bike near his Anaheim Hills home when he was kidnapped and strangled by then 19-year old Rasmuson in 1981.
Five years later, Miguel Antero had just stepped off the school bus when Rasmuson grabbed him, and stabbed him multiple times.
The plea deal means the 59-year old Rasmuson will die in prison.
Which couldn’t happen to a more deserving guy.
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This is how a protected intersection works.
And no, I can’t seem to get rid of that top tweet, so just skip to the next one.
another one for this: mr barricade (that’s his tiktok handle) designs and shows off traffic barricades that he designs pic.twitter.com/nkZNVue3ks
— Gavin Purcell (@gavinpurcell) April 27, 2021
Thanks to Keith Johnson for the heads-up.
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A modern British remake of Vittorio De Sica’s classic Bicycle Thieves will premier on streaming platforms next week.
The Guardian likes it, but says it could be better.
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This is who we share the road with.
In a rant that will sound familiar to most bike riders, a road raging British driver complains that horses don’t belong on the roads, and uses his car as a weapon to attack a woman on a horse.
Although hardly anyone complains about bike riders pooping on the streets.
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Sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
A Visalia man faces an attempted murder charge after stabbing another man in a dispute over a bicycle; fortunately, the victim’s injury wasn’t life-threatening.
A pair of Canadian burglars demonstrate that you can carry anything with a bike. Even a stolen safe.
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Local
Cities Today celebrates LA’s pre-pandemic 22% jump in bike ridership, which is likely to be even larger when the post-pandemic numbers finally come in. Hopefully, we won’t have to wait another two years to get a snapshot of current ridership, like we did last time.
Santa Clarita is hosting a self-guided community bike ride on May 15th.
This is how Vision Zero is supposed to work. Long Beach is considering a lane reduction and bike lanes on Spring Street through El Dorado Park, where five people have have been killed over the last nine years.
State
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria will be the keynote speaker for the San Diego Bike Coalition’s virtual Bike Month kickoff on May 1st.
The San Diego Padres popular Pedal the Cause returns in a virtual format May 8th; over 1,200 people hav already registered, raising more than $700,000.
The executive director of the high successful San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is stepping down after five years.
Police in Roseville are looking for the pickup driver who stopped briefly after running down a man on a bike, then left the victim sprawled in the road with serious injuries.
National
Pink Bike asks bike shops how far ahead they’re scheduling bicycle tune-ups these days. And for the most part, the news ain’t good, but it’s better than last year.
C|net reviews Brompton’s ebike foldie, and isn’t thrilled. Never mind that the bike has already been recalled over a firmware problem.
Portland has waived an $11 million fine against the US government for blocking one of the nation’s busiest bike lanes for the better part of a year with a fence surrounding the federal courthouse, to protect it from protesters.
The bike boom goes on, as bike riding is up 20% over last year in Las Vegas.
American pro cycling pioneer and US Bicycling Hall of Famer Ron Kiefel is officially out of the bike business, after selling the Denver-area bike shop that’s been in his family for nearly 50 years.
Thieves take their time cleaning out the bike storage room at a Denver apartment complex, easily walking out with six bicycles. Another reminder that most storage rooms just offer bike thieves a more convenient place to shop for your bike.
A Border Patrol agent has been charged with the hit-and-run death of a 71-year old Texas man riding a bicycle; the crash occurred while he was off duty.
A Maine man had to relearn how to talk, walk, run and ride a bike after suffering a traumatic brain injury while mountain biking in Boise, Idaho. And may never know what happened to cause it. I can attest to that last part; it’s been over 13 years since the Infamous Beachfront Bee Incident, and I still have no memory whatsoever of the crash. And probably never will.
New York police investigators have identified a suspect in the murder of a New York delivery rider, who was shot when he refused to hand over his ebike.
A Brooklyn city council candidate wanted to get to know his district, so he spent a month biking every block.
New Jersey bike advocates call for repealing laws that discourage bicycling, arguing that wheelies are not a crime, in the wake of the arrest of a Black teenager who refused to let a group of white cops confiscate his bike.
A Philadelphia mystery shopper tries out the city’s bikeshare system, concluding it’s an easy and efficient way to get around town, despite problems with maintenance.
Pennsylvania’s Bensalem Township faces intense criticism online after police announced plans to create a web portal to report scofflaw children and teens on bicycles. And deservedly so.
Someone please tell the Virginia State Police and WWBT-12 that someone can be a pedestrian, or riding a bike. But not both at once.
Orlando, Florida’s new director of the transportation department envisions giving the traditionally auto-centric city a bike and pedestrian friendly makeover. So if they can do it, why the hell can’t Los Angeles?
International
Presenting the five best bike paths for your net trip to Winnipeg, Canada.
Saskatoon city leaders approve plans for a bike lane, but choose to protect parking spaces over trees to make room for it.
Now you, too, can own a piece of crowdsourced European bikeshare provider Donkey Republic, which is preparing for an IPO on the Dutch stock exchange.
Germany is investing more funds in bicycling than ever before, with just under 1.5 billion euros — the equivalent of $1.81 billion — committed to bikes through 2023.
A nightmare scenario from Spain, where a bicyclist may have died of anaphylactic shock after inadvertently swallowing a bee and getting stung in the throat while on a group ride.
The container ship Ever Given may have been freed from the Suez Canal, but your new bike may still be stuck in Egypt because the ship and its cargo are being held as ransom until the company forks over $900 million in damages.
No surprise here, as children’s bike injuries shot up 42.7% in Western Australia during the pandemic, with more kids at home and on their bikes.
Competitive Cycling
Bicycling’s Joe Lindsey argues that UCI, bike racing’s parent organization, is risking a PR nightmare by continuing to punish riders for using the supertuck position. As usual, read it on Yahoo if Bicycling blocks you.
Finally…
That feeling when the headline says advocates battle Sharks over parking and safe streets, but it has nothing to with a Sharknado. That feeling when you go from rock star dreams to a real life bike lock star on Shark Tank.
And never let a little thing like a bike race get in the way of your bike commute.
— Cycling out of context (@OutOfCycling) April 27, 2021
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Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask.
And get vaccinated, already.
