It takes a real jerk to leave a kid lying in the street.
Long Beach police are looking for the hit-and-run driver who struck a 15-year old boy Thursday morning as he was riding his bike at the intersection of Anaheim Street and Obispo Ave in the city’s Zaferia neighborhood.
Fortunately, the victim was not seriously injured.
According to the Press-Telegram, the driver, who stopped briefly before fleeing, appeared to be a blond haired, blue eyed male in his 20s. He was driving a newer model sedan, possibly a Honda, with a flat-black paint job with possible damage to the right front turn signal, as well as previous damage to its front passenger-side door.
Anyone with information is urged to call Long Beach police investigators at 562/570-7355.
Meanwhile, the CHP is searching for the heartless coward who drove away after hitting a nine-year old Murrieta boy as he was riding to school Thursday morning; fortunately the boy, the son of a Marine first sergeant stationed at Camp Pendleton, only suffered minor injuries.
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Heartbreaking news, as a genuine American hero died at the VA hospital in Westwood last month.
According to the LA Sentinel, 106-year old Redondo Beach resident Walter Crenshaw, Jr. was the oldest surviving member of the Tuskegee Airmen when he passed away on October 7th.
The paper reports he used to ride his bike to the Santa Monica pier three or four times a week when he lived in the city.
The Tuskegee Airmen were among the best pilots in the air in WWII, despite dealing with relentless discrimination in the Jim Crow South and on the battle fields of Europe; they proved that black men could fly just as well, if not better, than the white pilots they fought with and against.
Their success in the air paved the way for the integration of the armed forces, and for the civil rights battles that followed after the war.
They were heroes in every sense of the word, yet came back to an America where they were second class citizens.
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A British website says slower races and lower power to weight ratios are a sign that pro cycling’s doping era really is over.
Chinese rider Meiyin Wang is called China’s best cyclist ever as he prepares to make his pro debut.
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Local
Streetsblog lists five reasons people who bike should vote for Measure M, including support for Complete Streets and a dedicated funding stream for active transportation projects; at least some CSUN students agree.
CiclaValley offers a preview of the 2017 Amgen Tour of California.
Culver City Walk and Roll will host a Wheels and Heels group ride this Sunday to have fun and discuss bike safety.
State
Simi Valley police use bait bikes to bust six bike thieves; three of the people arrested have already pled guilty to felony grand theft charges.
Santa Barbara is on the short list to receive $15.5 million in state funding for four bicycle projects, including a long crosstown bike boulevard.
The investigation continues in Santa Cruz into the death of a bicyclist who grew up in Laguna Beach; no charges have been filed yet because police have been unable to identify the driver.
Alameda advocates are calling for a bicycle drawbridge to connect with Oakland; riders currently have to use a narrow, dark and dangerous tunnel filled with exhaust and the roar of traffic.
Bay Area bike advocates are demanding changes to an East Bay freeway interchange where two riders have been killed, and two more seriously injured in the last 20 months.
A Davis cyclist has ridden across the US twice after taking up riding to recover from a car wreck that left him immobile for years; now he rides a Penny Farthing to call attention to plans for a National Bicycle Greenway across the US.
Sacramento volunteers will build 4,000 bikes this weekend to donate to deserving kids. Then again, every kid deserves a bike.
The San Jose Mercury News suggests taking an autumn bike ride around Lake Tahoe. Or using snowshoes if you wait too long.
National
Momentum Magazine says protected intersections are the latest trend in bicycle safety, because a bikeway is only as strong as its weakest link.
Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein may be a bad rapper, but she’s a fan of bicycles.
An auto-centric Seattle radio host calls the author of the excellent Seattle Bike Blog “a notoriously hyper-critical bike activist” for saying a proposed eight-lane waterfront roadway should put people first, instead of cars; he insists the plan does put people first because people drive cars.
Outside Magazine says Crested Butte CO is the country’s best mountain bike destination.
An Iowa driver has been found guilty in the collision that left a cross-country bicyclist paralyzed below the waist.
Protected bike lanes are spreading throughout the US, even popping up in rural Arkansas.
It takes a major scumbag to leave an Indiana hit-and-run victim to die alone in the street, and an even bigger one to come upon the scene and steal his bicycle as he lay dying.
A New York Uber bike courier has filed a proposed class action suit against the company demanding to be classified as an employee, rather than an independent contractor.
International
Quartz says the real reason behind the worldwide bike boom is concern over weight loss. Except in Paris, where web searchers want to know why cyclists shave their legs.
Riding the entire length of South America on a bamboo bike.
Real funny. A group of kids in the UK post video of assaulting random people with a pie in the face, including one attack that knocked a man off his bicycle, which could have resulted in serious injuries.
London Vogue editors consider whether it’s safe, if not fashionable, to ride in the city.
Caught on video: A London cyclist records a year’s worth of close calls, while the Daily News calls him a drama queen who blames everyone but himself.
London’s Telegraph wonders what the bicycles of the future will look like, as bike racing’s governing body gets ready to scrap the 3:1 rule that limits innovative frame designs.
A Polish bike rider was collateral damage when a high-powered bullet fired by hunter passed through a deer, and traveled nearly 1,000 feet before striking him in the head.
A South African grandfather was caught in the crossfire between two gangs while riding his bicycle and was killed by a stray bullet.
Finally…
Everyone needs a good cycling excuse every now and then. Seriously, don’t threaten other riders with a knife. Or anything else.
And a hit-and-run driver tried to bury evidence of his crime. Literally.
