May Cycling Fun in Long Beach, California

On the first Sunday of each month, the free, Cyclone Coaster ride (slow pace—a celebration of old and unusual bicycles) departs from Portfolio Coffeehouse (Fourth at Junipero) at 10:00 am.

Also, on the last Saturday of each month, the free Velo Caravan ride (slightly faster pace, calling together ‘classic’ bikes and others) departs from the Bicycle Stand bike shop (1824 E. Broadway, one block west of Bixby Park), at 10:00 am.

In addition, the month of May is packed with special events. Click to the right to see events scheduled by Bike Long Beach.

Long Beach is a wonderful city. The bicycle is a fantastic way to get around!

And keep in mind that many cafés and restaurants now offer ‘Bike Saturday’ discounts to customers who show up on bike.

There will be $5,000 in prizes given away during May. Go to BikeLongBeach dot org to register and for more information.

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MichaelB, April 30th 2012 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Featured, advocacy, event, ride

Snaps of Cyclavia Nine-Ten-Eleven

Cyclists Donald and Sarah Moore share snapshots of fellow cyclists taken during the recent CycLAvia. L.A.’s third CycLAvia took place on 9/10/11 (the 9th of October of 2011).

CycLAvia is about celebrating Los Angeles in a non-motorized way. A route of city streets that runs past Los Angeles City Hall is closed to motorized traffic for five hours. Many tens of thousands of cyclists and joggers and walkers enjoy the pleasant quiet of city streets that every other day are noisy and dusty from all the cars, trucks and buses. Don’t miss the next CycLAvia… scheduled for April 12th, 2012.

Thank you Donald and Sarah for sharing the following photos.

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MichaelB, October 17th 2011 | Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Featured, event, ride

Ciclavia in L.A.—Sunday Oct 9

Free open streets for walking and bicycling!

¡Calles abiertas a los peatones y ciclistas! ¡Gratis!

An expanded route of Los Angeles streets will be closed to motorized traffic Sunday, October 9th, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.

The Los Angeles CicLAvia means free, family-friendly cycling, jogging, and strolling through downtown L.A.  (This will be L.A.’s third one!) People from far and wide will be there, including many friends from Long Beach.

CicLAvia is not a race. It’s a fun opportunity to enjoy L.A. on your bicycle or on foot… without the noise and fumes of nearby vehicle traffic!

Click on the map to enlarge it on your screen.

The route T’s at L.A. City Hall. From there you can head west to the Bicycle Kitchen (northwest of MacArthur Park)… and/or east to Hollenbeck Park in Boyle Heights… and/or north to Chinatown… and/or south to the African American Firefighter Museum near the 10 freeway. You can start anywhere along the route. You can head in any direction.

You can stop anywhere you like. There are rest hubs at the four end points and also at MacArthur Park and close to City Hall. You’re sure to come across friends or discover a new, favorite café.

To get to L.A. from Long Beach, it’s easy and inexpensive to board any northbound Blue Line train. The one-way fare (including bicycle) is just $1.50.

For more information, go to www.cicLAvia.org, or contact info@cicLAvia.org.

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MichaelB, October 3rd 2011 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in advocacy, event, ride

May… a great month for cycling in Long Beach

May 11th — If you wish to volunteer as a Course Marshal during the Tour of Long Beach (Saturday morning, May 14th), contact Stacey.Toda@longbeach.gov (or phone 562 570-5027). Orientation for Course Marshals will take place Wednesday, May 11th, at 7:00 pm at CSULB. Proceeds from the Tour of Long Beach benefit Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach.

May 11th — Free, second Wednesdays, 11:00 am-1:00 pm, you are encouraged to take advantage of free Bike Safety Checks at CSULB, courtesy of Jax Bicycles.

May 13th — Free, the Family Fun Fest will take place Friday, 5:00-9:00 pm in the lawn area of the Pike at Rainbow Harbor. This includes live music, cycling stunts, a fixed gear competition, and vendors.

May 14th — Preregistration is required for the Tour of Long Beach (that benefits Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach). Three rides: A 9:00 am, 4-mile family fun ride at Marina Green Park (540 E. Shoreline Drive)… also a 31-mile leisurely circuit around the entire city… also a 61-mile Metric Century.

May 14th — Free, the Finish Line Festival, 9:00 am-4:00 pm. in the Rainbow Harbor area. Children’s activity area, bike safety and education booths, live music, food, and vendors.

May 18th — Free, Traffic Skills 101 at CSULB, Wednesday evening class session, 6:00-8:00 pm. Followed by the free 3-hour Saturday morning on-road training session. Preregistration required. Click EDUCATION at the top of the longbeachcyclists.com page for more information, or click here.

May 19th — Free, Thursday morning Bike-to-Work-Day Pit Stops, one at CSULB, the other at Long Beach City Hall Civic Center Plaza. Refreshments, freebies and bike safety checks.

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MichaelB, May 9th 2011 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Education, event, ride

CicLAvía—City streets closed to motorized traffic

The second Los Angeles CicLAvía took place on April 10th. Click on photos to enlarge them.

During five hours, a 7-mile route running through downtown Los Angeles was closed off to motorized traffic. As reported in the Los Angeles Times, more than 100-thousand cyclists, skaters and joggers enjoyed the free event. Don’t miss the next CicLAvía!

The route ran east or west through downtown L.A.  Cyclists could go either direction and back and forth. The route led through Little Tokyo… across the 4th Street Bridge… as far east as Hollenbeck Park in Boyle Heights. The route also led through an amazing stretch of downtown skyscrapers and intensity… past MacArthur Park… as far west as the Bicycle Kitchen close to Melrose and the 101.

The absence of motorized traffic makes for a delightful city experience; happy chatting and laughter rather than roaring engines and fumes. We saw cyclists of all ages and skill levels. There were numerous cafés along the route, so it was easy to find a perfect place to sit outside for lunch and to soak in the delightful spectacle. Wow!

Along the route, we saw numerous friends from Long Beach, and no doubt missed many more of you who were there as well.

In photos to the right, Bernard of Cyclone Coasters in Long Beach says hello to L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

To the left, hello Scott and Jessica. Hello Stacie. Many friends and new friends.

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MichaelB, April 12th 2011 | Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in event, ride

CicLAvia — Sunday, April 10th

A route of Los Angeles streets will be closed to motorized traffic Sunday, April 10th, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. The Los Angeles CicLAvia means free, family-friendly cycling, jogging, and strolling through downtown L.A.  (This will be L.A.’s second one!) CicLAvia is not a race. It’s a fun opportunity to enjoy L.A. on your bicycle! The route takes you past L.A. City Hall, heading west to the Bicycle Kitchen (northwest of MacArthur Park)… or east to Hollenbeck Park in Boyle Heights. You can start anywhere along the route. You can head in either direction. You can stop anywhere you like. You’re sure to come across friends or discover a new, favorite café.

Many folks from the Long Beach area will head up to L.A. on the Metro Blue Line, timing themselves to arrive in L.A. by about 10:00 am. Click on the map to see route specifics.

For more information, go to www.cicLAvia.org, or contact info@cicLAvia.org.

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MichaelB, April 7th 2011 | Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in event, ride

Bad Idea Ride—Sunday night into Monday morning

First off, this ride is a bad idea. You probably shouldn’t go on it. It will be the middle of the night, and you’ll be useless the next day. There are no buses or trains to save you, and only 7-11s and donut shops to feed on. Only nine riders survived last year. With that being said…

November 21st, meeting at Eleven-Forty Five, just before midnight, is Long Beach Cyclists’ Second Annual (and maybe last) Full Moon Ride. This ride will take us up the San Gabriel River to El Monte, along the Rio Hondo until it meets up with the LA River, and finally back home on Long Beach’s own Beach Path.

It’s 50 miles cycling under a full moon. It’s November. It could be cold and could be rainy. And there are coyotes and vicious owls. If you’re going to ignore my advice and come along on the ride, we recommend having a well-working bicycle. One that doesn’t creak and ache. One that you know how to fix, or one that won’t break. You are responsible for yourself (hey, just like in real life!)

Lights are a must. No lights, no ride. We’ll send you home. Seriously. Helmets are strongly encouraged.

We’ll probably stop at Denny’s when we’re done — if we finish…

Sunday, November 21st @ 11:45PM… until Monday, November 22nd before sunrise
Meet at Belmont Pier
Ride leaves at Midnight

Get there at 12:01 to see our tail lights in the distance.

View Bad Idea in a larger map

Thank you D Dougherty for organizing this great ride!

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MichaelB, November 15th 2010 | Tags: , , , ,
Posted in event, ride

40 Years of BMX

Next month will mark 40 years since the creation of the sport of BMX right here in Long Beach, and there’s a lot of things happening to celebrate this milestone.   The Mayor  is designating November 14th “BMX Day” so you know it’s a big deal.

First, as part of First Fridays in Bixby Knolls on November 5th, there’s  “40 Years of BMX History” at the Bixby Knolls Expo Center (4321 Atlantic Avenue, between Carson and San Antonio), with all sorts of important BMX artifacts, like bikes and banners and jerseys and lots more.  There’s even a showing of  the BMX cult classic “Rad: The Movie.”  Admission to the whole thing is Free!

Then,  November 13th, same place, the History of BMX Expo, featuring many of BMX’s legends in person, a Giant Bicycles-4130 Subway Series Get A Clue Ride, and an Afterparty.

And November 14th there’s a super-sized helping of BMX goodness and competition: Freestyle, Dirt Jumping, Flatland Freestyle, Races… also, a Bike Collector Show, all at Hollywood Sports Park in Bellflower (9030 Somerset, at at Lakewood Blvd).

All the details are at http://40yearsofbmx.com.

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Lee, October 27th 2010 | Tags: ,
Posted in art, event, ride

Marathon running and cycling—Oct 16-17

The annual Long Beach International City Bank Marathon will take place this weekend. A free, one-mile Kids Fun Run will be held 9:00 am Saturday, October 16, at the Aquarium of the Pacific. Then, early Sunday the 17th, a route that starts from and finishes at Shoreline Drive, will be closed off for the Marathon (full, half, and 5 kilometer), and for the 26.2-mile Bike Tour. Registration and fee required to participate in a Sunday event. Even if you won’t run or cycle in the Marathon, you may still enjoy watching as runners and cyclists speed by.

Don’t plan on sleeping in this Sunday! The Bike Tour starts at 6:00 am. The Walkers Marathon starts at 6:15 am. The Wheelchair Division starts at 6:55 am. The Full and Half Marathons will set out in waves every five minutes starting at 7:00 am. And the Run Forrest Run 5-kilometer Marathon will start at 8:30 am.

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MichaelB, October 15th 2010 | Tags: , ,
Posted in event, ride

Cycle from the Promenade with Travis—8am Oct 2

Our Travis is super friendly, a cyclist, a great bike mechanic, and a handsome guy with a lonnnnnnng beard. Saturday morning, 8 am, October 2nd, you can cycle with Travis to the Port Fest. The staging area for all interested people to cycle to the port is the downtown Promenade (Ocean Blvd. near Pine Avenue). Folks on bikes can enjoy a special cycling tour of interesting areas of the Port of Long Beach not usually seen by outsiders—that ride takes place at 8:00 am. People on bicycle who arrive at the Promenade later can nonetheless participate in escorted cycle rides to the Port Fest itself. Long Beach Cyclists will run a table at the Promenade Saturday morning, and will provide free bike valet at Port Fest (south of Queensway Bridge) all day long.

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MichaelB, October 1st 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in ride
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