It’s summer and the weather’s great. Get out on your wheels!

Whether one is young or old or in between, and whether one is in great shape, not in great shape, or somewhere in between… now is the perfect time for a bike ride.

No Exit cartoons are reprinted at longbeachcyclists.com with permission. All Andy Singer / No Exit cartoons are copyright 1992-2010 by Andrew B. Singer. To see more of Andy Singer’s humorous, insightful work, visit www.andysinger.com.

We are very pleased that the entire city council is supportive of bicycle-friendly initiatives. The following three photos feature Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal. We wish everyone would opt to cycle often—especially for local activities.

In the first image, (taken by Diandra Jay of the Press-Telegram, dated June 5, 2009), we see Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal and other cyclists during a ‘First Fridays’ event. Suja rides her orange-colored beach cruiser—a fun bicycle for slow, easy, local riding. A cruiser can be a happy choice for stopping at local cafés… riding along the beach path… going to the library.

In the second image, (taken by GarySe7en, dated April 5, 2009), we again see Suja Lowenthal, this time riding a tricycle. It’s night time and Suja’s trike doesn’t have a headlight. Yikes! Yet if your knees can take it, we see that a child’s trike can be a delightful way to go. Perhaps not the most comfortable or efficient vehicle if you’re heading to the top of Signal Hill.

In the third image, (taken at Jax Bicycles, dated July 6, 2010), we see Suja (and Jax employee Holley Limpach, and LBC president Bernadette McKeever). Suja has selected a new hybrid bicycle—part racer, part urban friendly. Suja’s Trek is relatively lightweight, it has comfortable handlebars, it has upright geometry, and it has plenty of gears. A bicycle of this type feels sprite and nimble. Suja may soon be seen cycling to all corners of Long Beach with her new bike… and, who knows, she may even cycle to the park at the top of Signal Hill.

Might there be yet other types of bicycles in Suja’s future? We’re not going to encourage her to fill ALL the rooms in her house with bicycles… although perhaps this is just the beginning. There are many, many types and models of bicycles out there nowadays, each with its own riding characteristics and personality.

Which types of bicycles do you suppose YOU will be riding in YOUR future?

On the first Friday of every month, 11:00 am – 2:00 pm, many Long Beach cafés and restaurants offer lower prices to customers who show up on a bicycle and dine in. To participate, we are asked to show our helmet or bike lock key.

Click on the thumbnail Lunch Breaks PARTICIPANTS LIST to the right to see the list of the 29 current participants for addresses, web sites and discount particulars.

Lunch Breaks for Cyclists is part of the Car-Free Fridays initiative coordinated by the City of Long Beach (as promoted by BikeLongBeach dot org) in which all people are encouraged to bike to work, one day per month at the very least.

The current list is based on the participants list found at bikelongbeach.org.

There will be pit stops near City Hall, and at CSULB, and on Second Street in Belmont Shore.

We suspect that all three pit stops will be worth visiting… so at this point we’re thinking of calling in ’sick’ so that we have time to stop by at each location. (Click the posters below right for specifics.)

Volunteers from Long Beach Cyclists will be at the Second Street pit stop (in front of Jones Bicycles). Scroll down three articles to read Bernadette’s blurb about what we’ll be doing at the Second Street pit stop.

Be sure to stop by our pit stop to say hello and for your coffee and give-aways, for a free, quick bike tune-up, and to participate in the raffle.

The green sharrow lane along Second Street is plenty wide for wide-load bicycles (such as those with a desk attachment as illustrated here by Andy Singer). And if you ride to work or play on a conventional bicycle, that’s fine, too.

Our friends from CSULB Cyclists and Jax Bicycles and Rideshare will be at the CSULB pit stop… so of course it makes sense to stop there. And the City Hall pit stop places you right downtown, in the center of the action. Call in sick to stop at all three locations? What a dilemma!

Enjoy your cycling Thursday morning.

No Exit cartoons are reprinted at longbeachcyclists.com with permission. All Andy Singer / No Exit cartoons are copyright 1992-2010 by Andrew B. Singer. To see more of Andy Singer’s humorous, insightful work, visit www.andysinger.com.

And May 8th will be a day for cycling races—the Tour of Long Beach—for those who love adrenalin. Click on the photos to get a taste of what’s in store.

Saturday afternoon and evening, downtown Long Beach will be alive with a family-friendly Kids’ Fun Zone, and with push-pull competitions, with Bike Polo, BMX and Flatland demonstrations, bicycle art… and a ‘Cyclestyle’ fashion show.

Long Beach Cyclists volunteers will be downtown to provide free bike valet service. We’ll watch after your bicycle while you stroll among the crowds and celebrate the magic of our Long Beach filled with people who love cycling and healthy living.

Fixed gear cyclists will do tricks, freestyle fun, skid competitions and more. And you might meet Josh, who is organizing the Gold Sprints, which are mad, brief races on stationary bikes where nobody goes anywhere, yet hearts throb to the moon and back! And for gentle fun, some members of the City Council will race down First on tricycles.

May 7th, cycle on down to the East Village.

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!

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.

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.