Support a Bike-to-Work Day Pit Stop—May 20

Local businesses may wish to have a presence at one of the three Bike-to-Work Day pit stops. Several weeks from now, Thursday morning, May 20th, there will be cyclist pit stops in three locations around town. One pit stop will be set up near City Hall, another pit stop will be located near Jones Bicycles on Second Street, and another pit stop will be set up at CSULB.

Volunteers from Long Beach Cyclists will be at the pit stop on Second Street.

At the tables, we like to have water and other goodies for sharing, and we love to chat with everyone. If you would like to be a pit stop volunteer, or if your business might have something you’d like to donate for handing out at one of the pit stops, let Long Beach Cyclists know. lbcyclists@gmail.com.

During the entire month of May, everyone in Long Beach is encouraged to cycle for healthy living and fun. The May calendar is sprinkled with cycling-related activities of many types. Make sure YOUR bike has air in the tires and its brakes are adjusted. This month, LOTS of people will be out on the streets of Long Beach enjoying a bike ride. Join us!

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LBCyclists, April 29th 2010 | Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in event

Metrolink to the Desert

Our hats and sunglasses off to Allan and friends who participated in the recent Metrolink to the Desert ride! We’re talking the Burro Schmidt Tunnel Camping Trip.

Allan, Thaddeus and Gabriel love city cycling… yet they also love a larger-than-life camping adventure. You will want to click on these photos, and check out more great photos of their recent weekend cycling trip in the Mojave Desert.

They traveled by Metro light rail and Metrolink train to get out of the L.A. area. That was perhaps the only easy part of the journey. They headed out to the Burro Schmidt Tunnel, and met the caretaker at Bickel Camp. They pushed their bicycles through sand when the dirt roads became sandy roads. They enjoyed some tail winds, and they laughed through some head winds as well. A comfy campfire at night.

While the cycling and road conditions were challenging, they had a GREAT time. We know this, because Allan is already planning his next cycling adventure. Allan calls his next great ride the Ridge Route.

On our bicycles, we feel at home everywhere… in the bustle of downtown Long Beach… also along quiet residential streets… and also out in faraway places where few folks wander… where the silence is stunning. The bicycle! What a great invention!

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LBCyclists, April 28th 2010 | Tags: , , ,
Posted in Featured, ride

Pedestrian and Bike Safety Workshop for professionals

Attention transportation, planning, engineering and design professionals, (and others interested in gaining an insiders view of the latest bicycle and pedestrian design tools): Register before May 3rd for the MAY 17th training workshop called Designing for Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety.

Click on the image for details.

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LBCyclists, April 27th 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Education, advocacy

L.A. Street Summit builds momentum for change

Livable cities! Cities for people! Streets and community spaces for pedestrians and cyclists!

Long Beach, California is embracing cycling and pedestrian life more now than anytime in recent decades. The month of May 2010 is one filled with numerous cycling-related activities—City-sponsored activities on one hand, and the initiatives and rides of numerous cycling clubs and organizations and individuals on the other. The Long Beach Bike Fest—with races, artists, fixed gear and gold sprints fun, bike valet, easy rides, a film festival and more—will take place May 7th, 8th and 9th. Bike-to-Work Week will take place the third week of May. Other rides and cycling fun take place almost every other day throughout the entire month.

Make sure your bike tires are inflated, your chain is oiled and your brakes are properly adjusted because there will be many great reasons to get out on your bicycle this spring. Click EVENTS at the top of the longbeachcyclists.com page to see just some of the fun coming up. 

We all can see that cycling is catching on in Long Beach… and we know that what’s happening is part of something even larger. People in many cities across the U.S. and in other countries around the world are talking bicycles as a significant component of making our communities more livable.

Recently, more than 500 people from around Southern California met up at Occidental College and at Los Angeles Trade Technical College to talk about making more of the southland great for “walking, biking and beyond.”

To get a sense of the positive energy seen at the recent L.A. Street Summit, (held March 20th, 2010 in Los Angeles), check out the streetfilms.org video produced by Clarence Eckerson. Long Beach was present as well; many of us boarded our bicycles aboard the Metro Blue Line to make the trip to Los Angeles easy and fun.

www.streetfilms.org/l-a-street-summit-2010-building-momentum-for-change/

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LBCyclists, April 27th 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in advocacy

Andy Singer’s No Exit — Bicycles of Famous Artists

Andy Singer is a Minnesota-based artist who loves bicycles. Singer draws a self-syndicated cartoon called No Exit that celebrates cycling life, and that finds interesting things to say about other aspects of life as well.

Singer’s cartoons are published in dozens of newspapers, including James Preston Allen’s amazing Random Lengths (published in San Pedro).

We contacted Andy, and he gave Long Beach Cyclists permission to reprint his great cartoons on our web page. We’ll feature cartoons of his on this page from time to time.

Thank you Andy!

To see more of Andy Singer’s humorous, insightful work, visit www.andysinger.com.

All Andy Singer / No Exit cartoons are copyright 1992-2010 by Andrew B. Singer.

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LBCyclists, April 26th 2010 | Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Featured

Cycling in Long Beach, in the LA Times

Check out the recent “Long Beach makes way for bicycles” article by Tony Barboza, published in the Los Angeles Times. You can link to the article here:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-outthere26-2010jan26,0,3205517.story

Much has taken place since the article was published. And we know that many cycling events and activities during May 2010 will place Long Beach on the front page again.

If your bike’s tires need air and if your chain needs oil, NOW is a perfect week to get your bicycle into shape. The May 2010 calendar is sprinkled with lots to do, so you’ll want to have your bike in good shape so you can join us.

Barboza’s article can provide you with an overview of some cycling-friendly initiatives in the works. We already have Sharrows (the green lane) along Belmont Shore, and we have trial Bicycle Boxes. A Bicycle Box gives the cyclist at an intersection a designated place in front of motorists to wait until the signal light turns green. 

Barboza also mentions plans for protected bikeways, traffic circles on less-traveled streets, and talk of creating ‘bike corrals’ to favor convenient bike parking near certain shops and restaurants. Barboza quotes Charlie Gandy: “We can fit 15 customers where we used to fit one.” That is, 15 parked bicycles occupy the same amount of space as one car. The idea is that ‘bike corrals’ can help ease parking congestion by encouraging larger numbers of local people to drive a bicycle rather than a motor vehicle. 

Barboza also quotes experienced cyclists, motorists, and other City representatives. And he quotes Jennifer Klausner of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy group that is something like Long Beach Cyclists’ regional cousin. Klausner says that Long Beach is looking for ways to make east-west and north-south corridors safer and more inviting for cyclists. Klausner suggests that Long Beach is ahead of Los Angeles in that respect.

Barboza reports that Long Beach has raised $17 million in grants that will be translated into traffic improvements, bike share programs, and education.

Although Barboza’s article does not mention Long Beach Cyclists, we’d like to toot our horn here by mentioning that LCI instructors offer Traffic Skills courses for cyclists. Click EDUCATION at the top of the longbeachcyclists.com web page to see the schedule of upcoming sessions and to link to the online registration process. It’s springtime, 2010. Be sure your bicycle is in shape, and be sure to take Traffic Skills 101 so that you can improve your skills cycling safely and legally on city streets.

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LBCyclists, April 26th 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Current News, Education, Featured, advocacy

FMR—Farmers Market Ride, Sun Apr 25

“Oh my gosh!  There’s that silly bicycle again!”

                    ”Yes, once again it’s time for the FMR.”

“The FMR. The second and fourth Sundays.”

                    ”Yep! A fun ride and great fresh fruit and vegetables!”

“I already know the drill. I’m supposed to click on the stamp at the right, right?”

                    ”You betcha. Click on the postage stamp, and see you Sunday.

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LBCyclists, April 24th 2010 | Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in ride

City Council approves cycle-friendly projects

Soon we will be able to drive our bicycles through the heart of downtown Long Beach along separated lanes. Also, an east-west residential street will be improved for traffic calming, to become our first ‘bike boulevard.’

On April 20th, during its regular meeting, City Council approved construction of two street improvement projects that are part of larger efforts underway to make Long Beach a great city for travel by bicycle. City Council approved construction of separated bike lanes downtown along 3rd Street and along Broadway. And it approved the ’bike boulevard’ project along Vista Street, which will improve neighborhood calm and provide a new, quiet, safe, east-west cycling route. The Vista project will serve as a model; other neighborhoods can view it and may wish to then convert one of their own streets into a ‘bike boulevard.’

Long Beach Cyclists was present at the meeting. More than a dozen LBC members sat in the City Hall chamber, and prior to the council vote, member Chris Quint spoke at the podium on our behalf. Quint thanked the many individuals who are helping to improve the livability of our city, including Sumire Gant of Public Works. Quint pledged our support to help City planners and engineers address minor concerns so that these projects be as well designed as possible.

Having learned how to travel all roads in our city safely and legally, experienced vehicular cyclists are generally not intimidated by motorized traffic. On the other hand, cyclists who are less comfortable driving near motorized traffic will especially love the approved projects. New lanes in the downtown area will be built that are physically separated from motorized vehicles, and traffic calming features will be created along a street in Belmont Heights.

A great BIG ‘thank you’ goes out to the following Long Beach Cyclists who were present at the April 20, 2010 Long Beach City Council meeting: Bernadette McKeever (president of the LBC board), also Travis, Chris, Donald, Tom, Lee, Amanda, Allan, Scott, Jessica, Josh, Cal and Michael.

Click above right to read the two City Council motions as recorded in the draft of the meeting minutes. To watch a video of the entire board meeting, click on the link below. Look for April 20, 2010 City Council meeting. Chris Quint started speaking 3 hours, 5 minutes and 35 seconds into the meeting… so you may wish to fast forward:

http://longbeach.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=12

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LBCyclists, April 22nd 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Current News, advocacy, meeting

Inspiration from Tehran

There are so many directions a bike advocate can take in his or her journey.  This image from Bikejuju, titled “Tehran Bike Mechanic” inspired me and led my thoughts in a new direction today; I wanted to share.

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bmckeever, April 21st 2010 | Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Featured, advocacy

Andy and Gandy in Long Beach

Drew Reed’s report about Andy Clarke’s recent visit to Long Beach, California is now on line. Clarke is the Executive Director of the League of American Bicyclists—the national cycling advocacy and education organization based in Washington, D.C. Reed’s report and photos are now posted at LA.StreetsBlog.org.

On April 16th, many local cyclists and interested citizens, including numerous members of Long Beach Cyclists, met and cycled with Long Beach Mobility Coordinator Charles Gandy and Andy Clarke. In the morning, we were even accompanied by Jeff Mapes, the author of Pedaling Revolution. Throughout the day, we cycled along many Long Beach streets, contemplated traffic infrastructure improvements, and enjoyed local cycling life.

In addition to checking out Reed’s report, be sure to also watch Clarence Eckerson Jr.’s wonderful video, “Long Beach Shifts Cycling in to High Gear.“

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LBCyclists, April 21st 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in advocacy, event
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