Once again, a bicyclist beat a car and a bus commuter in the Albany commuter contest. The story and photos are at All Over Albany.
(Thanks for Claire Nolan for the link!)
It’s Bike To Work Day / My political statement / Is to wear a tie
Cyclelicious has a quick write up to help you out this Friday, which is Bike To Work Day. He writes:
I would also like to add: smile.
Last night I rode my new bike to UAG to catch two bicycle movies.
Jungle Coaster was really impressive. The movie starts with footage of them goofing around in Panama. You get to see them jump up stairs two at a time, and then ride all the way down. These guys obviously know what they’re doing. So you can appreciate it when you see the “trail” they rode on to get to the Pacific and they have to walk. Climb. Carry their unis. Ouch. There’s footage of them crossing bridges I would be reluctant to cross on my own two legs, and leaping up onto fallen logs, and it’s really exciting to watch them go. But, no machetes? Ha ha. Everybody really enjoyed it, and half the crowd left when it was over.
The other movie was Red Light Go, which is about alleycat racing in NYC. They introduce you to some bike messengers who are your main characters, and they explain why they’re bike messengers. Then they get into the races. Which scare the crap out of me. It’s super cool to watch these guys careen through traffic, pedestrians, each other, but I’m glad I don’t have to do it. There are no rules, no concern for anybody’s safety. It’s about being a daredevil and winning. And they’re very good at it.
As I was riding home I was thinking about going to the Troy Bike Rescue and building my own alleycat bike. I wanted to treat each ride to work and ride home like a race. Go go go. I was all hepped up on heavy metal and attitude. By the time I got home I had come to my senses. I’ve never even raced in an alleycat.
Perry Woodin’s “Jungle Coaster” followed by the classic feature — “Red Light Go”
Upstate Artists Guild Gallery, 247 Lark St. (across from Ben & Jerry’s at Jay St.)
Doors open – 6:30
Showtime – 7:00 (Some announcements stated a 7:30 show time. We will have a special “critical mass” video as a warm up while we wait for latecomers.)
Contribution please ($5 suggested) to offset UAG’s costs.
It’s Bike to Work Week
Go ahead, use the full lane
‘Cause you deserve it
It’s Bike to Work Week
So tell everyone you know
And then ride your bike
Friday is the first day of Bike Month. I am super psyched about what’s going on in the capital region. Write ups on the Albany Bicycle Coalition, and Bike Albany.
Also received this by email, from the NYBC:
In order to promote cycling, advance traffic safety, and raise awareness of bicycling and pedestrian-related issues amongst our elected representatives currently in session, the New York Bicycling Coalition has organized a full roster of Bike Month activities in the Capital District. Exciting activities include bicycle safety education courses and LCI Training Seminar; a bicycle-themed art show; “Two Wheels Good” film festival; the ever-popular SIGMA Commuter Contest; National Bike to Work Day; and the National Ride of Silence. Please consult the full calendar (attached) and refer to www.nybc.net for more information and ways to get involved.
5/1-5/2: Traffic Skills 101. Taught by certified LCIs, this 9-hour curriculum gives cyclists the confidence they need to ride safely and legally in traffic or on the trail. Covers bicycle safety checks, fixing a flat, bike-handling skills and crash avoidance techniques. Recommended for adults and children above age 14, this fast-paced 2-day course prepares cyclists for a full understanding of vehicular cycling. Location: SUNY Albany Downtown Campus, 135 Washington Ave. Draper 147. For full details and course registration info, visit http://nybc.net/?page_id=3 .
5/1-5/22: “Grand Tour: Bicycle, Transportation & Travel” Art Exhibit. Upstate Artists Guild, 247 Lark St., Albany. Opening Reception & Urban Ride 5/1/09, 6-9PM. Note: special bicycle-themed art & reception at Downtube Bicycle Shop, 466 Madison Ave., Albany. 1st Friday Ride, hosted by the Albany Bicycle Coalition, will stop at Exhibit and other 1st Friday art venues. Donations accepted to benefit ABC & NYBC. For more information, visit: http://upstateartistsguild.org/GrandTour.
5/8: “Two Wheels Good” Bike Film Festival. The Sanctuary for Independent Media, 3361 6th Ave., Troy; 7 PM. Collection celebrates all aspects of bicycle culture, from competitive mountain biking to urban “alleycat” racing to daily commuting, bike polo, and Critical Mass. Selection includes a variety of filmmakers and spans genres from documentary to narrative, animation to sports, art & music videos. Co-sponsored by NYBC and Troy Bike Rescue; valet bike parking available. Admission by donation ($10 suggested, $5 student/low income). See www.mediasanctuary.org for details and directions.
5/8-5/10: Bike to Albany’s Tulip Festival. A highly anticipated spring tradition, over 200,000 tulip bulbs will blossom into a sea of colors amidst of thousands of attendees Mother’s Day weekend in Washington Park. The City of Albany is taking a step forward to promote green initiatives and reduce congestion on the roadways by encouraging attendees to RIDE, rather than drive, to the event. Designated racks and valet bicycle parking and will be available at the Willett & Madison Ave. entrance and featured as part of the Tulip Festival Wellness Garden, promoting wellness of mind, body, spirit, and planet. Steiner’s Sports will be on-hand to offer free safety checks and quick tune-ups to keep you rolling. Visit http://www.albanyevents.org for full schedule of activities.
5/13: Driver’s Ed. For Cyclists: a FREE Hands-On Training For Educators. 7AM – 2:30PM, Six Flags Great Escape Lodge, Queensbury. Educators who work with children grades 4 and up will gain the skills and instructional techniques necessary to teach students in P.E. classes, after-school programs and summer camps. Topics such as age-appropriate bicycle handling skills, bicycle laws, cyclist’s responsibilities, proper bike and helmet fitting, the use of gears and breaks and how to avoid crashes will be covered. Participants will also receive instructional materials and have an opportunity to take part in hands-on skill drills. Training is co-sponsored by NYBC, GTSC, Glens Falls Hospital and Upper Hudson Primary Care Consortium NYSDOH Healthy Heart Programs, the Cornell Local Roads Program, and Bike New York.
5/14: SIGMA Commuter Contest. This exciting competition pits bicyclists against motorists and transit riders during rush-hour traffic to determine the most efficient means of transportation. For the past 5 years, the bicyclist has been the winner–join us this year to see if we can make it 6 in a row! Start time: 5PM sharp. Location: Starbucks to Starbucks (10 N Pearl St., Albany to Stuyvesant Plaza, 1475 Western Ave.). Fabulous prizes courtesy of Sigma and Steiner’s Sports.
5/14: VEER the movie. Two showings! 7:30 & 9:15 pm. The Madison Theater (Albany). Special one-night screening of new documentary of the Portland, OR cycling community. Sponsors include: CK Cycles, Steiner’s Sports, The Downtube, The Dead Presidents Lounge, Bomber’s Burritos, Lark Tavern, 518prints.com, UrbanVelo.org. $6/($5 for ABC & NYBC members). Membership is free and you can sign up at the door. ABC will also be collecting $$ donations for the KONA AFRICA BIKE PROGRAM.
5/15: National Bike to Work Day. Sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists, individuals across the country are encouraged to commute to work by bike. The Saratoga Healthy Transportation Network is sponsoring the “First Annual” Saratoga Bike To Work Challenge. Companies with offices/workplaces in Saratoga County are encouraged to form Bike To Work Teams and compete for the highly coveted “The Gear Head Trophy.” To register, go to www.healthytransportation.org. For more information and resources on bicycle commuting, visit www.nybc.net.
5/16: Club Picnic, Ride and Swap Meet. 10AM, Colonie Town Park. The Mohawk Hudson Cycling Club invites all local cyclists & their families to come celebrate Capital Bike Month with the club and meet some new cyclists/friends. Rides of varying categories (casual, tour, mountain bike); potluck lunch; post-ride swap meet. Consult the Ride Calendar on http://webmhcc.org for full details.
5/20: National Ride of Silence. 6PM. Start location: Corning Preserve, Albany. 12 mile route will pass ghost bikes commemorating the deaths of 3 local cyclists. For more details, visit www.rideofsilence.org or www.nybc.net .
5/29-5/31: LCI Training Seminar. Becoming a League Cycling Instructor (LCI) certified to teach BikeEd is a great way to help cyclists in your community. If you are an experienced cyclist and would like to teach others, consider taking the next step towards certification and help bring the joy of safe cycling to others. NOTE: Road I is a prerequisite for a certification seminar. For full details and course registration info, visit http://nybc.net/?page_id=3. Co-sponsored by NYBC, Bike New York, and the League of American Bicyclists.
Nominations Currently Being Accepted for NYBC’s Commuter of the Year Award
NYBC is seeking nominations for its annual Bicycle Commuter of the Year Award. Bicyclists of any age who are NYS residents and commute to work or school on a regular basis are encouraged to apply. Submissions should include a brief written description, in 50 words or less, of why the person nominated is worthy of the award; deadline is Monday,May 11th. Winners will be announced on National Bike to Work Day: Friday, May 15th, 2009. Entries may be sent to: New York Bicycling Coalition, P.O. Box 8868, Albany, NY 12208 or e-mailed to Claire Nolan, NYBC Board Member, at cbnolou@yahoo.comCelebrate National Bike Month: enter our 2009 Bike Giveaway and help make New York a more bicycle-friendly state!
Win a new Originate Urban Cyckel, generously donated by CK Cycles, and ride in style. Join or renew your membership to NYBC from now until August 31st, 2009, and your name will be automatically included in our 2009 Bike Giveaway drawing!
Grand drawing to be held September 1st, 2009. For official rules, photos, and other details, visit www.nybc.net .
It’s going to be a fun month.
Who says you need months of prep time to pull off a successful bike to work day? The idea of promoting something about bicycling during May (bike month) was circulating on the Finger Lakes Cycling Club e-list and the Curb Your Car Coalition e-list the other day. Before you could fix a flat, the surge of interest that surfaced is amazing. In less than a week, there’s a web site up – http://icycle.org/biketowork/ - with ten routes outlined. Each route has at least one group leader. There are regular commuters and a few who are giving it a try. Teachers, parents, students and school administrators are planning their outings; there’s a “rolling school bus” lined up. There’s a flyer and PSAs being worked on through local media. Oh WOW! I’ll keep you posted.
This is my first post on the site and it comes hot off of the Common Council Meeting in Albany this evening. I am sure Jason will be posting his comments as well and hopefully some pictures but I was hoping to weigh in before he beat me to it. I am happy to report that the Common Council unanimously approved the resolution proclaiming May as Bike Month. For those of you from more bicycle friendly communities this may seem like small potatoes but we take whatever we can get here in the Capital of NY. What was particularly satisfying about the resolution was that all 15 of the Common Council Members agreed to sign on as co-sponsors. We can only hope that this broad level of support will translate into more bicycle friendly initiatives as the city moves forward with the Comprehensive Plan (and let’s hope a bicycle master plan). Our thanks go out to Councilman Casolaro who introduced the resolution and continues to push for a bicycle and pedestrian and task force and to the handful of cyclists who showed up to support the initiative. Keep up the good work.
I rode my bike over to my ex-commuting-buddy Caitlin’s tonight to do a bit of brainstorming on Bike to Work Week. Our routes to work might change, but our mutual love of biking will never die. Ted and others joined us and we feasted on vegetable soup and vegan cake as we talked, in part, about bikes.
Ted works on a craft while Caitlin eats the soup he brought.
We decided that, for those interested in biking to work during that week and beyond, it would be a good idea to have an article about bike commuting in Rochester (or at least, they agreed with my idea). So I started writing it, and I’ve posted what I’ve written to a RocWiki page.
Caitlin said she’d check out the posted version and see if there’s anything to add, but it’s a free country and Wikis are part of that freedom, meaning you’re free to edit it too! If you see something in the article that can use some tweaking, just sign up at RocWiki.com and have at it.
The ride home was super chilly. I have an enormous amount of respect for those in climates much further north who don’t hesitate to brave the cold on their bike. I consider my gloves reasonably thick, but I could hardly feel my fingers when I got home.
It doesn’t get much colder than this. At least, I hope not.
Moments before my bike and I duck into our well-heated home
This Bike to Work Week thing is getting rather exciting. I hope three months of hype doesn’t make you grow bored of the idea.
The blogs are abuzz over this year’s Bike to Work Week. Do you think Rochesterians can get fired up about biking to work? Can a weblog like RocBike.com fan the flames of the bike commuting movement in our fine city? I say we find out!
Want to help? We’ve got three months to pull this off! I’ll go about building a little section to this site explaining the purpose of Bike to Work Week, what bike commuting is all about, and featuring businesses, government agencies, blogs, civilians, and other organizations that help us out. We’ll want to start talking to local businesses — from bike shops to smoothie bars — about holding special events or free giveaways for bike commuters during the week. We’ll also want to think about promoting a couple rides that week to get people interested in the social aspect of bike riding.
The League has some great materials on their site, including an organizer’s kit and various brochures. Take some time to look things over, think about what you’d like Bike to Work Week to be like and what you’d like to do to promote it, and if you’d like to help, leave a note in the comments or e-mail me at 
.
