Mountain Biking: Rubber side down- Time for a TurnaroundWell, my friends, things are finally looking up, and good timing, too, since I’m sure you’re all sick of me bitching. Recent bike build, including wheels… fun! In what feels like a fairly short time, I’ve come from sitting around … Continue reading → […]
- This Raised My PulseHey, baby… wanna ride? I may be injured, but I’m not dead yet. I can still have racy thoughts. Here’s more info. In other news, UBI was an awesome success! I had a blast. I highly recommend it. Overhaul day…. … Continue reading → […]
- Time for a Turnaround
- Edgy Veggie
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Boulder bike-sharing program in the works
Edwin Chan, 50, of Hong Kong, rides a B-cycle he rented in downtown Denver. | Jeremy Papasso/ Camera
I haven’t personally tried B-Cycle down in Denver, but the Earth Day launch of the bike-sharing program had a lot of people in Boulder asking questions like, “Why did Denver beat Boulder to a bike-sharing program?” and “Does Boulder need a bike-sharing program?”
It looks like Boulder bike-sharing might reignite in a few months:
Martha Roskowski, the program manager for GO Boulder, the city’s alternative transportation program, said the city is working with B-cycle and Boulder Bike Sharing to finalize a contract. The bikes, she said, could be available by early spring.
“We are really excited,” she said of the prospect of bringing bike-sharing back to Boulder. “It’s not a done deal until the contract is finalized, but at this point, I am optimistic.”
In the 1990s, the city supported the “green bikes” program, which relied on donations and volunteers to maintain free bikes that were shared throughout the city.
And then there are sentiments like this one:
“I wouldn’t use it, since I already have a bike,” said Joshua Morriston.
Bike theft: Two brothers arrested
Detective Heather Frey poses Wednesday in an evidence locker where stolen bikes are stored at the Boulder Police Department. Police say they think they ve made some key arrests of bike thieves. (Greg Lindstrom / For the Camera)
Nobody wants to have their bike stolen. Especially not if you’ve got a bike worth a lot of money.
Boulder Police suspect two brothers of successfully going on a little spree in town — to the tune of 65 bike thefts.
Detectives said the Odea brothers were different from other bike thieves because they targeted high-end bikes strapped to vehicles in the downtown Boulder area, and they did most of their work during the day in public.
If you’re missing a bike, as I am (though mine was certainly not worth a lot of money), you might do well to check out the Boulder Police Department’s property and evidence list. Hopefully, you’d registered your bike and already reported it stolen. You would have if you’d read my guide to (sigh) living with bike theft.
Maes: Bike-sharing part of a UN conspiracy
Dan Maes
Maes acknowledged that some might find his theories “kooky,” but he said there are valid reasons to be worried.
“At first, I thought, ‘Gosh, public transportation, what’s wrong with that, and what’s wrong with people parking their cars and riding their bikes? And what’s wrong with incentives for green cars?’ But if you do your homework and research, you realize ICLEI is part of a greater strategy to rein in American cities under a United Nations treaty,” Maes said.
He said he’s worried for Denver because “Mayor Hickenlooper is one of the greatest fans of this program.”
“Some would argue this document that mayors have signed is contradictory to our own Constitution,” Maes said.
Meals on (bike) Wheels goes green in Longmont
Jennifer Martinez delivers meals for seniors on a bike | Longmont Times Call
The “wheels” in Meals on Wheels, the national service that delivers hot meals to seniors and the disabled, usually means a car.
But in Longmont — at least in a few cases — the wheels now may mean a bike, thanks to a couple of local women. From this weekend’s Longmont Times Call:
The program marks the first time Meals on Wheels has made deliveries via bike in Longmont, said program coordinator Karla Hale. It also is the first bike-powered program in the state that has been implemented under Meals on Wheels, she said.
“A lot of it has to do with going green and what can we do as a community or an organization to help the environment,” she said. Read more
Denver’s bike-sharing program rocks! (and rolls, too)
Have you checked out the new bike-sharing program in Denver yet? It’s rad… and plus, now there’s no excuse not to ride the bus down to Denver because you can just get off and grab a bike. (OK, well you need five bucks. But, that gets you unlimited rides!)
Cory Madden, left, of Denver and his brother, Conor Madden of Cleveland, ride bicycles from the new Denver Bike Sharing program at Confluence Park on Monday. (John Prieto, The Denver Post )
Denver’s bike-sharing program, called B-Cycle, kicked off on Earth Day. And so far, 16,500 bikes have already been checked out.
Here’s the way it works: You get a membership — either for the day or for the year — and you “check out” a bike. Then you’ve got it for 30 minutes, which, theoretically, should be long enough to get to where you’re going. (These things aren’t made for long road rides, after all.) Then you “dock” the bike at your destination — a coffee shop? cafe? museum? — so someone else can check it out while you’re doing whatever you’re doing. Then, you check out the bike again after to ride back to where you started.
Cool, huh?
Read more about the program at www.denverpost.com.
Bike to work day 2010 in Boulder is June 23
Bikes on a Boulder bike rack| flickr user niehoff
It’s not too late to get into Boulder Walk and Bike to work Month: Bike to Work Day is June 23.
For those who have already pulled their bikes out of winter storage, or never put them away (or maybe you’re even a practitioner of Winter Bike to Work Day), June 23 is just another Wednesday. For everyone else it marks the day the excuses run out. Leave the car in the garage, pump up your tires and get out onto the many bike paths Boulder has to offer.
Bike to Work Day veterans, remember how great last year was?
Just past 6 a.m. on Wednesday, more than 40 Boulder businesses broke out bagels, fruit, organic breakfast bars and hot meals to serve the thousands of people who were participating in this year’s Bike to Work Day.
The annual event was expected to draw more than 35,000 across the state, with more than 6,300 registered to participate in Boulder.
Not a Bike to Work Day veteran? No worries. Whether or not you’re an experienced cyclist on Boulder’s bike paths and main roads, here’s everything needed to help make Boulder’s 34th annual Bike to Work Day the biggest one yet–and how to get as many perks as possible for your hard-earned sweat.
Get started
If you’ve never biked to work mapping the best route can seem a daunting task. Even for experienced riders there is always a need to find the best way to get where you are going. To help with the task GO Boulder has a MapQuest-style Boulder bike route mapping website specifically designed to get you where you need to go, by bike — and Google Maps now has bike path information and streetview for some bike paths in Boulder.
With your route in hand, hit Boulder’s Bike to Work Day 2010 registration.
Why bother registering for Bike to Work Day? Well, GO Boulder is counting on you. Last year 7,132 people registered for Bike to Work Day, according to the Go Boulder Boulder Bike to Work Day 2009 Wrap Up. If you are not registered, you are not being counted–although you are still reducing the number of cars on the road.
No excuses
The bad weather seems to have finally passed–hopefully there won’t be any June snowstorms. A more likely weather deterrent in June is 90 degree heat. Allay your qualms about arriving with a smell by checking out Jenn Fields’ tips on how to bike to work and not stink, including:
Don’t just keep deodorant in your desk drawer — add a washcloth for warmer rides that require the bathroom-sink mini sponge bath. Also, witch hazel sprizted on the washcloth is a helpful de-funkifier. Ladies, do your make up once you get to work. This could apply to men, too. We don’t judge.
To help you make sure your bike is in working order there will be bike repair stations set up around Boulder. A few are listed below.
Boulder Cycle Sport, 4580 Broadway
Great Harvest Bread Company, 2525 Arapahoe, service provided by Performance Bikes
Whole Foods Market, 2905 Pearl, service provided by Bicycle Village
Don’t forget breakfast
June 23 many restaurants and businesses will be offering breakfast stations for participants. Whichever area of town you are coming from, or headed toward, there is an official breakfast station near you. Below are a few places around town that will be participating. For a complete list of participating businesses check the Community Cycles Website.
Half Fast Subs, 1215 13th Street
Moe’s Bagel on Arapahoe, 3075 Arapahoe
Moe’s Broadway Bagel, 2650 Broadway
Ozo Coffee, 5340 Arapahoe
Celestial Seasonings, 4600 Sleepytime Drive
Boulder Chamber of Commerce, 2440 Pearl
Get involved
Events on Bike to Work Day don’t end when you arrive at work. The CU Environmental Center, along with Community Cycles, is hosting the 4th annual Bike Shorts Film Festival at Old Main on CU’s Boulder campus.
Community Cycles and GO Boulder work year round to help more people find ways to make bicycling more convenient and possible for more people in Boulder and Colorado. To help keep Boulder moving check out volunteer opportunities and how to donate an old bike.
Show your Bike to Work Day pride with the official Walk and Bike to Work Month T-shirt.
Now that you’re in the know, see you on the streets!
-Mikaila Altenbern
Cruiser rides and flood information: Springtime in Colorado
Happy June, everybody! Look around — it’s time to think about your “Happy Thursday”-ing and your floodplain. We’ve put together two new resource pages for you — remember those? they’re all down the left side of this page and we take requests!
Today’s news about a washed out dam and Boulder flood advisory got us thinking about the floodplain, so we went ahead and built a resource page with Boulder floodplain maps and information.
And, in happier news, we’re excited about riding our bikes all the time these days and have recently had a few questions about Boulder cruiser rides, so we put together some information on those, too (though we emphasize that you can always organize your own group rides)!
How to protect your bike from thieving scum
Busted padlock | flickr user marckjerland
Well, I returned from a three-day vacation and discovered that one of my two bikes was stolen. Or perhaps magically disappeared. In some ways, this further makes me an official Boulderite. Read more
Bike corrals: on-street bike parking hits San Francisco (and Durango?)
A crowded bike rack | flickr user phlyingpenguin
Recently, my complex doubled the amount of bike parking available on my side of the building. That parking immediately filled up with bikes. My guess is that if they knocked out another car parking spot, yet another 12-24 bikes would materialize and be parked there — bikes that people are currently storing on their balconies or in their kitchens or wherever else.
Think about that as a business. If your business is located somewhere with very limited parking — let’s say, downtown Boulder — would you rather have one car parked outside or 12 bikes? The safe bet is that 12 customers are better than however many fit in that hypothetical car. (Needless to say, you’re making the automobile parking situation just a touch worse by making the switch.)
Maybe that’s why San Francisco is moving ahead with on-street bike parking, according to the Bay Citizen:
Casey Middle School Bike Club gets students fired up about biking
Casey Middle School’s Bike Club participates in a race.
Hey! It’s a guest post from Casey Middle School teacher and Bike Club sponsor Catherine Powers!
Casey Middle School’s Bike Club wrapped up a fantastic 2009-2010 school year with a great showing at the CU Short Track race on May 19, helping to kick off that weekly series. Read more
