And I thought trash talk was the order of the day. –Corrie
What’s new in Mountain Biking
For some mountain bikers, maneuvering a couple of knobby tires over gnarly terrain is cake compared to controlling their own conduct on the trail. Here are ways to make the trail more enjoyable for everyone.
Do visit Jill’s blog. He’s right about the writing. ‘Course it helps to have 50 mile an hour headwinds to write about. Also learn how you may support her through purchasing gear on UltraRob’s page.
If you’re familiar with Ghost Bikes, those impromptu memorials that pop up to mark places where bicyclists have been struck by cars, then you can understand why so many people are so ticked off by a recent take-off on the ghost bikes that attempts to promote a clothing line.
I guess this won’t be the year I try the Chilly Hilly Ride on Feb. 24th. Doug and I will be just back from four days of Death Valley cycling and camping. The high temps forecast for Stovepipe Wells are 81 for the time we’ll be there. Doug says we have some high passes to cross so bring warm clothes. I’m bringing sun screen too, thank you. I know that Chandler was asking about anyone going to Chilly Hilly–you’ll have to talk to him ’cause I’m going to be acclimated to warm weather by Feb. 24th. So there.–Corrie
Seattle Bike Swap — Feb. 23, 2008 100 ve.ndors offer new and used bicycle related goods for sale; Hangar 30 at Magnuson Park. Sponsored by Cascade Bicycle Club
Chilly Hilly — Feb. 24, 2008 The year’s first big ride by Cascade Bicycle Club. Loops around Bainbridge Island for 33 miles. (See 2007 Chilly Hilly photos and story.)
Group Health Seattle Bike Expo — March 8 and 9, 2008 Technically not a ride, but it’s a huge event and it’s all about cycling; new location on the waterfront at Cruise Terminal 30, Seattle. Organized by Cascade Bicycle Club.
McClinchy Mile — March 15, 2008 Three bicycle loops — a hilly 27-, a flat 34-, or challenging 47-mile — through Snohomish County that begin in Arlington; sponsored by BIKES of Everett.
Tulip Pedal — April 5, 2008 Up to 60 miles of cycling; associated with Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. Leaves from La Conner Middle School between 7 and noon (site moved from Rexville Grange); sponsored by Skagit County Medic One.
The Daffodil Classic — April 13, 2008 Three long bicycle loops — 40, 62 or 102 miles — leaving Orting, Washington. Also an out-and-back on a bike trail that can be 1 to 30 miles. Sponsored by the Tacoma Wheelmen’s Bicycle Club.
Vulcan Bike to Work Breakfast — (See May 2008 calendar) Food, speeches, networking in preparation for Bike to Work Month; sponsored by Cascade Bicycle Club.
Bike Tour Lopez Island – April 26, 2008 10 and 26-mile cycling loops around Lopez Island (early registration starts Jan. 15, 2008; this one sells out)
Lilac Surprise Century — April 27, 2008
Loops – 15, 50 or 100 miles of bicycling; leaves from Spokane; Aurora Northwest Rotary Club
Take this quiz to see what you know about bike safety. It isn’t always what you think it is. –Corrie
| Quoting Joe Friel, MS a highly respected cycling expert: “There are only two kinds of cyclists, regardless of whether they ride a road or mountain bike: those who have crashed and those who are going to.” Please see the below chart and take the short quiz to check your safety knowledge. Click the shift/brake levers on the bottom image for the safety quiz answers. |
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This site features daiily coverage of the show.–Corrie
Main Page Next Part
By James Huang in Portland, Oregon
| Photo ©: James Huang |
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This year’s North American Handmade Bicycle Show opens its doors this weekend with its longest exhibitor list yet and a new venue in downtown Portland, Oregon. According to show organizer Don Walker, the 2008 NAHBS will host 155 exhibitors as compared to just 23 in the inaugural show just three years ago. Given the host city’s notoriously bicycle-crazy population, last year’s figure of approximately 4000 figures is also almost guaranteed to be eclipsed by a wide margin.
“What’s happened is the NAHBS has taken me in a whole new direction,” said Walker. “I spend twelve months a year working on the show now. I didn’t really intend to be a show promoter, it just happened that way. My vision was always to make it more of a show than a seminar. The main focus in my mind was to raise awareness of the handmade frame building industry, and so far I think we’re doing a fair job of accomplishing that.”
Ride 4,000 miles? On a bike? All the way across the United States?
If your dream is fighting cancer, a bike ride from Baltimore to San Francisco is not just the right thing to do with your summer, it’s a full-time passion. That’s how Clare Blubaugh feels about it, and she’s not alone.
Blubaugh, 22, from Hickory and a senior at Johns Hopkins University, is director of this year’s Hopkins 4K for Cancer, a 4,000-mile, two-month bicycle trek from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco from May 22 to July 30.
On the ride, Blubaugh joins a team of 25 students, including 16 men and nine women, ages 18 to 26, from seven colleges and universities. Blubaugh and another teammate will make the trek for a second time.
I don’t read Dear Abby. Honest. I remember my mother reading those letters to Dad every day. Linda spotted this column. I remember her saying it was all about bicycling but I never checked it out. This Abby column is all over the web the morning so it might as well be here–we do a fair amount of riding on bike paths.–corrie
Bike Path Etiquette According to Dear Abby
Dear Abby had a bunch of letters in her column one day this week about bike path etiquette. Don’t know if ol’ Abby is a cyclist or not, but she sure seemed interested in the way that bicyclists and walkers interact out on the trail.
Under the heading “Common Courtesy Conquers the Perils of the Bike Path,” Abby and a bunch of helpful letter-writers trade advice. One guy offers tips on how to notify walkers that they’re about to be passed (”When I’m on my bike, I always slow down and call out “On your left!” to warn the walker that I’m passing”) and another urges users of a shared path to have the slowest traffic keep to the right, so that there’s no interference between joggers, cyclists, walkers and roller-bladers.
It’s a nice switch from the normal advice to the love-lorn that dominates the column, and from now on, when I’m on my bike I’m definitely keeping an eye out for Dear Abby on the path. I think yeah, maybe she is cyclist. At least her hair-do would imply so.
The cycling world lost a giant recently. I was very saddened to hear that Sheldon Brown passed away. The world needs more Sheldon Browns.
I never had the chance to meet him in person, but I spent hours pouring over his web site. He was a cycling advocate, photographer, and journalist amongst other things. His web site is an encyclopedia of information that I am sure has amused and informed thousands of those trolling the internet for information on cycling related issues, techniques, and hacks.
He was an optimist to the “nth” degree. He even saw being afflicted with Multiple Sclerosis as an opportunity to shine. He had this to say about MS:
March 4, 5, and 6th in Washington D.C. No, I won’t be going but it is nice to know cyclists have our own lobbyists.–Corrie
National Bike Summit 2008
Climbing Capitol Hill:
Putting Bicyclists In the Seat of PowerThe legendary polka dot jersey is given to the best climber in the Tour de France. Become a champion of bicycling by climbing Capitol Hill, March 4-6 as a participant at the 2008 National Bike Summit in Washington, DC. Pack your suit and discover the power you have to influence national transportation, energy, environment and health policy for the better: For bicycling.
By Fritz
A taxonomy of cyclists. You know these guys and gals. In fact Chris is probably a version of Gearheadicus Stubbornous Erectus (GSE). At least Chris agrees with the down-tube shifter idea. I like the drawings as well as the descriptions.–Corrie
Which Species Of Cyclist Are You?
Listen up! This is a tongue-in-cheek overview of some of the more interesting and dedicated cyclists you may see and meet. No offense is intended. We’re just trying to have some fun and brighten your day. We fit into a few of these categories, too! No cyclists were harmed researching this article. Credit approval required. Your tire mileage may vary.
Cycling is a splendid and wonderful activity; our absolutely favorite thing, in fact. If you’ve been a cyclist for very long, you’re probably evolving into one of the many species of wheel men and women. You’re not alone, it’s happened to all of us, too.
When we’re new to the sport, we’re not quite sure where we fit in. Gradually, a transformation takes places and we become fanatics, we use cycling jargon that only our compadres understand, and we lust for bikes that make us faster, more comfortable or better riders. Lots of other velo aficionados share the characteristics we develop, too. You and those that you have so much in common with become a species. So, here’s a field guide to a variety of the creatures that inhabit the two-wheeled forest. Be sure to let us know which one you think WE are when you come in! See more Species
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If you live on the Palouse, you may want one of these independent shops to build you a snow bike. Most will be at the Homemade Bike Show in Portland
Alaska snow bicycles
By Fritz
I think we’re all familiar with the Surly Pugsley and it’s well know that Moots custom builds snow bikes. Plenty of other options are available for fat tire bicycles for snow and sand riding.
By Fritz
See more vintage posters here or click on the pic above to directly to the Flickr site for more of just the Michellin Man.
So, I’m going to make the leap to modest touring. Linda’s been after me to do some touring near Vancouver and I’ve been thinking of ways to do a bit of credit card camping–but that still means I’ve got to find a way to carry some gear. And then Doug comes along with his little self-contained tour tour to Death Valley in the middle of February. A trailer seems like the solution to my problem. The BOB is a single wheel trailer that would be great for single-track. But its a bit pricey and I lilke the fact that the Burley stands up by itself. Should work out well for quick runs to the grocery, too. It’s in the mail as t hey say. –Corrie
Bicycle Trailers Child, Cargo, Bike Carriers, Piggyback bikes and Misc.
You may recall that I posted here last September about Scottish cyclist Mark Beaumont, who was departing Paris in the first stage of an attempted 18,000 mile solo trip around the world.
Beaumont has been making steady progress since that time, traversing through 20 countries already in Middle East, Asia, Australia/New Zealand and North America. Now nearing completion of the sixth leg of his tour, Beaumont is crossing the southwestern and southern United States. Recently Mark has ridden through Louisiana, Missississippi and after hitting 17,000 miles, just entered Florida this past Sunday, Jan. 27th.
Okay, I admit it, I can compete with any woman who carries a huge purse when it comes to carrying stuff around with me. Wallet, keys, ChapStick, gum, MP3 player, camera, phone, etc. When I first started bike commuting one of the most frustrating things for me was having to repack all of my stuff everyday. For a while I just tossed it all into a backpack and that works, but is not really convenient. There are devices like the Cage Rocket which I wrote about a few entries ago, but it is not large enough to carry all that I want. Here’s a sample of what I pretty much carry with me everywhere when I ride.
This is Bicycle.net’s take on the LA Times series I mentioned in the first post about the woman’s sentence. You can link to the Times series from here too. I’ve been sitting on this because it is pretty long but Steve’s contribution makes it relevant. We can’t see this as a war. We’ll lose it. –Corrie
Huffy vs. Hummer: Debate Bikes -vs- cars
By VeloGuy on January 7th, 2008 | ShareThis
I read this article on the LA Times website and thought that it is a good article to spur some debate. Who is right, the cyclists, or the car drivers? I do not have the answer that will make both sides happy. But what I do know is that there is no answer that both the bike riders and the car drivers will ever agree on. As a cyclist who has had too many close calls to remember, I do think that car drivers have to (no, must) be held to a very high standard due to the shear weight difference between our vehicles. If I hit a car with my bike I am certain that I will not kill the auto driver, but the car driver has a much higher chance of killing the cyclists. People riding bikes will never go away, and drivers need to be put on alert. The penalties for not sharing the road should be more severe than they are currently. We need to adopt the same attitude you would find in, lets say Italy, where they expect to see a cyclist around the corner.
Minneapolis Bikes: Video of folks explaining how and why they bike to work in the snow.
Ultrafit: A two-wheel winter commute
With the right gear, riding your bike to and from work in the winter can be a lot more enjoyable than it sounds. Here are some tips on doing it right.
By Stephen Regenold, Special to the Star Tribune
How to dress for winter riding.
Tom Sweeney, Star Tribune
Play
Video: Winter biking just part of the year-round commute
* The Gear: What to wear while winter riding
Bike tires hum on snow, and they buzz on ice. But they rarely slip when you’re going straight. Gears click and shift the same in almost any weather. Just remember the lube. And the cold wind? With the right clothing it’s not an issue, according to regular wintertime riders.
Steve sends this news item in the war between cyclists and drivers. Wait, despite recent reports that drivers seldom receive any penalty in collisions with bicycles, despite the momentary surge of pleasure you might feel that this woman was not only sentenced but that perhaps her real attitude towards cyclists being revealed garnered her a stiffer sentence–despite that, we must remember that this is not a war. An excellent dialogue/debate appeared in the LA Times this month covering this conflict between cyclists and motorists. –Corrie
Woman Jailed After Laughing Over Victim
AP
Posted: 2008-01-25 09:32:40
Filed Under: Crime News, Law News, Nation News
TUCSON, Ariz. (Jan. 24) — A judge sentenced a woman to nearly the maximum prison term for negligent homicide after hearing a recorded jail conversation in which she made light of the bicyclist she killed.
Melissa Arrington, 27, was convicted two months ago of negligent homicide and two counts of aggravated DUI in connection with the December 2006 death of Paul L’Ecuyer.
Tucson Police / AP
