The voice of cycling advocacy, education and community… is as powerful and as much as fun as each one of us makes of it. Long Beach Cyclists doesn’t have paid staff to work magic behind the scenes… so YOUR participation can make a huge difference.
We meet this month at Polly’s Gourmet Coffee on Second Street in Belmont Shore. We’ll meet in the patio. Committee updates, events & rides info, and more.
Friends Laura and Russ departed Long Beach at the start of August of 2009 on an open-ended cycling adventure they call “Path Less Pedaled.” One year in, they are still cycling and exploring. Cheers Laura and Russ!
This week, Adventure Cycling dot org offers a clink of the wine glass, (or a ding of its bike bell, if you prefer), in honor of Laura and Russ—Pathlesspedaled dot com. They are being honored as ‘Link of the Week.’
Of course we can easily go directly to Laura and Russ’ website by typing in pathlesspedaled dot com… and of course we can easily go there by clicking on the words Path Less Pedaled in the column to the right. Well, this week—this week only—you can also link to Path Less Pedaled via Adventure Cycling dot org.
We at Long Beach Cyclists do not anticipate Adventure Cycling to feature Long Beach Cyclists dot com as an upcoming ‘link of the week’ anytime soon—even though living in Long Beach is its own kind of adventure.
We are not grumbling. They say that at this point you cannot get on the cover of the District Weekly at any price. Not even Laura and Russ can do that.
Another free outdoor concert produced by Summer and Music—SAM. Plus a beer garden, magicians and more. This time the music is happening on First Street near Linden, starting at 5:00 pm. Long Beach Cyclists provides free bike valet. To see which bands and musicians are performing, click above on the right. At SummerAndMusic.com you can find out more, and see photos of the many SAM concerts.
Imagine an extensive, country-wide network of routes for cyclists. Such a network could identify routes of amazing beauty or interest, for example, and could identify routes that cyclists might prefer over other highways, taking into consideration traffic volume, topography, etc.
Lovers of cycling adventure are pushing for the creation of an extensive, nationwide, numbered route system. Back in 1976, during the Bicentennial, two numbered cycling routes were identified in the eastern U.S. Since then, Adventure Cycling Association has created maps identifying many dozens of suggested cyclist routes around the entire country. Go to its web site to learn about the project underway to fund further development of the U.S. Bicycle Route System.
Friends Laura and Russ lived in Long Beach, California until last August. Since then they have been on the road, on a cycling adventure they call pathlesspedaled.com. They are now in Tennessee. The amazing route Laura and Russ have cycled during the past twelve months does not have a number… yet.
At the same time, the City of Long Beach is implementing its own numbered system of recommended cycling routes. Some of the numbered Long Beach Bikeways will guide us along separated facilities, and others will suggest routes along existing roads that the cyclist may prefer. Much is happening these days—locally, nationally, and in many other parts of the world—as ever increasing numbers of people embrace cycling as a serious transportation option.
During the past year, we see Bikeway signs posted here and there across town.
Each Long Beach Bikeway route is assigned a number. Some signs also have arrows or destination information. How might we make use of these new traffic tools?
Local cyclist Peter Dopulos—no ties to the City of Long Beach nor to Long Beach Cyclists—has been cycling newly posted bikeways. Over time, Peter has been describing what he has observed and felt while cycling the routes he has explored so far. To read his interesting descriptions, full of discovery, see www.everythinglongbeach.com/lb/long-beach-bikeways/.
Peter visited Long Beach Cyclists during a recent monthly meeting to share what he has observed and learned. It was wonderful to hear Peter’s stories and sense his enthusiasm as he explores routes on his bike, without initially knowing where a new route will lead him.
What Long Beach Cyclists knows from our ongoing interactions with City planners and engineers is that many cycling-related projects are being contemplated or sketched out, and some are already being implemented. City staff developed a detailed list of preliminary route options. However, City engineers in turn are making adjustments, based on road widths, traffic flow and other considerations. Someday not too far off it would be good to have in hand an excellent map for cyclists indicating all of the eventual numbered bikeways.
Lacking a map of bikeways already posted no doubt has made Peter Dopulos’ adventure of sniffing out the where to’s all the more fun for him.
What do the numbers say about cycling? About healthy living? About our environment?
The windy road image above is found on the People for Bikes dot org web site. The web site includes links to more interesting statistical information found at Bikes Belong dot org based in Boulder, Colorado. A key idea behind People for Bikes (which is an initiative of Bikes Belong) is to gather the electronic signatures of one million cyclists—which translates into the lobbying power of one million people who love cycling.
Thank you Long Beach Cyclists member Jessica A. for drawing our attention to the sites and the stats.
Sunday morning, cycle over to The Infinite (at 517 Pine Avenue). At 10:00 am, there will be a bike ride from there to the Shakti Shala Yoga Festival (Will J. Reid Scout Camp located at 4747 Daisy Avenue). $10 donation at the gate, proceeds go to The Infinite Yoga Studio. Yoga classes, discussions, live music, healing arts, vendors, and kids’ corner.
Yet another free outdoor concert sponsored by SAM—Summer and Music 2010! This event takes place at the corner of Ocean Blvd. and Lime (one short block west of Alamitos).
Cycle on down, because Long Beach Cyclists provides free bike valet service.
Starting at 5:00 pm both Friday and Saturday, Classical Beats features music that promises “chocolate in my peanut butter” moments. Violin meets hip-hop. Paul Dateh and DJ Inka One.
To see the poster, click on the postage stamp to the right. And for more information about the program, go to www.summerandmusic.com.
Long Beach Cyclists member Scott Casey forwards us a snapshot of his new bicycle made of leftover corks. Although he didn’t make this claim, we are certain that Scott’s new bike floats.
We suggest that Scott try pedaling from Long Beach to Catalina Island… and if that works, then he should consider a longer voyage. The image of the T.S.S. Volendam is included here to inspire him. Perhaps Scott may wish to pedal across the ocean in the surf of a very large ship.
On the other hand, we ask ourselves how is it that Scott accumulated so many corks. (What does he stuff into his bike bag?) Also, we ask ourselves how much air Scott pumps into his corks, because his knees might get wet if the corks are low. And we ask ourselves how Scott’s wheels spin, given that they don’t have real axles.
Scott, happy cycling on your beautiful cork bike!
