September 29, 2006

Walking and Biking Summit

The City of Eugene invites community bicycling and walking advocates to kick off a new pedestrian and bicycle strategic planning process for the City of Eugene. The summit is free and open to the public. The event is October 7, 8:30-1 at University of Oregon.

Called the number one “Green City” in America by the Green Guide and ranked “Silver” by the League of American Bicyclists, Eugene is highly regarded nationally as a great place to bike and walk. But, what can we do to make it even better? The City of Eugene desires your input on ways to make the community a safer and more inviting place to bike and walk.

Join us at the Eugene Walking and Biking Summit for a day filled with fun and informational workshops and engaging speakers. Your input at the summit will help guide the direction of the strategic planning process designed to make Eugene a better place for pedestrians and cyclists. Immediately following the summit, participants are invited to join City staff on walking and biking tours of Eugene.

[ More info ]

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September 28, 2006

BTA Urgent Call to Action

The BTA is seeking your support of bike boulevards and a project called the "70's Bike Boulevard". Bike boulevards are low-traffic streets that are engineered to create a safe, flowing path for cyclists.

Scott Bricker, policy director at the BTA, says, "We heard from ... hundreds of ... cyclists that you strongly prefer cycling on low-traffic bicycle boulevards. Here’s your first chance to help get a new Bike Boulevard funded! The City of Portland has requested $3.8 million from Metro to fund a new 7.8-mile north-south route in Northeast and Southeast Portland along the streets in the 70’s (71st to 76th, depending on the area). This project would run almost the whole length of the city, connecting the Springwater Corridor to NE Killingsworth."

MORE INFO FROM SCOTT:

A group of regional leaders is meeting TOMORROW MORNING to make some decisions on regional projects, including this project.

While one boulevard project in the East 50’s is likely to get funding, the 70’s Bike Boulevard project is slated to be cut – so we need YOUR help to get it back on the list for funding.

Portland City Commissioner Sam Adams and the City of Portland should be making sure this project gets funded – call his office and urge him to step up for bike boulevards!

ACTION
Call and email Commissioner Sam Adams TODAY (Thursday) and urge him to support the 70’s Bicycle Boulevard.

Phone: (503) 823-1121
E-mail: samadams@ci.portland.or.us

More about bicycle boulevards:
http://www.bta4bikes.org/at_work/bikeboulevards.php

Scott Bricker
Policy Director

Bicycle Transportation Alliance

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Key Tips for 'Cross

If you're thinking of racing cycloross this season, there are a few starting tips to remember. The first race is this Sunday at Alpenrose, so Jon Meyer sent around these key points:

• Do NOT bring alcohol to Alpenrose. While we do have a beer sponsor and you may win a beer prize, you will have to pick it up at race #2 because we will not have alcohol at the race and we will not tolerate alcohol at Alpenrose.


• Even if you mailed in pre registration, you will have to get a number at registration and check in. Once you have a number, keep that number for all the rest of the races.


• You must check in EVERY week. If you do not check in, you will NOT be scored in the results.


• You only have to fill out the waiver once. After that, just check-in and pay.


• We will have plenty of registration staff so registration will go quickly and smoothly. Feel free to ask questions and we will be happy to help.

See you all at the races!
-Jon

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September 27, 2006

Interbike: Day #1

ORbike/Good Sport Promotion team member Tom Knipe is at Interbike in Las Vegas. If you wanted to go to Interbike, the bike industry's largest annual expo, you probably couldn't. The affair is limited to retailers, importer/exporters, paid exhibitor, manufacturers and industry affiliates (Tom's category). Tom estimates that about a quarter of the passengers on his plane were bike people.

Tom says the event is really overwhelming and he's trying to pace himself and ease into it. All of the big name companies are there, but there are also a variety of mom and pop-type companies represented. Everything from super low-end quality products to the top of the line stuff is on display. And those displays are sometimes in the tens of thousands of dollars - for the display alone. Electra bikes has a black wall enclosed display area with security guards out front. So what's inside that needs security? "A display dedicated solely to rear fenders" Tom says. So the security guards? "Just a gimmick, I guess. Or maybe they're really serious about their trade secrets."

Jay Graves, owner of the Bike Gallery is there. He says he loves "seeing how much excitement there within the industry about using bikes as healthy functional modes of transport". He also shared with Tom that as of last night he is no longer the president of the National Bike Dealers Association, the baton has been passed to Bob Updegraff who runs a shop in Kansas.

Highlights of what Ton's seeing include an electric motorized scooter that can go 20 miles an hour and run for three hours on a lithium battery, a four-wheeled "family bike", the Electra "Amsterdam" and people from all over the world - including Taiwan, Australia, England and Italy. In fact, Tom says there is an entire section dedicated to manufacturers and distributors from Taiwan.

Tom is so caught up in the excitement he doesn't really have time to hit the Las Vegas strip for lunch, but it doesn't really matter. He says he's keeping well hydrated and nourished gorging himself on energy drink and nutritional bar product samples.

We'll check back in with Tom tomorrow.

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BTA Open House

Tonight is BTA's open house from 5-7 pm. Read this previous post for all the details.

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September 26, 2006

Interbike: Checking out the Latest and Greatest

With over 1,000 of the top brands showcasing their latest and greatest products, Interbike is the ultimate industry party. There are three packed days of exhibits, product launches, meetings and a celebration of the bicycle at Interbike 2006. Sure, most of you can't or don't want to go, but I best you're eager to get a sneak peek at some of those hot products - that's why we're sending Tom to scope it out. He'll relay to us some of the highlights.

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September 21, 2006

Cyclocross in 1944

What was cyclocross like in 1944? Check out this old French footage to find out. I got the footage tip from Jeremy Burlingame of the Plus One Lap blog. Jeremy's cyclocross blog has been around for about a year, but Jeremy himself is a recent addition to the Portland Cyclocross scene - he just moved to town.

Comments (0) | Posted by orbike at 10:04 AM | Permalink | TrackBack

September 20, 2006

Get Started 'Cross Racing

If you're new to cyclocross, or thinking of doing a little 'cross racing this season, Portland has a wealth of resources to help you get started.

CLINICS :: First off, there are the Wednesday night clinics, a chance to hone your 'cross skills with some of the top local 'crossers and most experienced racers in the Pacific Northwest. The clinics are held at Alpenrose Dairy. Organizer and accomplished racer Erik Tonkin says it's also an opportunity to "socialize with your brethren." There are only two more clinics before the 'cross season starts, and one is tonight.
[ clinic info ]

ONLINE :: For good online advice, the Cross Crusade chat board is filled with experts who are enthusiastic about sharing their knowledge. Check out this post about how to pick a course to ride this season.
[ chat forum ]

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September 19, 2006

Pumpkins Mark Your Way

What a fun ride if pumpkins are what mark your route along the way. The Harvest Century, in its third year, is a celebration of the fall season and an opportunity to ride through the countryside. All routes showcase the beauty of Oregon's harvest season, from the crush at local vineyards, to the crunch of fallen leaves under your tires.

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September 15, 2006

Cycle Oregon - An Amazing Journey

While the rain yesterday morning got me moving into the winter season (I pulled out my rain coat!), I couldn't help but wonder what's going on with the folks on Cycle Oregon. I think this great picture taken by Jonathan Maus sums it up so well. Click for a larger version.

See more photos on BikePortland.org.

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September 14, 2006

Bike Theme Song Sought

The KBOO Bike Show is a monthly program of bicycle news, culture and information that airs on KBOO 90.7 fm. It's a side project of mine (for four years now) and we're looking for a new theme song. Submit your theme song by October 1st.

The winner will have his or her song featured on every single KBOO Bike Show (a monthly program) along with a plug for the musician (optional).

GUIDELINES
- 3-5 minutes in length

- mention bikes in a positive way

- fun but not too cheesy, we're just not a hokey show

- upbeat (mellow just won't work)

- original music preferred

- Portland-related would be awesome

Submit your songs to Ayleen@Riseup.Net by October 1st.

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September 12, 2006

Let's Start Talking 'Cross!

Cyclocross has taken Portland by storm and the 2006 season is just getting started - the chat board is already filling up. This down-and-dirty sport marked with cowbells and mud-covered chain rings is great to race or just to watch. A strong culture has developed around the local cyclocross races (hence the cowbells run as racers fly by) and cyclocross is here to stay. The Cross Crusade 2006 season kicks off on October 1 at the Alpenrose Dairy.

You can hone your 'cross skills with some of the top local 'crossers and most experienced racers in the Pacific Northwest at the Wednesday night clinics. The clinics are held at Alpenrose Dairy. Get measured practice first so you can train properly later. Organizer and accomplished racer Erik Tonkin says it's also an opportunity to, "socialize with your brethren." Each time you show up, your name gets put in the hat for the grand-prize drawing at the last clinic. However, if you pre-register for all four nights, you get your name in the hat not four times but five times. The prizes have yet to be revealed.

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September 11, 2006

The Cycle Oregon Reports

Jonathan Maus is on two wheels with his laptop for the next week - blogging from small towns in Oregon. Jonathan, who founded BikePortland.org, has been invited to ride along on Cycle Oregon and share his experience. BikePortland.org is the world's most popular bike blog. That means thousands of people world wide will be reading about some of Oregon's most unique, beautiful and SMALL towns, like Athena, Sumptner, Union and Heppner.

More than just an overview of the route and towns, Jonathan is spending time with the riders, giving blog readers a glimpse at who rides this seven-day ride and why. It's a relatively diverse group of cyclists out there. Not everyone is is a hard core cyclists (even Jonathan admits he can't remember the last time he rode more than 30 miles in one session) and some riders are dealing with physical limitations. One rider had a leg boot strapped to her rack - the result of an injury sustained while dancing in high heels before Cycle Oregon started - but she was determined to ride anyway. But this has got to be my favorite ride highlight so far:

Marilyn “Tweety” Hayward was a breath of fresh air. She was motoring along on a 22lb. carbon and titanium Bachetta recumbent. We chatted for several miles and when the road tilted just slightly upward I noticed she had trouble talking. It turns out that Marilyn is missing a lung due to cancer. Once she got her breath back and we figured out we had some mutual friends, she motored away, slicing through the wind and leaving me in the dust!

[ read Jonathan's Cycle Oregon reports ]

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September 8, 2006

Ride the Rogue!

The Rogue River Recreational Corridor and Greenway is described as an emerald necklace of parks, public access areas and water trails along the Rogue River linked by bicycle and pedestrian trails from the City of Rogue River, through Gold Hill to Central Point where it will connect to the existing 20 miles of the Bear Creek Greenway that runs from the Central Point to the City of Ashland. The Rogue River Greenway Project is a joint collaboration among the Rogue River Trails Group, the Gold Hill Trails Group, the Cities of Rogue River, Gold Hill and Central Point, Jackson County and numerous State and Federal agencies.

To raise support for the project, an awesome ride called Ride the Rogue has been organized. It's sure to delight with beautiful scenery along three different routes.

This project's completion will link 8 major communities, two Counties (Jackson & Josephine) and create over 50 miles of regional connectivity through Southern Oregon.

This trail concept would begin at the Rogue River Depot Street Bridge, travel through the Valley of the Rogue Park State Park, past the Del Rio Vineyard (the largest in So. Oregon) through Gold Hill and follow the Rogue River into Central Point, linking with the Bear Creek Greenway at Upton Road by the Jackson County Expo

The organizers say "Which ever you choose it will be an event to remember that will bring the community together for some good fun, good exercise, and will benefit a great project that will give our community new opportunities for recreation and boost the local economy."

Comments (0) | Posted by orbike at 7:42 AM | Permalink | TrackBack

September 7, 2006

Health Net Twilight Crit Photos

I can't believe I'm just finally getting around to sharing this. Sorry it took me so long.

Photos of the 2006 Health Net Portland Twilight Crit are now up on the Twilight Crit website's photo gallery. Relive the night - an action-packed downtown bike race. You'll also find some great shots by Jonathan Maus of BikePortland.org here.

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BTA Open House

The Bicycle Transportation Alliance has new digs and they want you to see them. Michelle from the BTA says, "We’re nearly settled into our new (fantastic) office with its (fantastic) local lunch options and the (fantastic) Park Blocks close by for shady walks and naps. So now it’s time to throw a party! Come to our Open House on Weds., Sept. 27 - we’ll have drinks and snacks, newly painted walls to admire and critique, and good bikey company. It’ll be a casual, stop-by-after-work kind of affair. All are welcome!"

The new office is at 1979 SW 5th (just north of the freeway near PSU) from 5-7 pm. I hope that this new spacious office will offer the BTA staff the support they need to continue to do great work advocating for the rights of cyclists in Oregon and SW Washington - if they're not too distracted by those delightful shady walks and naps.

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September 6, 2006

Older Adult Three-Wheeled Bike Program

I just finished spending an hour with Kirsty Hall from the City of Portland talking about their new Older Adult Three-Wheeled Bike Program. The idea is to loan out three-wheeled bikes to older adults and provide them with a training course on off-street paths. Fear of falling off a standard bike is a major barrier to seniors riding bikes. It's not that they don't want to ride, however. One woman shared that she has an extreme passion for wanting to ride a bike, but is nervous that she just might not be able to keep her balance.

The program, a part of the Department of Transportation's Traffic Investigations sector, started yesterday. Workshops are every Tuesday and Thursday. Advance registration is required, though they are free classes and everything is provided - even snacks and water. To reserve a spot or find out more, contact Kirsty at 503.823.7854.

You can listen to a podcast of the interview, which also features Ian Stude from the PSU Bike Co-op, here.

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September 5, 2006

KBOO Bike Show: Seniors on Bikes

In addition to putting together this blog, I also co-host a radio show on bicycle news, views and culture. Tomorrow I'll be speaking with Kirsty Hall from PDOT's Transportation Options Progrm Options recently implemented a new program to help seniors feel more comfortable biking and Kirsty will tell us all about it. We're live on KBOO, 90.7 fm from 9-10 am. You can catch the streaming audio live at KBOO.fm and a podcast after the show at Portland Transport.

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