bic control:

TACOCAT Alley Cat Race & Benefit Tonite!

2011-12-09T10:28:00.000-08:00

TacoCat Alley Cat Race Tonite! This is a benefit for Bikes Del Pueblo. Come support this great collective who for years have given up their Saturdays to repair peoples' bikes in City Heights for free.

Plus prizes donated by Mission Hills and Thomas Bike Shop.

Direct Action

2011-11-30T22:47:00.000-08:00

Black Friday style:

Anonymous source.

BLACK FRIDAY RIDES

2011-11-24T17:03:00.000-08:00

back and in effect!:

Bunny Hops For Breast Cancer is Back This Saturday!

2011-10-26T09:16:00.000-07:00

This Thursday @ MOPA: Bicycle Film Fest is Back!

2011-10-18T23:22:00.000-07:00

Sounds like good times. More info. See you there.

RIP Eric LaRose, Electric Warriors

2011-10-17T23:48:00.000-07:00

One of SD's key bike boosters and one of my friends, Eric LaRose, tragically passed away last month after having a seizure. Eric started a bike crew called Electric Warriors in late 2006 which, with the help of the Cretins, Kutters, and kids from the early years of Critical Mass, put on some of the most killer rides in SD.

I remember the first time I ever heard of the Electric Warriors was from reading about their first planned ride which was advertised via a poster at Kung Food (also RIP'd). The name and logo was a reference to the great T.Rex album.

But what I dug the most was someone taking the initiative to start something new in SD involving mobilizing people for fun on bikes.

The mission statement for EW was perfect:

The Electric Warriors is a night to escape the confines of cars, it is a night to behold our city, to savor the air in our face, to feel the ground beneath our wheels, to know that there is something more to San Diego than tourist attractions and over priced condos. The Electric Warriors is a group for friends, to make friends, to be with friends. The Electric Warriors is for everyone who knows San Diego is much more beautiful on a bike, it is for everyone who wants to unite and spend one night laughing, being boisterous and jovial, connecting, and most importantly feeling something other than the daily dredge of life. The Electric Warriors is a movement to take back the streets, if not just for one night, at least forever in our memories.

The Electric warriors is a group designed to bring together all of San Diego bike people under the common goal of fun. Many of you have ridden with other groups, many of you have not. This group is for the sole purpose of friendship, to motivate others to bike more often, and of course to have fun. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend the monthly bike rides.

EW's broad appeal, combined with underground appeal of Cretins and Kutters, made the collabo rides super fun and increasingly popular.

In January of '07, the Cops & Robbers ride was the first known "unpermitted" ride in the mid city area to break over 200 people. Back then that was huge.

Eric was always down to get into some fun adventures and was a great person to have as a friend and as a community member. He will be missed.

(Eric (far right) with Ken and Jodi, circa 2006. Damn, that was a whole other era).

(Hung on Eric's bike at his tribute memorial).

RIP buddy.

Rollin Deep: Kendrick Lamar

2011-08-29T23:54:00.000-07:00

Damn, this track is fire. Roll deep. Quit fuckin around.

Cretins' LORD OF THE FLIES Ride, Sunday, Sept. 4!

2011-08-27T13:40:00.000-07:00

The Cretins' LORD OF THE FLIES Ride is back!

Street Justice & Grrrl Power: Sisters Take Down Hit-And-Run-Driver

2011-08-26T18:42:00.000-07:00

If you've ever been the victim of a hit-and-run, then I'm sure you'll agree that we need more badass, altruistic people like this in society. Damn, wish I could have been there to witness this!:

Wrestling Sisters Take Down Hit-And-Run Suspect In Oklahoma

An alleged hit-and-run driver proved to be no match for a pair of wrestling sisters who used their grappling skills to score a roadside takedown.

Brittany and Brienna Delgado, members of the Oklahoma City University wrestling team, then held the suspect with wrestling techniques until police arrived.

"My sister and I are very proficient wrestlers and also played football in high school, so we know about tackling," Brittany Delgado (right) told The Oklahoman.

The sisters were driving with their grandmother Saturday night when there was a collision with another car. The other driver got out of his car and started running away. Both Delgados pursued him with Brienna in the lead.

"When I was chasing him I was still yelling, 'You need to come back,'" Brienna told The Oklahoman. “I wasn't wearing the proper footwear. I got a little road rash when I tackled him."

ThePostGame brings you the most interesting sports stories on the web.

Brienna said the man had his hands beneath him when she tackled him. Then, in case he had a weapon, she concentrated on securing his hands and brought them behind his back with a wrestling move (hammerlock or chicken wing, depending on your terminology or interpretation).

"If Brienna wouldn't have tackled him, I'm pretty sure he would have gotten away," Brittany told The Oklahoman.

The sisters are originally from South Carolina. Brittany, a senior, began wrestling when she was 3 and is a two-time national champion in the Women's College Wrestling Association. Brienna will be a freshman this year.

"They're typical young women wrestlers," Oklahoma City coach Archie Randall told The Oklahoman.

"They're very aggressive and determined with what they're going to do."

He also said the Delgados are shooting for the Olympics, which introduced women's wrestling as an official sport in 2004.

http://www.thepostgame.com/features/201108/wrestling-sisters-take-down-hit-and-run-suspect

Comic Con Hangover Mountain Bike Ride

2011-07-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

If you wake up from your Comic Con hangover in time, join us tomorrow on the Punk Rock MTB Ride field trip to Sweetwater Reservoir!

We'll be visiting one of the oldest train bridges in the region and will be joined by a special guest who is bike touring across the world.

See you tomorrow at Rebecca's (30th & Juniper) at 1pm for the carpool there.

In the meantime, I'm about to head to San Diego Comic Con which is going down this weekend. See you all at the Storm Trooper dance party tonite.

RIP ATIP: Three Year Anniversary of Our Friend's Death

2011-07-19T22:45:00.000-07:00

It's been three years since our friend Atip Ouypron was struck and killed by a motorist in the middle of the deadly University Avenue and Park Blvd intersection between the Hillcrest and North Park neighborhood. We still miss you. RIP.

More info for those who weren't fortunate enough to know Atip.

Matt Spencer, Congo, Matt Lingo Get Down at Home Ave

2011-07-18T23:26:00.000-07:00

I was thinking the same thing as Prolly--It's been awhile since I've seen work by SD's Matt Lingo. He most certainly hasn't stopped. Quite the opposite. He's one of the busiest dudes I know. But when I run into him around town he's always in the same good mood, regardless. Him , Congo, and Matt Spencer got busy at one of SD's sickest underworld spots--Home Ave:

The hill is alive. Spencer in control.

Just picked up that same Kenda tire for my mtb whip.

New Leaders are lookin' fresh.

Stay punk.

Wolfpack Hustle to Race a Jet from Burbank to Long Beach

2011-07-16T12:14:00.000-07:00

This is amazing. Big ups to Wolfpack. Great idea. P.S. Every day in Southern California is Carmageddon...:

Carmageddon: Bicyclists challenge JetBlue to crosstown race [Updated]

Can bicyclists beat JetBlue from Burbank to Long Beach on "Carmageddon" weekend?

A couple of bloggers have laid down that challenge to a bicycle group after learning JetBlue was offering $4 one-way plane tickets Saturday for the crosstown trip.

The cycle group known as Wolfpack Hustle will do the honors for the wheels against a JetBlue passenger plane. The cyclists are slated to take off at 10:50 a.m. Saturday from a home in Burbank.

Bicycle blogger Joe Anthony will take the 12:20 p.m. JetBlue flight from Burbank to Long Beach. The flight is scheduled to arrive in Long Beach at 1:05 pm.

Anthony is expected to make the finish line about 15 to 20 minutes later at the Long Beach Aquarium.

[Updated at 11 a.m.: “You have to remember, the passenger has to come from his house to the airport and then get from the plane to the Long Beach Aquarium," said a rider known as Roadblock from the Wolfpack Hustle. “Right now on Twitter, people think we can win. We beat a car down there a couple of weeks ago. That was from Silver Lake to Long Beach.”]

What began as a bunch of jokes on Twitter about bikers being able to beat JetBlue between bloggers Tom Vanderbilt @tomvanderbilt and Gary Kavanagh @GaryRidesBikes has evolved into a real-world race.

Roadblock says five riders will take up the Bike vs. Flight challenge.

Organizers say all participants must obey traffic laws, including the person driving Anthony to the airport.

The start of the race is timed so Anthony can arrive at the airport about one hour before takeoff.

That may be just enough time to give Wolfpack Hustle a sporting chance.

RELATED:

Full Carmageddon coverage

LAPD says no to parties, bike rides on 405

Carmageddon: Taiwanese animators poke fun at L.A.

-- Richard Winton

LA Times, July 15: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/07/carmageddon-bicyclists-challenge-jetblue-to-crosstown-race.html#more

Tonite! Three Awesome Full Moon Rides

2011-07-15T15:21:00.000-07:00

So amped on tonite! Back-to-back-to-back rides starting with...

A little crew will be heading out earlier from the Sheldon Brown BBQ to catch the Punk Rock Mountain Bike Ride meeting at 7:30pm. The PRMTB ride tonite will be a going away ride for Mike Valenzuela whose heading on a bike tour this Monday:

Come say peace out to our boi!

Then we'll all be converging at 10pm for the Awarewolfs ride:

It's a super nice day out in SD, and it's gonna be an even better nite! Can't wait!

Punk Rock Mountain Bike Ride Photo Story Time

2011-07-11T00:15:00.001-07:00

Storytime:

The Punk Rock MTB Rides have still been ruling my life.

So stoked on my mountain bike right now. Just got back from an urban MTB sesh around my neighborhood while listening to Nick Cave. Got all hyped after reading Wrahw following yesterday's killer trip in-through-and-out Chula Vista's hidden trail system that is literally w/in the gaps of its neighborhood.

Here's a mini collection of the last 6 rides:

Field trip to Esco on June 5 (this ride was originally supposed to be on May 29 but we pushed it back one week for super fun Cretins BBQ/Dodgeball Tourney/Ride the week prior):

All the signs of a perfect host. Thanks, Brian, for showing us around Esco.

Ryan was jammin' down the first trail and nailed this gap w/o any prior inspection. I was right behind him to witness. On our way back the starting point he inspected it and was shocked he cleared this thing right off the bat. He started getting second thoughts about doing it again. But he ended up doing it after watching Jack and Andy (probably the two most advanced regulars on the ride) clear it, so I was able to score this blurry photo of it.

Monster mash.

Jack gettin' droppy.

After the Esco ride we decided to change the scheduling of the ride so that we do two field trips to every local ride.

To maintain our original commitment of "Every other Sunday since Jan. 9th" we picked right back up on June 12. The mission was a field trip to Rancho Penasquitos. My favorite style of trail--Fast and cavernous:

Jason picked up this sick steel Bontrager w/ early 2000s XTR, etc. Beautiful whip. He got it to partake in these rides. And what could be a better introduction than his home town canyon?

All about trails w/ rivers runnin' through. Rivers w/ dogs runnin' through is extra credit.

Andy is probably the gnarliest regular. He was a part of the old school Virginia-based MTB crew "Team Hugh Jass" who I used to read about in mags in high school. Good dude who knows tons of great spots in SD and keeps the rides posi-core and funny.

Disseminatin' propaganda on the regs.

Full Moon Ride to The Sewers on June 15: This ride was exactly what the PRMTBRides are supposed to be about. Got so underground, we got physically lost. I love that feeling. It's so rare.

Local Ride, July 3: No Photos. Heard the crew started out w/ some local trails then felt like riding Mission Trails, so they just did both. Hah.

Chula, July 10:

This was the first time we've gone back to the same destination on a field trip. Shows you how many places to ride in SD there are. There are actually tons more that we haven't hit up. We were just in the mood for some South Bay singletrack. We did the same loop but added Four Palms (a trail I had the honor of helping to build w/ the Hoser crew in 2000-ish) and Pablo's Chute (below), which is a super fast tunnel drop that's a bit more gnarly than the pic represents:

'Zoni in the zone.

Finally, this what happens when you try to bail off a four foot high teeter totter half way through:

The end.

Next ride is the Full Moon Ride this Friday, July 15. Meets at 7:30pm at Rebecca's. We are converging w/ two other rides at some point that nite. Look out for the next blog post w/ details. Gonna be a good nite.

Paper Rad Collective in town this Wednesday

2011-07-04T23:18:00.000-07:00

My buddies Extreme Animals from the Paper Rad Collective are in town playing The Che Wednesday nite! Nothing will be in control!

Their new video is getting me amped:

Flier:

Rage:

Extra credit to those OG SD heads who remember this Extreme Animals-affiliated rager from '0-fucking-6:

America Day

2011-07-04T22:20:00.001-07:00

Happy America Day.

Super nice weather in SD today. Lots of bikes out. Even more U.S. flags. Wished half of the time weren't on Old Navy t-shirts.

America Day is a good time to think about the country and its history. I've been nerding out on the history of U.S. Presidents lately, irrespective of America Day today, and I recently came up on this brutal 1834 cartoon of Kentucky Senator Henry Clay sewing President Andrew Jackson's mouth:

Jackson was censured by the U.S. Senate for abuse of presidential power. He made certain enemies in his fight against the Bank Of The U.S., as depicted here:

As someone whose had a strong interest in Freedom of Speech and the limits thereof in this country and beyond, what I do know is this:

There are generally two ways for someone to get censored and censured like this: Ironically, either their mic control is really whack or their mic control is on-hit... To determine that depends entirely on who you ask...

Major Taylor Book Discussion at Malcolm X Library Tomorrow

2011-06-21T21:56:00.000-07:00

A new book on 1899 world champion track racer Major Taylor will be discussed by it's author tomorrow (6/22) evening at the fabulous Malcolm X Library in South East San Diego.

The new book by Jim Fitzpatrick is titled "Major Taylor in Australia" which is where the Major relocated his career to, due to the intense bigotry and threats he faced by white racists in America.

This event is sponsored by the Major Taylor Cycling Club of San Diego and the Malcolm X Library (5148 Market St., San Diego). Be sure not to miss this. And as one of my favorite bumper stickers ever says, "Read A Fucking Book."...So why not this one? Support a library while you're at it.

National Dump The Pump Day Tomorrow

2011-06-15T17:52:00.000-07:00

The 6th Annual National Dump The Pump Day is tomorrow, June 16. Do your part and snub the elites who want to maintain our oil and automobile dependency by riding your bike to work instead. Support yourself and/or your local bike shop (or bike kitchen) instead.

Dump The Pump Day was started by the American Public Transportation Association. More info here.

I realize that this Dump The Pump logo is from 2009, but I like the subtitle message of the 2009 version more than the 2011 version.

A-Wolfs Mission Bay Full Moon Ride Tonite

2011-06-15T17:51:00.001-07:00

Tunnel Week! Tmrw: PQ Tunnels. Wednesday: The Sewers

2011-06-11T16:39:00.000-07:00

Whether you know it or not, this is Tunnel Week!

Tomorrow the Punk Rock MTB Ride is field trippin' to the Rancho Penasquitos Tunnels! Meet at 1pm, 30th & Juniper.

Then this Wednesday nite we're doing the first Punk Rock MTB Full Moon Ride! We will be heading down to The Sewers. Meet at 30th & Juniper at 7:30pm this Wednesday, June 15. (Last month got rained out).

We're takin' back the underground! It'll be almost as cool as this Swampy and Japanther collabo which we encountered in The Sewers last time we went:

Also, the PRMTBRides will now include more field trips as opposed to half field trips and half local rides. So we will do two field trips in a row and then local and two field trips, etc., like this:

Latest ride (was pushed back one week due to Cretins event): Field trip to Esco

June 12: Field trip to PQ

June 26: Local

July 10: Field trip to Noble

July 24: Field trip, destination unknown at this point.

August 7: Local

And in addition to those rides, every full moon will meet at Rebecca's Coffeeshop (30th & Juniper) at 7:30pm

PRMTBride tomorrow! Field Trip To Escondido!

2011-06-04T16:43:00.000-07:00

Back in effect!

Meet at 1pm at Rebecca's Coffeeshop (30th & Juniper) tomorrow, Sunday, June 4 for a Punk Rock Mountain Bike Ride field trip up to Escondido. We will be converging w/ another crew in Esco who will show us around. Don't miss it cuz the weather is perfect and it's gonna rule!

CRETINS Summer Kick-Off BBQ, Dodgeball, Mini-Ride

2011-05-27T02:31:00.000-07:00

First full-on Cretins event of the year! Summer Kick-Off BBQ/Dodgeball/Rager sesh!

Bring yummy thangs to BBQ. Takin' back Sunday Funday for the homies. It's gonna be a good summer...

Note: The Punk Rock MTB Ride has been postponed one week to Sunday, June 5 in order not to conflict w/ this fun, special event.

May Critical Mass Tonite at 7pm: An Opportunity to Promote Cycling

2011-05-27T02:17:00.000-07:00

SDCM is tonite! Meets at 7pm, The Fountain. Take advantage of the visibility by promoting bicycling and encouraging others to join. It's important to assert your right to the road. But avoid unnecessary non-self-defense-related overt aggression. If you think riding CM means you can act like a dick, start your own ride. If that's how you roll, we challenge you to try starting your own monthly ride.

Veteran San Diego Critical Mass riders have been promoting CM since there were 20-30 people 6 years ago and helped it grow year after year (from 35 people in late '05 to 1,200 in early '08) by keeping the ride posi-core, community-oriented, ensconced in punk rock solidarity principles, and riding consciously while providing constructive communication and fun, upbeat energy. Keep that alive. Don't let it die because a small minority of people want to exploit the Mass for their own selfish endeavors like riding on the freeway. If you like to ride on the freeway do it on your own ride. Or, if you're serious about opening up freeways for bicycling, send us an email ( biccontrol[at]gmail ) and we'll put you in touch w/ some California bike advocates who share your interest. Otherwise, please stay off the freeway, especially the Coronado Bridge. It will only bring unnecessary heat to the ride, that veteran riders worked hard to build-up. Why do the freeway advocates generally tend to be beginners new to the ride who have no local bike advocacy history of how it got the way it did?

Use CM to leverage change! Use it to promote cycling and attract new riders! Have fun, communicate, and keep that shit posi!

New Sharrows, Bike Lanes Continue to Pop Up Around Town

2011-05-27T01:57:00.000-07:00

If you've been riding in the City of SD the last couple months you've probably noticed the couple dozen or so sharrows that have popped-up all over Mid City (i.e. North Park, Kensington, University Heights, City Heights) which go as far west as Point Loma area and as far south east as, well, South East SD.

A new bike lane was been created on Park Blvd.

The changes are fantastic. We owe the relatively new City of San Diego Bike Coordinator for being a champion for bike facilities that San Diego needed long ago.

While cyclists report new sharrows w/ excitement, some average San Diegans are dumbfounded--as evidenced by some of the comments appearing on the handful of articles written on the new sharrows:

The Voice of San Diego did a nice article here.

The Reader wrote a fair piece here.

Finally, Aaron did a solid job for Bike San Diego (below):

Sharrows in the Lane

Posted By Aaron Garland on May 11, 2011

There is a buzz in the San Diego bike community. It is bike month and everyone is talking about the new “Sharrows” that are popping up around the city. If you don’t already know, Sharrows are street markings that depict a bicycle below two chevrons. The purpose of the sharrow is to bring awareness to car drivers that bicycles have a right to the road and to educate bicycle riders on proper lane positioning and direction.

San Diego's Sharrow Placers, Rose Chavez and Laura Avila. Photo by Aaron Garland

This is a new thing for many of us in San Diego, but it is legitimate and has been approved nationally. In 2004, California was the first state to adopted the Sharrow as an official road marking. Many other states followed and in 2009 it was officially included in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices by the Federal Highway Administration.

Sharrows help remind cyclists to stay clear of the opening doors of parked cars (door zone), and to ride in the center of the lane when it is unsafe for other vehicles to pass (take the lane). They also remind everyone that cyclists have the same right to the road as drivers of motor vehicles.

Last Friday, I was fortunate to meet Rose Chavez and Laura Avila who work for the City of San Diego’s Streets Division. These ladies are the workers in the field laying down the thermoplastic sharrows. They came direct with orders from Jim Lundquist, the city’s Bicycle Coordinator. I was impressed by the enthusiasm and pride that Rose and Laura took in their work. They admitted that there was a little bit of a learning curve with setting down these new to San Diego road markings. They explained that they had orders to place Sharrows 3 feet from the road edge in areas without street parking, 11 feet from the edge of the street in areas with parallel parking, and that there was at least one sharrow they would have to remove and replace in order to have proper road placement of all the Sharrows. They also chimed in that they were not on the pot-hole crew, so unfortunately they couldn’t personally help me out with this obvious cycling hazard that seems to plague most of San Diego. I hope the pot-hole crew has workers as dedicated as Rose and Laura. It made me feel good to meet Rose and Laura, because it was apparent that in their jobs with the City of San Diego they strive to improve road conditions for everyone, and that they are conscientious and concerned with the needs of vulnerable road users.

More new Sharrows on Terrace Drive by Adams Avenue.

Keep an eye out for Rose and Laura, as they along with Jim and others in the city that help improve road conditions deserve our thanks and praise, as well as feedback on our needs as road users.

Best Bike Article of 2011 Published in LA Business Journal

2011-05-15T16:41:00.001-07:00

Don't judge this article by it's title--The following opinion piece is the single best bike article written in 2011. It's a fantastic tool for dismantling the ignorance that creates hostile socio-political climates for bicyclists. Unfortunately, the type of thinking criticized below hurts us all:

Getting in Gear on Bikes

OP-ED: Arguments against sharing the road with cyclists should no longer be driving the discussion. By RICHARD RISEMBERG Monday, May 9, 2011

With close to 150,000 Angelenos basking in the afterglow of bicycle fest CicLAvia, it is easy to forget that all too many other Angelenos are assiduously sharpening their tongues to continue the vicious spite campaign against any support whatsoever of practical cycling.

A cursory exploration of blogs and newspaper article comment sections clearly shows this. The ubiquitous Mr. Anonymous is ever ready to drop his cluster bombs of accusations, slurs and imaginary factoids in a relentless campaign to prevent even the most minor cession of a smidgen of road space to cycling in a city whose roads are choked, not by bicyclists, but by drivers.

Yet more and more middle-class Americans are taking to bicycles for transportation. They are tired of having their lives dominated by their cars, and since 40 percent of trips made in this country are less than two miles, why not make sense once in a while?

So, let us review the four fallacies of antibike vituperation, and see how they stand up against reality:

• The “scofflaw cyclists” argument

I find it grimly amusing that motorists are so affronted by cyclists who roll through stop signs and even red lights. Not because I approve of running stop signs, but because motorists are so thoroughly addicted to the practice themselves – and so much more dangerous when they do it, outweighing cyclists 200 to one. For laughs, I once spent a month counting the motorists who actually came to a full stop at a stop sign. Answer: two. In New York, where a Draconian crackdown on “scofflaw cyclists” is underway, Department of Transportation and Police Department data for the five years ending in 1999 show the following:

Pedestrians killed by bicyclists: 1 annually.

Pedestrians killed by motor vehicles: 250 annually.

This is in a city where few drive. It does indicate where any crackdowns should be focused, though.

• The “cyclists don’t pay road taxes” argument

This is particularly rich in hypocrisy. As a matter of fact, according to numerous studies (my favorite being one by the Transportation Department in good ol’ conservative Texas), car and fuel fees and taxes never pay for more than half the cost of building and maintaining roads for motorists. In fact, since 1947, the shortfall in user fees for these asphalt handouts has been $600 billion, making private driving the most socialistic program the United States has ever seen. Those who drive less or not at all are overtaxed in every other aspect of their lives to pay for “free” roads, “free” ways and “free” public parking for motorists. Cyclists just want the right to use a little of that road space that they have paid and paid for over the years, but keep getting shoved out of by self-righteous drivers.

• The “bike lanes cost too much” argument

I’ll quote but one figure, from Portland, Ore., famous for “coddling” bicyclists: All of the last 20 years’ worth of bicycle infrastructure put into place in Portland – including 300 miles of bike lanes, paths, and boulevards – cost no more than one mile of four-lane urban freeway, and now accommodates nearly 7 percent of all commuter travel in the city.

• The “reducing driving kills business” argument

This is just another knee-jerk reaction to the unfamiliar. An examination of past implementations shows otherwise: For most businesses, the addition of bike lanes and bicycle parking means better cash flow. Cyclists move slower than cars, can window shop as they ride, and can stop and shop on a whim. You can park 12 bicycles where only one car would fit. Shop owners in Portland clamor for more bike infrastructure, so that they can grab some of cyclists’ loot. There’s a waiting list for bike corrals in front of shops there since merchants have seen the effects of the first efforts.

Los Angeles is a backwards city in regards to support of cycling. Not only are New York, Portland, San Francisco and Minneapolis ahead of us, so are local towns such as Santa Monica and Long Beach.

Instead of endlessly repeating past errors that have led to an inefficient, endlessly congested, tax-draining autos-only road system, let’s give the city a chance to be fiscally and socially responsible and make room for cyclists on some of that asphalt they have been taxed for all these years.

Even if you don’t care about the environment, you can’t argue with lower taxes, less congestion, livelier retail, and a healthier and happier work force – especially in a city finding it hard to compete with its more progressive fellows for business and for businesses.

Richard Risemberg is co-editor of the urban sustainability Webzine the New Colonist, publisher and editor of a bike commuter Webzine named Bicycle Fixation, and owner of a small business that designs and manufactures clothing for bicycle commuters. He lives and works in Los Angeles.

Awarewolfs Ride This Tuesday, 10pm

2011-05-14T14:19:00.000-07:00

Punk Rock MTB Ride Expands: Now Every Full Moon, too!

2011-05-14T14:11:00.000-07:00

Since once every other Sunday isn't enough to contain the fun of the Punk Rock MTB Rides, the rides will now be expanding to take place every Full Moon, as well!

The first Full Moon PRMTB ride will be this Tuesday, May 17! The rides will meet at 7:30pm at Rebecca's Coffeeshop.

In order to support and not conflict w/ our friends the Awarewolfs, the PRMTB Full Moon rides will end at the start location of the Awarewolfs rides which meet every Full Moon evening at 10pm at various locations downtown. (See next entry for more).

PRMTB is a dirt ride. Awarewolfs do short road rides.

To reiterate, the PRMTB will be every Full Moon at 7:30pm and every other Sunday (next one tomorrow, May 15) at 1pm meeting at the same location.

Velo Cult Museum Now Open

2011-05-14T14:09:00.000-07:00

Yes, please.

More treats for your eyes and brain here.

PRMTBRIDE photo essay of last 3 1/2 rides: Next ride this Sunday!

2011-04-28T23:47:00.000-07:00

My brain has been crazy about knobbies lately! More riding, less blogging--That's me these days. However, I was able to muster some time tonite to share w/ you what we've been up to and to hopefully get you hyped for this Sunday!:

March 20, Local:

Alex is the most ninja person I know. This was his first mtb ride in years! Dude exploded on the trails!

March 27, few of us did a last minute scouting mission at Anderson Truck Trail to prepare for the following weeks ride at the very same location:

We rode in Mike's 1986 Lazy Daze RV which has become his latest living facility. On the way to Anderson one of the rear tires exploded. Luckily he had a dualie on it. Conveniently, this incident happened near an exit that had an RV store and a tow truck/repair shop right next to it. Dudes fixed the shit in an hour and we were on our way!

El Capitan Reservoir. Due to all the rain we had before, this is the highest the water's been in awhile.

Chaz (center) murked us on the climb on his FIXED 29'r rigid! So so gnarly. The following week Chaz raced this thing on a 50-75 mile mtb race. This is the new edge.

On April 10 we had the best PRMTBRIDE to date. We went back to Anderson w/ the full crew. It was incredible:

Alex N. boulder drop.

Kon w/ his gardening gloves and the best collection of shin scabs in SD.

Following photos taken by Isaac Gibbs:

'bout to bomb.

Nothin' like riding thru water on a hot day.

Isaac randomly ran into us moments before we were about to leave. He got the spontaneous urge to roll w/ us so Chris ran back to his house to let him borrow this extra Kona. Isaac was graceful and fearless all day. In the middle of it all, we snapped hundreds of photos; except in the case above, where his camera was turned on him.

Get tech or get fucked. Ryan snapped his rear derailleur. He dropped some links on the chain and...

it was good to go. Better than new!

Talking about From Dawn Til' Dusk.

We stuffed our faces w/ pizza afterwards and as Japanther once said 'everything was fun.'

On April 24, we rode local trails coincidentally on Earth Fair Day. Also good times, though no photos.

NEXT RIDE is this Sunday, May 1. Meet at the normal spot, 1pm at Rebecca's Coffeeshop (30th & Juniper). We'll be road tripping to Martha's Grove!

On the Mic--Transportation Guru/Writer Matt Dellinger

2011-04-28T23:35:00.001-07:00

Since most bike advocates I know are multi-modal advocates...

Organized by good, fun people. Hit it up.

Bicyclist Killed--Driver Flees, Then Turns Himself In, Pleads Not Guilty

2011-04-28T23:10:00.000-07:00

Characterized by extreme downs and moderate ups, the case involving the unjust killing of an innocent cyclist took another twist yesterday.

After fleeing the scene after allegedly killing cyclist Jim Swarzman in Encinitas, hit-and-run perpetrator Joseph Ricardo Fernandez (age 46) turned himself in the next day. Investigators arrested him after inspecting his truck which matched the description of a witness. However, the DA ordered that the perp be released and so no charges were filed.

This passed Monday the perp was re-arrested. Yesterday in court, he pleaded not guilty! Despite the not guilty plea, if found to be guilty, the perp will only serve up to four years in prison!

Whatever happens, Jim Swarzman will be dead forever and a negligent motorist is to blame. Even if convicted, the time served won't be nearly enough for the killing of an innocent, altruistic, human being. Justice--once again--denied.

Tonite @ 10pm!: Awarewolfs Full Moon Ride!

2011-04-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

Note the location change to Chee Chee Club downtown (10th & Broadway).

This Weekend: 3rd Annual San Diego Custom Bike Show!

2011-04-05T21:46:00.001-07:00

Yes! The SD Custom Bike Show is back! Check it out this weekend; Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

This year will be different from last but it's bound to be excellent. Notably, the show has been relocated from Mission Valley to Downtown, the organizers have changed up a bit but Brian Baylis is still involved along with Bina Bilenky of Bilenky Cycle Works, there will be a bike swap meet organized by NY Bike Jumble, Saturday will host a women's panel called "Empowering Women Cyclists," and, finally, I heard somewhere that Paul Sadoff from Rock Lobster and Brian Baylis' rock n' roll band may be performing! Whaaa?!

I was down there everyday last year and had a blast. Click on the below image for a photo essay/blog entry of the 2010 show:

Do not miss this rad event! Details here.

Dylan Fish n' Chips Interview--I Am Los Angeles

2011-04-05T21:22:00.000-07:00

While reading Prolly I came across this dope video of Dylan Fish n' Chips Hurst. This cat is on-hit. Killer bike control. Great mic control. Diggin' the philosophy. Unity!

Dylan "Fish n Chips" Hurst - I Am Los Angeles from Joris Debeij on Vimeo.

The question begs...

2011-03-29T00:23:00.001-07:00

Some of my buddies are organizing a ride this Thursday, March 31 at 7pm. They're pretty amped on it which is generally a good sign that it's gonna be fun. Perfect timing--Starting to get warm again!

Punk Rock MTB Photo Recap of Last 3 Rides: Next ride is tmrw

2011-03-18T21:41:00.001-07:00

The Punk Rock Mountain Bike Rides have been something I look forward to. Here's why:

Santee trails field trip, Feb. 6:

Mike and his new ink...

...And his whip.

At the top of the first big climb--Aaron, Chris, Mike, and Sky Boyer (owner of Velo Cult and one of the biggest collections of vintage mountain bikes on the West Coast).

Car-free space. It's better this way. It's hard to appreciate open space unless you experience it directly. Squint vision--Note Sky at the top. Also note that Super Bowl Sunday is one of the best days in America to do anything outside. Most of America was inside watching TV. We were here charting and leading our own adventure.

Santee trails were amazing. Thanks to anyone who has ever contributed to keeping this space open and free from suburban sprawl. Thanks to Sky for showing us what's up. Here's his Curtlo, one of the most modern bikes I've ever seen him on.

Since the rides are every other Sunday, we were supposed to ride on April 20. But it was raining insanely hard that day and so we pushed it back one week to April 27:

Jack murderin' it on this downhill jump he built.

First official fixed riders on the Punk Rock MTB Ride!--Issac and Tait. Isaac is insane. Peep his narrow tires. He was doing barspins on the trail and both him and Tait kept up fine.

Chula Vista field trip, March 6:

Someone built an amazing mini-network of trials stuff. This crew is pro. Check the detail.

Sarah (from Chula Vista) is fearless. As made evident--you don't need a $2,000+ bike to have fun riding on trails. Fuck that notion.

Mountainbikes are tough. Accidentally sucked this up. Stick got pulled, and whip was ready to ride.

Don't mind if I do! Our ride start/ended on this sidewalk where someone chalked this very important message.

Dance w/ us tomorrow! Like the original flier says, meets every other Sunday at Rebecca's Coffeeshop (30th & Juniper St.) beginning Jan. 9.

Next ride is March 20 (local trails), then April 3 (field trip), then April 17 (local trails), etc. Same place, same time.

Corrected update (April 2): Next ride is tomorrow, April 3! We're goin' to Anderson Truck Trail in Lakeside. This trail reclaims the word 'epic.' Meet at Rebecca's at 1pm.

Saturday: Bike Jam Warehouse Party Rager

2011-03-18T21:11:00.000-07:00

Jinna Albright, owner of the oldest bike shop in town (Thomas Bike Shop) is organizing an event tomorrow which aims to bring all cyclists together for a major rager. Believe me, knowing Jinna and considering that the time is fliered as '6pm-4am,' this event will not disappoint.

There will be jumps, ramps, rails, and all types of crazy shit for cyclists to get up on. Plus Jinna will be introducing the Team Thomas fixed gear freestyle team.

3004-3020 Commercial st. See you there sometime btwn 6pm and 4am!

Happy b-day, Jinna, and congrats on becoming an SD Velodrome Association Board Member.

Tmrw: Punk Rock MTB Ride Field Trip to Chula Vista!

2011-03-05T19:40:00.001-08:00

The Punk Rock MTB Ride has been bangin'! Will be postin' up pics from the last two rides in the next couple weeks.

Tomorrow we're going on a field trip to secret trails in Chula Vista!

Meet at Rebecca's in South Park at 1pm and we will figure out the carpool sitch from there. If you can drive, show up w/ yr car. Or meet us in Chula Vista at Sunridge Park (on East J. St. near Paseo Del Rey) at 1:40pm.

Take back the sun! Out!

Local Bike Advocate/Blogger on KPBS Radio

2011-03-05T16:49:00.000-08:00

My buddy Thomas Bahde (History PhD., Bike SD.org Contributor, and SD Bike Union Spokesperson) aced an interview w/ KPBS the other day about bicycling in San Diego.

Thomas is boss. He's got mic control. Check it out.

Don't forget about the official SD Bike Commuter Discount Program kick-off party which includes the screening of a short film about the program. Sky Boyer, owner of Velo Cult and founder of the Bike Commuter Discount Program, is also a core member of the SD Bike Union--a relatively new advocacy group w/ a strong interest in utilitarian cycling.

LA to Introduce Anti-Harassment Ordinance to Protect Bicyclists

2011-03-04T02:22:00.000-08:00

This...is...glorious:

An anti-harassment ordiance to protect cyclists from aggressive bigots and violent perpetrators is exactly what we need in San Diego.

From the LA Department of Transportation blog:

Today, a new prospective tool was introduced for bicyclists to defend themselves from harassment and assault. An anti-harassment ordinance, the motion to draft it being originally introduced by Council Member Bill Rosendahl, has been released today by the City Attorney’s Office. Pending council approval, bicyclists will be able to bring civil suit against drivers who assault them, harass them, threaten them, or intentionally distract them.

In the ordinance, the City recognizes not only that “people have a right to ride a bicycle in the City of Los Angeles”, but also that bicyclists are harassed and assaulted simply for being bicyclists – this ordinance gives bicyclists the right to go after offenders in court. The ordinance is now a public document, so you can read it yourself.

Criminal Cases are Tough to Prove

While it’s always been illegal to assault (or threaten to assault) a bicyclist, it has been extremely difficult in the past for authorities to prosecute drivers. That’s because if a police officer isn’t on hand to witness the altercation, there generally isn’t enough evidence to prosecute a driver in a criminal case. Cases of attempted assault are particularly hard to prove; a bicyclist using all their skill to avoid the assaults of an out-of-control driver is left with no physical evidence that an assault took place. There are also instances where the intentionally aggressive actions of a driver towards a bicyclist may cause a crash – just not with the driver that initiated it.

Civil Suits – Lowering the Burden of Proof

Civil suits, however, carry a much lower burden of proof than criminal cases. That’s because civil cases are monetary in nature and never carry any jail time. Under the new ordinance, a series of actions taken against a bicyclist are grounds for a civil suit. They are:

Assaulting, or attempting to assault, a bicyclist;
Threatening to physically injure a bicyclist;
Injuring, or attempt to injure, a bicyclist (this can include verbal and non-verbal threats); and
Intentionally distracting a bicyclist with the intent of causing injury

(^Not allowed)

Damages

In these civil suits, drivers who assault or harass bicyclists will be liable for:

Triple the dollar amount of any resulting damages or $1,000, whichever is larger;
The attorney’s fees of the bicyclist assaulted/harassed; and
Any additional punitive damages awarded by a judge or jury

The second stipulation is a very important one. Explicitly covering attorneys’ fees will make it much more likely for a lawyer to take cases with comparatively small monetary damages and make bicyclists far more likely to pursue civil suits when they are threatened, harassed, or assaulted.

Doesn’t Preclude Criminal Charges

Another important point to keep in mind is that nothing in this ordinance precludes bringing criminal charges against a harassing or assaulting driver. Rather than replacing any existing laws, this ordinance provides an additional supplement to help bicyclists defend themselves.

Thank you, Los Angeles, for taking the lead on this. Doing so will make it much more likely for a similar ordinance to pass in San Diego.

Local Bike Advocate and Business Owner Assaulted by Motorist

2011-03-04T02:03:00.000-08:00

Our friend Jay Porter, owner of renowned farm-to-table restaurants The Linkery and El Take It EZ, was assaulted by a motorist near Golden Hill. Jay's provoking act? He was riding a bike.

On his blog, Jay writes:

He was angry that I was riding my bike in the center of Broadway, slowly and legally, for a couple hundred feet as I prepared to make a left turn onto 25th. In reaction to which, he “buzzed” me with his truck, challenged me to a fight, sought me out after I bravely ran away, found me and attempted to run me down in Sherman Heights (which I evaded by riding onto the sidewalk between some trees), and then threatened to kill me while shoving me into an alcove, as I (and at least one other bystander) called 911. My 911 call, for what it’s worth, went to CHP voicemail. (I was later told this is how the calls are routed from places close to the freeway.)

Then the dude drove away….only to circle back a few minutes later and tell me I’d better watch my back.

This violent perpetrator and bigot belongs in jail. He's a timebomb.

The perp is described as a white male w/ a red beard in his 30s who was driving a white 1997 Nissan pick-up truck license plate # 5R23007. A search showed that the car is registered to someone who lives in the Azalea Park neighborhood of City Heights. Don't hesitate to call 911 if you encounter him and if you feel threatened. Report him so he'll end up like this:

Road Rage Dr. Thompson, who used violence against innocent cyclists, is in prison for five years.

A Week of Carnage: Two Cyclists Killed, Dozens of Peds Injured by "Professional" Motorists

2011-02-28T20:03:00.000-08:00

In the span of one week, two cyclists were killed and three dozens of pedestrians outside of a nightclub were hospitalized. All three of the horrific instances were the results of the actions of three "professional" motorists--a truck driver, a street sweeper driver, and a taxi cab driver.

1. On February 5, a cyclist, Ben Acree, was struck from behind and crushed to death by a large moving truck on Friars Rd., one of the most dangerous roads for cyclists in SD. Even though the cyclist was struck from behind, the police officer who commented on the tragedy claimed that the cyclist violated the truck's right of way. This notion contradicts w/ the 'first come, first serve' traffic principle. Approaching traffic must yield to the road user before him or her. Why was this principle suddenly suspended when a cyclist was struck from behind? If the person struck from behind was a motorist rather than a cyclist, who do you think the officer would have placed the blame on?

The bias doesn't end there: The NBC San Diego article on this tragedy states 'Acree was traveling east on Friars Road when police say, for unknown reasons, he collided with a box truck as the truck exited the north bound I-15 off ramp going east on Friars Road' [bold emphasis added].

By claiming that 'he collided' w/ the truck rather saying that 'the driver collided w/ the cyclist' the implication is that the cyclist was the agent in charge of his own death. A more appropriate, non-biased wording would be 'the cyclist and the truck driver collided.'

Source: Cyclist Killed in Fatal Accident Id'd | NBC San Diego

(Photo by NBC San Diego).

While we maintain that, based on what we know, the driver--a professional--should have slowed and yielded when he saw Mr. Acree and his friend riding, it's also true that this area is dangerous by design. The truck driver exited the I-15 freeway and merged onto Friars Rd., a high speed road. There is no traffic control device requiring the truck driver, or any other motorist for that matter, to stop before entering Friars.

2. A week later, a Bike Coalition member, Suntat "Sunny" Peverley, was riding in the bike lane on Genessee Avenue when he was struck from behind by a man driving a privately-owned street sweeper. The 77-year-old street sweeper driver apparently fell asleep at the wheel (at 5:20pm). Sunny was flung from his bike and died from major blunt force to the head.

(Sunny--An innocent victim killed by a negligent driver).

Sunny, a lab technician for UCSD Medical Center, leaves behind a 7-year-old daughter and a high school son.

In both of the crashes, the cyclists were wearing helmets.

3. Later on that night (technically early morning the next day) a taxi driver plowed into three dozens of people outside of the Stingaree night club downtown, sending at 25 to the hospital.

(Photo by NBC San Diego).

The driver admits to falling asleep at the wheel after taking two anti-depressants, including one new medication, on an empty stomach. Taking new medication on an empty stomach while being tired and driving a car in the most populated area in San Diego county at that time of the day is not "accidental."

Why is mainstream America so quick to label so many preventable tragedies as 'accidents'? There are explanations for every 'accident,' more correctly known as 'crashes.' There's a difference between a crash borne out of an accident (like you run over a pebble and it shoots out to the side hitting someone randomly causing them to lose control and crash) and a crash borne out of negligence (like you're really tired but you take some new drugs on an empty stomach anyways and keep driving around thousands of vulnerable pedestrians rather than pulling over and napping).

One of the victims may have to have her leg amputated.

Shouldn't we expect more from "professional" drivers? What can be done to prevent such horrific incidences in the future? There are two main solutions that probably could have prevented this carnage:

-Strict Liability: Under Strict Liability a motorist involved in a crash w/ a vulnerable road user (such as a cyclist) is assumed to be guilty and must prove how he/she could NOT have prevented the crash from happening.

It's reasonable to assume that under the Strict Liability law, drivers would drive far more cautiously. Doing so would create a safer and more pleasant society for all road users; cyclists, other motorists, pedestrians, the disabled, the elderly, and children.

-Another solution is urban planning and road engineering that considers ALL users. One cyclist named Dan Guiterrez proposes a relatively inexpensive solution at the Friars Rd. and I-15 merge that would make this area safer cyclists:

A traffic engineering liaison for the California Association of Bicycling Organizations points out that 'the existing design assumes that traffic on the ramp is only merging with traffic on the through highway and does not recognize that traffic on the ramp is also potentially crossing a line of bicyclists riding at the edge of the road.' Mr. Guiterrez's "dotted" markings along the lane drop aim to eliminate that problem by communicating to motorists that they may be merging w/ bike traffic in addition to auto traffic.

How many cyclists and pedestrians must die before we learn from our mistakes as a society and work to make roads safer for all?

Bike Coalition Executive Director Kathy Keehan Steps Down

2011-02-28T19:57:00.000-08:00

Kathy Keehan, who served as the Executive Director of the SD County Bike Coalition for 11 years, has stepped down to accept a job at the Air Pollution Control District. Kathy was one of the most dynamic bike advocates in town. She understood all cyclists' points-of-view, remained posi-core throughout her career, and was never afraid to speak her mind. Kathy had mic control. She will be missed.

Jim Baross will be acting as Interim Executive Director until a long-term candidate is selected.

Awarewolfs Full Moon Ride Next Friday, Feb. 18

2011-02-07T22:30:00.000-08:00

The organizers of this ride have decided to meet at 10pm (same spot) instead of midnight. Please let interested friends know. Note that the updated flier now appears above.

Wednesday Nite: "In Memory of Bike Prom" Queer Dance Party

2011-02-07T20:41:00.000-08:00

If Kaya and Corrina aka Metal Unicorn and friends are throwing a dance party, you know it ain't gonna be no joke!

...And if I may:

Tomorrow: Punk Rock Mountain Bike Ride at Mission Trails!

2011-02-05T23:31:00.001-08:00

Part 2 of the Punk Rock Mountain Bike Rider was amazing and super refreshing! Felt so good to be shredding trails in the kut! Was really looking for something different, too. Just what I needed. If you missed it, you can join us tomorrow! PRMTB Part 3 will be heading to Mission Trails tomorrow! Meet at Rebecca's at 1pm and then we're gonna mini-road trip it to Mission. All PRMTB Rides meet same place, same time, every other Sunday. In the meantime, here are some photos from the latest ride (i.e. Part 2):

In "The Kut."

Japanther and Swampy collabo spotted! What's more punk than this?!

Jordan bombing rocky drops on his first mountain bike ride ever! Jordan easily had the best quotes of the day--"I never knew this trail was even here!" and "I wanna build up a mountain bike now!" Exploring the gaps in our neighborhood is exactly what this ride is about.

Though, tomorrow we'll be heading to an area that not too many people consider their "neighborhood." We're heading to Mission Trails (as mentioned above). Here's a lil' 20 second trailer filmed at Mission Trails that Aaraon put together. We'll probably encounter some stuff like this tomorrow:

New Film Explores Benefits of Cycling on Parkinson's

2011-02-05T23:19:00.000-08:00

A San Diego based Parkinson's advocacy team is directing a film that explores the benefits of cycling on Parkinson's. The film focuses on a man named Larry Smith who has had Parkinson's for over 20 years. Despite that, Larry is staying strong. Though he often needs assistance to walk across a room, Larry can still ride a bike up to 30 miles a day. This summer he'll be riding over 300 miles to speak to groups about the benefits of cycling.

More info at Ride with Larry.

You can add this to the long list of benefits that come from cycling.

Reward Offered for Info on Motorist Who Committed Intentional Vehicular Assault

2011-01-28T17:32:00.000-08:00

These stories are disgusting. A motorist in Sonoma County allegedly intentionally struck a cyclist after harassing cyclists on the Gran Fondo for miles. The cyclist is now suffering critical head injuries. This is worse than a 'hit-and-run.' This was intentional. Please forward this message to friends in Sonoma County who may know more:

Send the message that you don’t tolerate the harassment and injury of cyclists…

Help build a $10,000 reward fund to catch the GranFondo hit-and-run driver.

Together, we’ve already raised $3,000 toward our $10,000 goal.

You can donate quickly and securely now at www.Bikesonoma.org.

Here’s a great article about the reward fund: http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/reward-to-find-king-ridge-granfondo-hit-and-run-driver--29108

Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition and
Levi's Gran Fondo offer reward for information
leading to arrest of the hit-and-run driver.

The community must not tolerate those who
harass and injure cyclists…

Let’s raise $10,000 to make sure
this driver is held accountable

Now is the time:
“The California Highway Patrol has reached a point in this investigation in which all reasonable leads have been exhausted,” says CHP Sergeant Robert Mota. “The CHP needs the public’s help in this investigation. I believe that someone out there has information that could lead to the arrest of the responsible person. The reward money will hopefully entice that person to come forward.”

Think you have information?
Anyone with any information regarding this incident can contact Detective Mike Phennicie or Sergeant Robert Mota at (707)588.1400 during business hours (M-F, 8-5 PST) or at (707) 551.4100 outside of business hours.

Background:
The hit and run occurred on October 9, 2010 in the eastbound lane of Graton Road, approximately 4:15 in the afternoon. Reports consistently describe the offending vehicle as a mid-90s maroon Ford Explorer.

A person or persons in a vehicle matching this description had been harassing cyclists along the GranFondo route from as far away as Coleman Valley Road, both verbally and with his or her vehicle. When the hit and run incident occurred, the cyclist, Anoush Zebarjadian, was struck from behind with the side mirror of the motor vehicle. Zebarjadian was hospitalized in Santa Rosa before being transferred to San Francisco with critical head injuries. While he is expected to make a full recovery, it will be a lengthy and challenging one.

---

Sandra Lupien
Development & Outreach Director
Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition
www.BikeSonoma.org
707-545-0153 (Office)
707-694-8702 (Cell)

The Punk Rock Mountain Bike Ride is here!

2011-01-08T13:33:00.000-08:00

We have (I mean, have had) a logo

2010-12-31T14:40:00.000-08:00

There's finally a logo for this blog!...Actually, the stickers have been circulating around town for nearly several months now and the image has been on a number of event fliers, but now it's finally appearing here:

(I drew this up w/ a pen).

One reason why this blog existed without a logo for about a year is because it was hard to settle on an image that represented a cyclist w/ mic control. I also wanted something that helped explain the name of this blog which can be confusing because it phonetically looks like it should be pronounced 'bick control,' but actually is pronounced 'bike control.' It's a play on mic control (as in microphone control) which is pronounced 'mike control,' rather than 'mick control.'

Prolly Is Not Probably said it best: 'Bic Control (think mic control)...'

Speaking of Prolly, the above image is a hand-drawing of a picture that Prolly took of Tom Mosher at the Mid-West Mayhem:

Tom Mosher has bike control and mic control. He makes shit happen. Besides being one of the founders of TrickTrack.org and being an insanely talented cyclist and self-described 'trick nerd' (see Death Pedal 1 but especially his section in The Revival), Tom is a DIY crafter to the fullest effect:

Tom and his friend Tony Mammoliti founded, run, and hand-make all products for their DIY , Toronto-based, start-up company YNOT Cycle. They specialize in pedal straps, backpacks, messenger bags, hip packs, u-lock holsters, and more. (The website isn't fully updated w/ all the bags they've made so far. For those, peep their former blog site). Support companies (w/ high-quality product) run by the kids!

So there it is--The logo for Bic Control: Bicyclists on the Mic.

Free stickers soon.

New San Diego Reader Article Does SD Bike Movement Justice

2010-12-29T15:03:00.000-08:00

Today, the San Diego Reader published a front-page story that does the San Diego bike movement justice.

It seems that the weekly publication that once employed a man--Josh Board--who admitted to assaulting a cyclist by hitting him/her w/ a rock, then premeditated vehicular assault against cyclists and lying in court to cover it up, has come along way.

San Diego Reader writer Bill Manson has provided an accurate representation of San Diego's progressive bike world. Mr. Manson rode Halloween Critical Mass, interviewed SANDAG Bike Planner Chris Kluth, bike shops owners from Coronado to La Mesa to South Park, SD Bike Polo, and lawyers who represent cyclists in crashes. Mr. Manson even addressed the issue of violence committed against cyclists by some motorists, intentional attacks on cyclists, distracted drivers who kill cyclists, road rage, and seems to truly sympathize w/ the bike life struggle on roads dominated by motorists.

And it looks like Mr. Hanson found his way over to Bic Control at some point. Note the 9th paragraph down in the first section that reads:

Back in 2006, SANDAG (the San Diego Association of Governments) estimated that only .03 percent (point three of one percent) of San Diego county commuters were bike commuters. Compare that to Copenhagen, where nearly 40 percent bike to work. Then again, in ’06, Critical Mass attracted only about 35 riders… So something’s happening, folks.

Compare that to the Bic Control mission statement excerpt which reads:

According to SANDAG’s 2006 Transportation Model data, only .3 (point three)% of commuters in SD were bike commuters. Something is seriously wrong here. One of the purposes of this blog is to find out why. While it’s true that ridership in SD was pathetic in 2006, this bike community has transformed into one of the most progressive communities in USA. For ex., Critical Mass has grown from 35 people in October ‘05 to 1,300 people in July ‘09.

Mr. Hanson didn't site where it is that he got those numbers. I'm assuming it's from the Bic Control mission statement. I'm actually honored that he chose to focus his article's thesis around the mission statement of this blog. Mr. Hanson didn't just regurgitate info. To find out why the SD bike world is the way it is, Mr. Hanson dug deep--he rode rides for himself, tried things that weren't normal for him such as playing bike polo, raced down the strand on a high-end road bike, ventured across dangerous sections of SD w/ respected bike planners, interviewed many, and probably (based on the above comparison) read this blog.

Cheers to Mr. Hanson for great journalism. And check this cover!:

So good. Nice ode to the Bicycle Alliance of Washington who originally came up w/ the "Carlane" image. It'd be perfect if it said 'These roads are our roads, too.'

The original article is available here: here

Tomorrow @ 3pm: Ride to the first Sharrow in the City of SD & Malcolm X Library

2010-12-28T21:12:00.000-08:00

12/29 UPDATE: This ride is being rescheduled to a non-stormy day. TBD.

An impromptu bike ride is being organized to visit the new sharrow--"bikes allowed full lane" marking--on Imperial Avenue in South East San Diego. This is the first sharrow in the entire City of San Diego! We hope it's a sign of things to come.

(Photo by Kathy Keehan, Executive Director of the Bike Coalition).

The SD bike community is ready for more sharrows--especially on 30th St., which is a plan being supported by businesses on 30th, the local community planning group, residents, the Executive Director of the Bike Coalition, and our City of SD City Councilmember.

The sharrow on Imperial Ave. is a bit of a mystery. Many bike advocates in San Diego expected the first sharrow to be on 30th--where there was and continues to be serious community demand and political will. It's unclear how much community demand there was/is for the Imperial Ave. sharrow or why the City chose this particular section to debut something that bike advocates in South Park, North Park, and Uptown area have long demanded.

Nevertheless, the Imperial Ave. sharrow is a good sign that traffic engineers in the the City are ready to install this clever lane-marking which reaffirms CVC 21200--cyclists, like motorists, are allowed to use the full lane when they decide it's safe to do so.

Check it out for yourself. Join the ride heading there tomorrow (Wednesday). Meet at 3pm at Rebecca's Coffeeshop at 30th & Juniper.

In addition to visiting the sharrow, the ride will also be visiting the Malcolm X Library, a block down the street.

(Illustration by Charles Lilly for The Autobiography of Malcolm X book cover).

(Muhammad Ali being photographed by his philosophical adviser Malcolm X after defeating Sonny Liston to become the world champ of his weight class. Photo by Bob Gomel).

By the way, I originally thought that sociologist Steven Spitzer coined the expression 'social dynamite,' until I read Malcolm X use it in his autobiography which I am currently reading. That expression--one of my favorites--has been used to define the mission statement of Bic Control (located to your right) since this blog started 18 months and 230 entries ago. Malcolm X had masterful mic control.

Bike SD: Does San Diego have a bicycle culture?

2010-12-28T20:56:00.000-08:00

Editor's note: Sam Ollinger at Bike San Diego has written a fantastic essay about the state of bicycling in SD that has left me compelled to share. She, undoubtedly, has mic control:

Does San Diego have a bicycle culture?

Posted By Sam Ollinger on December 27, 2010

A few weeks ago, two students from the University of Copenhagen made their way over to San Diego to study the city’s bicycle culture. These women, Sidsel Birk Hjuler and Anne Grethe Pabst, are working on their Masters degree with the thesis covering what a bicycle culture means and how a city can go about attaining it.

They were comparing and contrasting a European city (Barcelona) with an American city (San Diego) to determine if there were tangible characteristics that contributed toward an identifiable bicycle culture. Both cities have a similar climate, a similar sized population and historically have had very low bicycle modal shares, or at least Barcelona did until very recently.

I spent a better part of two weeks with them riding around San Diego showing them what we did have, and what we didn’t. And the list of what San Diego didn’t have was exceedingly shocking to our Danish visitors. From the lack of continuous bike lanes and the lack of interconnected bike infrastructure to the lack of bicycle parking at destinations they finally began to see why San Diego wasn’t quite the bicycling mecca that Copenhagen or Amsterdam is.

The City of San Diego provided Hjuler and Pabst with a forum to present how Copenhagen came to be what it is along with their findings about Barcelona. In both places, the biggest source of change came from a strong political will to change the transportation dynamics.

Photo of cyclists in Copenhagen by Mikael Colville-Andersen

Copenhagen made a change in transportation policies after the 1973 Oil Crisis by instituting Car Free Sundays which gave its citizens a chance to reconnect with their community outside of an automobile. Then the city continued to create bicycle friendly infrastructure and promote bicycling as a viable, financially savvy mode of transportation. The city is now on track to be carbon-free by 2050.

A more recent example of change can be seen in Barcelona. The city of Barcelona implemented a bicycle sharing service that grew by over 180,000 subscribers in two years. By integrating the bicycle share service with the public transit service, residents now could go further distances by being multi-modal.

Meanwhile, here in San Diego we’ve got missing bike lanes that then turn into sharrows with no warning or announcement or even fanfare:

Imperial Ave Sharrow. Photo by Kathy Keehan, SDCBC Executive Director.

Riding up various mesas and into the valley and alongside speeding traffic with no protective barrier, our Danish visitors began to understand why the bicycle modal share in San Diego is so abysmally low. But where there were no bicycle infrastructure to be found, they did find a very warm and welcoming bicycle community.

Both the students were able to take part in the Tweed Ride and wondered why Copenhagen didn’t have such a fun activity that involved a dressing up to go on a bicycle ride. During their stay, Both Hjuler and Pabst were able to talk to many planners, advocates, and other movers and shakers in the bicycle community. What they found was that San Diego was indeed in the midst of a change. While San Diego appears to lack the the political will to institute change in its transportation policy, the Danes found many citizens who were taking control to demand change for both themselves and the future citizens of this city. As a city that came of age during the automobile boom, there is much that will change in the coming years to ensure that transportation dollars aren’t unfairly being diverted to a single mode of transportation.

With American cities like Portland and New York leading the way in showing what a city of the future looks like, it only makes sense for San Diego to follow suit rather than continuing to subscribe to an old dying transportation paradigm.

Tomorrow, Tuesday Nite: Bike Coalition End of the Year Party @ BLAH

2010-12-14T00:35:00.001-08:00

The SD County Bicycle Coalition is organizing an end of the year party set to take place tomorrow, Tuesday night at the bike-friendly Blind Lady Ale House. From 5pm on. Goldsprints by Richie Ditta. All cyclists are encouraged to attend.

More about Blind Lady here (click on pic):

Awarewolfs Full Moon Ride, Dec. 21

2010-12-13T19:18:00.000-08:00

After the Thunderfuck Cross Cat throw your hoodie on and join the Awarewolfs on their ride which goes down every full moon.

Tuesday Dec. 21 is gonna go off. Can't wait.

This Saturday Nite: Acamonchi Art Show in North Park

2010-12-10T20:53:00.000-08:00

(Acamonchi in his North Park studio. Photo by Laurie Cat Bennett).

My boy Gerardo "Acamonchi" never stops. Whether he's mashing down 30th St. to Pokez or gittin' drrrty w/ his unmatched screen-print skills, dude's always makin' moves. Despite being constantly busy, Gerardo can't help but dedicate his brain power to local bike advocacy ideas and issues. Gerardo is one of the most passionate bike advocates in the city. He's always coming up w/ great new ideas and, importantly, he follows through on them. (More on that in an interview coming soon).

In the meantime, come support and check out his art show tomorrow night, Saturday, Dec. 11 at Ray At Night in North Park:

If you're not familiar w/ Acamonchi's work, here's a taste. He painted this custom frame for Fraser Cycles:

So fresh and so clean.

Winter Solstice Full Moon Thunderfuck Cross Cat! Dec. 21

2010-12-02T22:38:00.000-08:00

This is gonna be ill!

Tweed Ride, Saturday Dec. 11

2010-12-02T22:35:00.001-08:00

Bikes Del Pueblo Video on Bike Drive

2010-11-30T00:30:00.000-08:00

The Bikes Del Pueblo collective does great things for San Diego. Every Saturday they're out at the City Heights Farmers' Market fixing working-class peoples' bikes in exchange for donations. At the Veloswap people donated bikes and parts to the International Rescue Committee in partnership w/ Bikes Del Pueblo to help get immigrants and refugees on two wheels. Here is a new video about that project and about their vision for growth:

Bikes Del Pueblo from Brian Hedden on Vimeo.

If you know of anyone w/ a space available on El Cajon Blvd. area in City Heights, please contact them. Thanks.

CM & CRETINS' Black Friday Ride!

2010-11-25T11:58:00.000-08:00

Round up your biggest shopping bags and your most brutal stomping boots this Friday because it's time to SHOP 'TIL YOU KILL!

(Shop 'Till You Kill spokecard by Marcus, circa 2008).

What a better day for a bike ride (or two) than Black Friday, where millions of Americans engage in one of the most questionable and social-Darwinistic days of the year--Get out of the way or you'll get stomped to death...

That's what happened to 43-year-old Wal Mart employee Jimmy Overby who was killed by hundreds of Black Friday shoppers who stomped on his body as they ran to buy things. And a couple years ago two people died in a Black Friday gun battle in Toys-R-Us.

So rather than stressin' yourself by rushing to the mall this Black Friday to replace your whole DVD collection w/ Blu Ray versions, take your bike out and go for a ride around your neighborhood. Invite your family and/or your friends. Ride for fun. Ride for you.

If you live in San Diego join Critical Mass for the highly anticipated Black Friday ride. Meets at 7pm at The Fountain in Balboa Park.

After Critical Mass come back to The Fountain for a special CRETINS' Black Friday ride. THE CRETINS' ride meets at The Fountain at 9pm and departs at 10pm. Route to be determined. What has been determined is that there will be dodgeball after!

Free bike ride, dodgeball, thrills, laughs w/ friends > lines, money burning, bad music, and canned experiences at the mall. Hmm... Your choice.

Recap: Bunnyhops For Breastcancer

2010-11-24T21:36:00.000-08:00

Bunnyhops For Breastcancer this past Sunday went off. Despite the rain, kids came out, the tricks were bangin', the alleycat was a rush, and chunk of money was raised. Over $300 was raised and all of it was donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation to fund breastcancer research.

Documentation:

Bunny Hops for Breast Cancer from Matthew Spencer on Vimeo.

Jakob Santos' 360. Photo/Matt Lingo.

The first event of the day was the alleycat race from Barrio Logan to National City spots and back.

California transportation. This is how we get around.

The route for the alleycat was money. Not too many races go to National City. This one did. Fun racin' in an area that most kids aren't super familiar with.

Up next was the trick comp. Above 3 photos by Matt Lingo.

Josh Boothby keepin' it DIY. Photo by VeloReality.

Jakob Santos. Photo/Lingo.

Matt Spencer. Above and below photo by VeloReality.

Josh Boothby ended up winning the trick comp. He's a nice dude and his riding is super solid. Here's a little edit that Matt Lingo filmed around the time of the Bunnyhops event:

Elevated Engineering presents Josh Boothby from Matt Lingo on Vimeo.

Thanks to Gus and Rocco for making this event happen. Good work!

Jingle Jam Alleycat, Next Saturday, December 4

2010-11-23T20:22:00.001-08:00

Drawing by Meg at Sleeping Giant Tattoo. Graphics by Cam.

Organized by 'Zoni! It's his 1st time organizing an alleycat in SD. Should be interesting. Lookin' forward to this.

"Sprawing From Grace": Free Screening @ Velo Cult, Saturday

2010-11-23T20:14:00.001-08:00

Velo Cult Bike Shop invites you to a free screening of Sprawling From Grace, a documentary film which examines the consequences of suburbanization. Sounds interesting. Check it out.

Goodbye, Tommy. Adventure boldly.

2010-11-23T19:54:00.000-08:00

Our friend Tommy has moved out of SD to travel Southeast Asia by bike. But before his mega bike tour, he's going to be working at a bike shop and also working to help disarm land mines in Vietnam for Clear Path International. Wow! My friends are the most badass people in the world.

Stolen Bike Recovered, Alleged Thief Arrested

2010-11-23T19:22:00.000-08:00

Our buddy's Milwaukee Bruiser stolen on Friday, October 29 has been recovered!

The perpetrator allegedly walked in to our mutual friends' bike shop to try to sell the bike for $150. The bike shop employee (who recognized the bike) called the owner and then the cops. The cops showed up and arrested the dude! Bike justice! Never underestimate the San Diego Bike Community.

Previous related Bic Control entry:

Stolen Bike Alert: White Milwaukee Bruiser

This Sunday!: Bunnyhops For Breastcancer is here!

2010-11-19T20:36:00.000-08:00

After being rained out in October and rescheduled for Nov. 21, the Bunnyhops For Breastcancer event is finally here this Sunday! I was looking forward to it then and I'm even more excited now:

This is gonna be a riot! This is has got to be one of the biggest non-monthly DIY bike events to ever happen in San Diego. The amount of sponsors that Rocco and Gus from Fast Pace Zine have pulled for this event is insane. They've been busting their ass for this. Huge props to them in advance.
Also, thanks to Will for the ramps.

There's talk about rain this weekend...but that won't stop us this time. Note the alternate location on the flier in case of rain. Bring your ponchos, boys and girls.

See you Sunday! Spread the word!

Tomorrow!: Bike The Boulevard!

2010-11-19T20:29:00.001-08:00

Stoked to see more local businesses supporting bicycling.

Just noticed that Bike The Boulevard will be having a DIY Bike Light Workshop segment for this event. Haha. Rad. Props to my friend Cairie Rainey for organizing the first-known DIY Bike Light Workshop ever (here and then here). The word is spreading!

Felony Charges Dropped on Rich Hit-and-Run Motorist so they won't Jeopardize His Job

2010-11-08T21:46:00.000-08:00

Rich people deserve more rights than poor people. Don't you know this? No, I'm not talking about India's caste system which institutionalized and legalized classism. I'm talking about Vail, Colorado, a place recently characterized by unapologetic rich-privilege and extreme injustice against cyclists.

Martin Joel Erzinger, who manages rich clients' investments at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, was driving his 2010 Mercedes when he allegedly veered onto the side of a highway and struck an innocent cyclist from behind. The cyclist, Dr. Steven Milo who works to save other other peoples' lives, was suddenly laying on the side of the highway fighting for his own. Dr. Milo's spine was damaged and his brain experienced internal bleeding.

The hit-and-run perpetrator Erzinger fled the scene, according to police. Further down the road, Erzinger pulled over where he called his Mercedes dealership to report damages to his bumper, rather than calling 911. According to court documents, he did NOT alert authorities or request assistance for the cyclist. Erzinger was arrested.

Erzinger's complete lack of remorse for human life is deplorable.

But according to Vail, Colorado District Attorney Mark Hulbert, what Erzinger did only warranted a couple misdemeanor charges. Last week DA Hulbert dropped felony charges against Erzinger citing that the charge could have 'serious job implications' for Erzinger.

(Vail, Colorado District Attorney Mark Hulbert)

This degree of explicit rich-privilege is intolerable and in no way represents equality.

Hit-and-run victim Dr. Milo's lawyers were apparently livid to learn that the felony charges were dropped. Dr. Milo writes, 'Mr. Erzinger struck me, fled and left me for dead on the highway. Neither his financial prominence nor my financial situation should be factors in your prosecution of this case.'

Theoretically, all prosecutions have 'serious job implications' for all people. If DA Hulbert's is so obsessed w/ making sure that his rulings have no 'serious job implications' for violators of the law w/ no remorse for human life, then the last job he should have is a district attorney position!

Help bring hit-and-run motorist Erzinger to justice. Help remind DA Hulbert what justice means.

1. Sign the petition at Change.org to help urge DA Hulbert to reconsider dropping the felony charges.

2. Urge the Department of Justice to investigate this case and take appropriate action: 202-353-1555 , askdoj@usdoj.gov

3. Urge Colorado's Attorney General John Suthers to investigate this case and take appropriate action: 303-866-4500 end_of_the_skype_highlighting, Attorney.General@state.co.us

The petition has nearly 10,000 signatures and both DA Hulbert and the CO Attorney General have removed their Facebook pages after being buried in comments about this case. The word is getting out! Help fight for justice! You can help.

SANDAG Staff Recommends $2.6 BILLION for Bike Infrastructure!

2010-11-08T21:39:00.000-08:00

Great news from SANDAG via the Bike Coalition!:

'Remember how we asked you to call your SANDAG Board members and ask them to put 3% of the transportation dollars in bike and ped programs and projects?

SANDAG staff yesterday recommended they allocate $2.6 BILLION for the bicycle and pedestrian program.

For those of you keeping score at home, that’s 2.6% of the total $100 billion transportation spending in the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). It’s quadruple what they allocated in the last RTP four years ago. It’s $65 million a year for bike/ped stuff over the next 40 years. It’s a lot of money. It’s good stuff!

But the work is not done just yet. The SANDAG board still has to vote to support the staff recommendation. So please, before Friday, call your SANDAG Board representative and say thanks to SANDAG staff for listening to us, and ask that the board member support the proposed $2.6 billion for bike/ped programs and projects.'

The above info is from an email from Bike Coalition Exec. Director Kathy Keehan. For a list of SANDAG Board reps, please see the following Bic Control entry:

Urgent Action Needed: Your Phone is a Mic--Help Fight for $ for Bike Infrastructure

Monday nite!: Dia De Los Muertos Ride by The Cretins

2010-10-31T18:38:00.001-07:00

Come out this Monday nite on a bike ride to honor life and death.

Free face paints by a professional face paint artist.

Tour our city where we live our lives and bury our dead.

Stolen Bike Alert: White Milwaukee Bruiser

2010-10-31T18:28:00.000-07:00

Please keep your eyes out for our buddy's white Milwaukee Brusier which was stolen last Friday in SD. The fixed gear bike had purple trim, a black rear wheel on a Velocity rim, a front wheel on a Sun rim, and Demolition cranks.

The bike was stolen by a 16-20 year old male in the Loma Portal area off Midway Dr. My buddy parked it briefly in the doorway of a liquor store when the perpetrator ran up, grabbed it, hopped on, and rode off.

Bummercore.

Please email any leads to BicControl[at]gmail[com]. Thanks.

UPDATE: This bike has been recovered! Alleged thief has been arrested!

Bunnyhops For Breast Cancer Rained Out, Postponed 'til Nov. 21

2010-10-31T18:22:00.000-07:00

If you woke up in SD yesterday morning before 10:30am you would've noticed that it was pouring. As a result, the Bunnyhops For Breast Cancer Benefit trick comp and alleycat have been postponed and rescheduled for November 21. See you then.

UPDATE: The event has been changed from Nov. 20 to the Nov. 21 so it wont conflict w/ an event in LA.

This is gonna be amazing!

Biggest Bike Weekend All Year Continues w/ CM Tonite + More

2010-10-29T18:43:00.000-07:00

This is got to be the biggest bike weekend in SD all year; 5 straight days of killer bike events.

Last nite The Cretins' 5th Annual Halloween Ride was a smash.

Tonite is Halloween Critical Mass! It usually turns out to be one the most fun rides all year. Riders, please keep the ride fun, positive, and peaceful. CM is a celebration of the bicycle. If you chose to exploit the mass by using it as a medium for your aggressive, violent (when not in self-defense) tendencies, stop coming out. There isn't a single veteran SD Critical Mass rider who would disagree w/ that statement.

CM didn't just magically turn into a huge, popular, fun event. 5 years ago to the day, SDCM had 35 riders. Tonite there will be an estimated 1,000+ people. How do you think it got like that when other free monthly and weekly rides faded out? The answer is because a group of dedicated bike advocates put their time and energy into the ride to make it fun, creative, positive, and different every time. So don't ruin the ride for those who worked hard to make it awesome.

Two years ago to the day the following statement, The Importance of Communication and Diffusing Conflict @ SDCM, was written and handed out by veteran CM riders to hundreds of riders at the fountain. The ideas expressed here are still valuable and pertinent:

The Importance of Communication & Diffusing Conflict at SDCM

October 31 Halloween 2008 San Diego Critical Mass Riders,

Some of us ride San Diego Critical Mass to celebrate sustainability, to exercise energy independence, to practice solutions to global warming, to be healthy, to make friends, to restore civic life to public streets normally dominated by speeding automobiles, to make a statement, or to enjoy the landscape of San Diego. But one overarching goal that we can all agree on is our celebration of Fun, via the Bicycle.

To keep SD Critical Mass rides fun, we can all work on the following:

-Communicate: Communication is our most vital asset. See something you don't or do approve of? Then make a comment. Communicate to that person or persons. This is the people's ride. It's up to all Critical Mass riders to do their part and contribute their two cents, in person, at the ride. Don't be complacent to something you don't agree with. Now is the time for self-regulation. Speak up. If you have a voice, use it, positively.

-Dealing with Impatient Motorists: Most motorists that drive by Critical Mass smile or cheer in support of the awe-inspiring bike ride. Many of them think, "I want to be with them on a bike right now!" However, there are a small minority of motorists who are bent on an inflated ego and who subscribe to the Culture of Immediacy school-of-thought which places their immediate priorities far above the well-being and livelihood of other human beings. The Culture of Immediacy is why the majority of freeway-using motorists regularly speed above the speed limit on neighborhood streets.

If you (unintentionally) slow down a motorist w/ a dangerously inflated ego, then many motorists will take this personally, and will occasionally get Road Rage, and may act violently towards you. Any cyclist who rides on the streets, or even any motorist who drives on the freeways, will tell you that Road Rage is real and scary. Road Rage is a facet of auto-dependency and American culture which sociologists, psychologists, police officers, or any user of a public street, for that matter, are well aware of.

As everyday bike riders, and as Critical Mass riders, we need to remember that Road Rage exists.

If you see a motorist that looks impatient or frustrated try talking to that person in a polite manner. Say, "Thank you for waiting. We'll be out of your way shortly."

Motorists like to see that someone on the ride is concerned about them waiting. If they're determined to drive through the group, and they start to act irate, then it's usually best not to challenge them, but to let them through. At that point, you (the corker) should step up your game, and communicate to other cyclists. Warn them that the motorist is determined to drive through the flow of cyclists despite our safety. Warn the cyclists, "Look out! Be careful! This person is determined to drive through!"

If we do this, then we can reduce the likeliness that a bicyclist will get hit or ran over by a motorist; something which no cyclist deserves. Period.

In the streets, you earn respect by practicing it. Share the road.

Have fun tonight! Celebrate! Be spooky. To prevent something too scary from happening, show respect for other human beings around you. By practicing respect, even those who aren't on the ride can have fun, too.

See you tonite!

Other rad events this weekend include tomorrow's Bunnyhops For Breast Cancer by Fast Pace Zine, the Veloswap Meet this Sunday at the Velodrome, and The Cretins' Day of the Dead Ride this Monday (flier up tomorrow).

This Thursday!: 5th Annual CRETINS Halloween Ride!

2010-10-23T17:20:00.001-07:00

It's time! The 5th Annual Cretins Halloween ride is finally upon us!

Ride meets at Gala Foods in South Park at 7pm this Thursday, Oct. 28.!

Pinata smashing, pumpkin bowling, dodgeball, and a performance by Satan's Dance Party!

Flier by Color Deco.

Follow Up: The Fight For Bike Infrastructure Funding

2010-10-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

According to an email from one of my favorite people in SD--Kathy Keehan, Bike Coalition Executive Director--there has been some progress in the fight for bike infrastructure $.

Apparently, there was some constructive discussion amongst decision makers at a big SANDAG (SAN Diego Association of Governments) meeting yesterday.

But the battle isn't over.

Here's Kathy's email synopsis of the meeting yesterday and a follow up to the previous blog entry Urgent Action Needed: Your Phone is a Mic--Help Fight for $ for Bike Infrastructure:

Thanks! We're on our way but we're not done yet...

Hi all,

THANK you to everyone who called or emailed SANDAG this week! I heard comments from several members of the board that they heard from their local constituents, and they were definitely paying attention today.

The SANDAG meeting went fairly well today – thanks to Jim, Hans, Nicole, Nick(?), plus support from Move San Diego, Walk San Diego, Sustainable San Diego, and others. Thank you all for being there! It was terrific that all the people who stood up to speak today supported dramatically increasing the amount of money spent on bicycling and walking.

The good news is that staff claims they will be ‘fully funding’ the bicycle and pedestrian program. The bad news is that they carefully did not establish what ‘fully funded’ means. It could mean that they are fully funding the regional bike plan. That would be nice, but that’s only $430 million. We just don’t know yet. It’s almost certainly not 3%, though, so we’ve got more work to do.

The other good news is that many of the board members spoke up questioning staff about the bicycle and pedestrian program. We definitely got their attention, and they want to do the right thing. I’m hopeful that if staff gives them the option to spend significantly on bicycle and pedestrian programs, they will vote to do so. We’ll be working on getting a meeting with staff to clarify what ‘fully funded’ means next week, and we’ll be counting on you all to make some noise leading up to the November 12^th Transportation Committee meeting, where they will be deciding on their ‘preferred alternative’. We need the preferred alternative to include significant money for bicycling and walking, and we’ll be trying our best to make that happen in the next three weeks.

For right now, we’ll be holding off on asking you to call or email your representatives again until we find out more about the staff recommendation. Thank you for reaching out! It made a difference. One board member actually said to me ‘ok, I get it! They can stop calling me now!’ So rest your dialing and typing fingers, but be ready for another big push in the next couple of weeks.

Kathy

----------------------

Kathy Keehan

Executive Director

San Diego County Bicycle Coalition

740 13th St, Suite 502

San Diego, CA 92101

858.487.6063

execdir@sdcbc.org

www.sdcbc.org

Urgent Action Needed: Your Phone is a Mic--Help Fight for $ for Bike Infrastructure!

2010-10-20T21:01:00.000-07:00

Tell your local representatives that more of the same freeways-first, active-transportation-last prioritizing will NOT cut it! The following message is from the Bike Coalition and Walk San Diego:

We need your help this week!

One of the things we try to do at the Bicycle Coalition is have input on the Regional Transportation Plan, the document that guides how all the transportation money in the San Diego region will be spent over the next 40 years. It’s updated every four years or so, and it’s time again for the discussion about how those funds will be spent.

SANDAG staff has released the ‘revenue constrained’ plan. This is the plan that actually gets down to the nitty gritty of allocating the amount of money we can reasonably expect to see in the region over the next 40 years. They have determined that $100 to $110 BILLION will be available over those 40 years, and have settled on how to spend all but about $3 to $3.5 billion of that money. Now they’re trying to figure out how to spend that last 3%.

There’s a staff report that outlines four scenarios for spending that 3% - a ‘Transit Emphasis Scenario’, a ‘Rail/Freight Emphasis Scenario’, a ‘Highway Emphasis Scenario’ and a ‘Fusion Scenario’. If you are interested in finding out what is in each scenario, http://www.sandag.org/uploads/meetingid/meetingid_2756_11871.pdf (agenda item 3) is the staff report. It is important to note that under all four scenarios, SANDAG modeling predicts that bike/ped mode share actually decreases from the existing share and the no-build alternatives. That means that in all four of these options, biking and walking will go DOWN rather than up.

We need an ‘Active Transportation/Transportation Demand Management Emphasis Scenario’. 3% of the total transportation budget is not an unreasonable amount to spend on bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, programs, and improvements.

But SANDAG won’t even analyze this scenario unless we make some noise. So I’m asking you to make some calls. PLEASE call or email your SANDAG Board representative and ask them to tell SANDAG to include an Active Transportation Emphasis Scenario. Tell them you want SANDAG to spend at least 3% of the transportation dollars on bicyclists and pedestrians.

Here’s who you should call if you live, work, or play in each of the following cities. The first name on the list is the SANDAG Board representative from that city, and the ones with (A) beside them are alternates. Leave a message for one or for all if you can -

City of Carlsbad - 760-434-2820
Hon. Matt Hall, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Bud Lewis, Mayor
(A) Hon. Ann Kulchin, Mayor Pro Tem

City of Chula Vista - 619-691-5044
Hon. Cheryl Cox, Mayor
(A) Hon. Rudy Ramirez, Deputy Mayor
(A) Hon. Steve Castaneda, Councilmember

City of Coronado - 619-522-7320
Hon. Carrie Downey, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Al Ovrom, Mayor Pro Tem
(A) Hon. Michael Woiwode, Councilmember

City of Del Mar - (858) 755-9313
Hon. Crystal Crawford, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Carl Hilliard, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Mark Filanc, Councilmember

City of El Cajon - (619) 441-1788
Hon. Mark Lewis, Mayor
(A) Hon. Jillian Hanson-Cox, Councilmember

City of Encinitas – 760.633.2600
Hon. Jerome Stocks, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Teresa Barth, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Dan Dalager, Mayor

City of Escondido -
Hon. Lori Holt Pfeiler, Mayor
(A) Hon. Sam Abed, Councilmember

City of Imperial Beach – 423- 8300
Hon. Jim Janney, Mayor
(A) Hon. Patricia McCoy, Mayor Pro Tem
(A) Hon. Jim King, Councilmember

City of La Mesa – 619.463.6611
Hon. Art Madrid, Mayor
(A) Hon. Mark Arapostathis, Councilmember
(A) Hon. David Allan, Vice Mayor

City of Lemon Grove – 619.825.3800
Hon. Mary Teresa Sessom, Mayor
(A) Hon. Jerry Jones, Mayor Pro Tem
(A) Hon. Jerry Selby, Councilmember

City of National City – 619.336.4241
Hon. Ron Morrison, Mayor
(A) Vacant
(A) Hon. Rosalie Zarate, Councilmember

City of Oceanside – 760.435.3065
Hon. Jim Wood, Mayor
(A) Hon. Esther Sanchez, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Charles "Chuck" Lowery, Councilmember

City of Poway - (858) 668-4530
Hon. Don Higginson, Mayor
(A) Hon. Jim Cunningham, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Carl Kruse, Deputy Mayor

City of San Diego - (619) 236-6330
Hon. Jerry Sanders, Mayor
(A) Hon. Anthony Young, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Sherri Lightner, Councilmember

Hon. Ben Hueso, Council President 619.236.6688
(A) Hon. Marti Emerald, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Todd Gloria, Councilmember

City of San Marcos - (760) 744-1050
Hon. Jim Desmond, Mayor
(A) Hon. Hal Martin, Vice Mayor
(A) Hon. Rebecca Jones, Councilmember

City of Santee - (619) 258-4100 x114
Hon. Jack Dale, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Hal Ryan, Councilmember
(A) Hon. John Minto, Councilmember

City of Solana Beach - (858) 720-2490
Hon. Lesa Heebner, Deputy Mayor
(A) Hon. Dave Roberts, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Mike Nichols, Councilmember

City of Vista - (760) 639-6130
Hon. Judy Ritter, Mayor Pro Tem
(A) Hon. Bob Campbell, Councilmember
(A) Hon. Steve Gronke, Councilmember

County of San Diego – 619.531.5533
Hon. Pam Slater-Price, Chairwoman
(A) Hon. Greg Cox, Supervisor
(A) Hon. Ron Roberts, Chair Pro Tem

Hon. Bill Horn, Vice Chairman 619.531.5555
(A) Hon. Dianne Jacob, Supervisor

Kathy

----------------------

Kathy Keehan

Executive Director

San Diego County Bicycle Coalition

740 13th St, Suite 502

San Diego, CA 92101

858.487.6063

Bunnyhops For Breast Cancer Benefit

2010-10-12T20:46:00.000-07:00

DIY crafters Fast Pace Zine (from Murrieta and now SD) present a very important event...

Yes, you read correctly--a frame will be given to the first place winner of the trick comp and a frame for the first place winner of the alley cat race! Damn, FPZ doesn't f*ck around! They got that sponsor pull.

This will event will be goin' off! Not to miss. Notin' like a super fun, ragin' benefit bike event for a good cause. Is there anything better?

P.S. Thomas Bike Shop now has copies of Fast Pace Zine Issue #4. How could you not be down w/ a free zine loaded w/ ill full color photos?

This Sunday: SD Bike Union Fall Haul-In and Picnic

2010-10-12T20:28:00.000-07:00

The SD Bike Union is organizing their first, but not last, official community bike event this Sunday.

The Union is composed of some great SD bike advocates including Sky Boyer (Velo Cult owner, SDBikeCommuter.com creator), Jay Porter (The Linkery and El Take It Easy owner), Thomas Bahde (BikeSD.org contributor), Andrew Woolley (a respected champion of bike justice), and Fred Ollinger (a contributor on SDBikeCommuter.com forum) for the time being. With a core group of people like this, programs like the SDBikeCommuter.com Discount Program, and events like this Sunday's picnic, the Union is bound to grow into a great organization.

Flier and official statement below:

The San Diego Bike Union is hosting our first annual Fall Haul-In and Picnic at Trolley Barn Park in University Heights on SUNDAY, OCTOBER 17^TH @ 2:00pm.

Bring a picnic and lawn games, bring the kids, invite the neighbors!

The idea is to use your bike to transport everything to the park--we’re talking baskets, panniers, racks, backpacks, messenger bags, Xtracycles, cargo bikes, trailers, whatever you have that will turn your bike into a hauling machine--no cars needed!

This is a fun, FREE, and casual event for everyone to enjoy. You don't have to be nuts about bikes to come and enjoy good food, good community, and some fun games.

Folks from San Diego Bike Polo will be on hand to give a demonstration and let people try the sport for themselves.

Representatives from the bike kitchen Bikes del Pueblo will also be on hand to answer basic technical and repair questions.

Matt Lingo Photo Essay: Tecate, Mexico's Kilolibra

2010-10-12T01:43:00.000-07:00

Damn! Back-to-back-to-back entries from work by Matt Lingo. Dude's on-hit lately. When your work is this good, what do you expect?:

Matt and Alex made a little trip down to Tecate, Mexico to ride w/ their friends from Kilolibra, who make riding-inspired art and clothing. I love riding bikes in Mexico, from Tijuana to Mexico City. As such, I feel inclined to share this photo essay:

Bikepool.

For the complete photo essay from Matt click here. That's where I learned about this live art show organized by Kilolibra this coming Saturday:

Matt Lingo Films SD's DJ Mull

2010-10-12T01:31:00.000-07:00

Matt Lingo filmed this playful and fun-to-watch video of San Diego's DJ Mull for one of DJ's new sponsors, Copy. I haven't seen a fixed trick video set to Cake yet, but if anyone can make it happen it's Matt:

Copy presents DJ Mull from Matt Lingo on Vimeo.

I like how DJ hits shit really fast. In addition to speed, DJ makes it look clean.

Leader Catalog by Matt Lingo

2010-10-07T00:29:00.000-07:00

These photos by SD's Matt Lingo for the Leader Bikes catalog have been up for a week now but they are most certainly worth sharing here in case you haven't seen them yet. To miss them would be a true loss. I can't think of a photographer who has created more unique photo representations of bicycling than Matt Lingo.

Tyler Johnson and Terrence Patrick. The SD urban history nerd in me loves this. El Cortez hotel looks omnipresent.

Dan Arel on B St.

Tyler Johnson bombing B St.

Matt Spencer in the Barrio.

The San Diego Business Journal wishes.

Tom Lamarche Edit for WRAHW

2010-10-05T23:18:00.001-07:00

This video made my nite:

WRAHW Welcomes Tom Lamarche from WRAHW on Vimeo.

Hahaha! Yes! Tom Lamarche kills! Holy shit, that last clip had me dying.

Really dug that song. All around, that edit was entertaining as hell. Ups to Torey Thorton for putting that together for WRAHW--the most brutal bike blog in the world.

BIC = Bitches In Control

2010-10-05T01:50:00.000-07:00

If you've ever wondered what BIC stands for in Bic Control, it stands for Bitches In Control...psych! It's short for bicycle and is pronounced 'bike control' and sounds like 'mic control,' which is something that we argue cyclists in the U.S. need to enact change.

But I recently learned that BIC also stands for Bitches In Control, a killer riot grrrl street art crew who I think is based in Brooklyn while expanding as far as Berlin:

So so goood! Check out more here.

Generation Y Giving Cars a Pass

2010-10-05T01:18:00.000-07:00

We're winning...

This article for Yahoo News further reaffirms what we--as young people of today--know. Our current generation is undergoing and has undergone a paradigm shift in terms of how we view automobiles and mobility. This article discusses the paradigm shift that questions automobility but it does not discuss the paradigm shift that has embraced bicycles in major cities across the U.S. For that I'd recommend getting your hands on data from your local MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization), or, for a less technical, more fun yet informative read, I'd recommend the excellent book by Jeff Mapes, Pedaling Revolution. In the meantime...:

Generation Y Giving Cars a Pass

The generation gap is a growing, long-term headache for automakers.

By Jim Ostroff

Selling cars to young adults under 30 is proving to be a real challenge for automakers. Unlike their elders, Generation Yers own fewer cars and don’t drive much. They’re likely to see autos as a source of pollution, not as a sex or status symbol.

Motorists aged 21 to 30 now account for 14% of miles driven, down from 21% in 1995...

“It’s a matter of mind-set far more than affordability,” says William Draves, president of Learning Resources Network, an association that studies consumer trends and provides education and training services...

Moreover, in survey after survey, Gen Yers say that they believe cars are damaging to the environment. Even hybrid electric vehicles don’t seem to be changing young consumers’ attitudes much.

Bold emphasis added. The complete version of the article can be found here.

Tomorrow nite!: Tijuana's Paseo de Todos aka Everyone's Ride

2010-09-30T21:37:00.000-07:00

Aside from the all the violence obsessively reported in the San Diego media, there are actually many amazing, important, and (unreported) progressive events taking place in Tijuana. For example, this Friday a very purposeful yet fun bike event--Paseo de Todos--will be taking place. Here's more info from my buddy:

Riders of Tijuana/San Diego

The fourth Paseo de TODOS (everyone's ride) will be taking place this friday, in which TODOS (every) bicycle group in Tijuana will be coming together to give each other strength to be able to peacefully change the way in which society perceives human mobility and transportation.

We will unite so that together we can look after the common good and to make a meaningful presence as a single collective. In general, bicyclists are upset because the measures of a government who claims to be in favor of the bicycle/biciclysts have not been taken in order to benefit the bicyclist, since the two bike paths from Tijuana (zona río y rosas magallón) are impossible to access via bicycles. The pseudo governmental support of such facilities is only used as a political scapegoat.

In the inauguration of the Rosas Magallón sports center, the mayor Jorge Ramos declared: "Today we are planting the seed of hope; today we are investing in making sports a tool that can allow us to keep our children and our young ones from the wrong path." However, without access for pedestrians or bicyclists, it is impossible and very unsafe to access these bike paths unless it is with the use of a vehicle. Children and young people are not able to drive.

The petitions that we have on our first phase are as follows:
A revision to the Rules of Transit.
A restructuring of the Public Transport system so that it is more efficient and not a headache for everyone (it seems impossible in our city, but if we do not unite we will be victims of this all of our lives)
Signaling/Signs that foster respect to the Pedestrian and the Bicyclist.

We believe that if we provide with more security to the urban bicyclist and the pedestrian, society will be even more trustful of riding bicycles more often, which will result in the reduction of traffic in the neighborhoods as well as downtown It is almost unbelievable that in a two-block stretch people have to drive a vehicle (for example: going to the store to get milk).
We invite you to be part of modernization and re-culturization of our city.
This is a world movement.
In Mexico it takes place in DF, Guadalajara, Puebla, Queretaro, Celaya, Monterrey, Oaxaca, Morelia.
In Baja California it takes place in Ensenada and Tijuana.
Friday August 6, 2010. 8pm. Plaza Santa Cecilia (The large Arch right at the end of revolución, near the pedestrian crossing.)
-----------------

Ride Details & Suggestions:

Prior
-Make sure that your bicycle is in good running condition.
-Bring patches and our tubes in order to fix a flat.
-Get together with friends and or family members to assist the ride.
-Involve yourself and join us as a volunteer.

During
-Use lights and reflectors on your body or your bicycle.
-Always ride on the indicated lane, try to yield to the vehicles whenever necessary.
-Help out during intersections, supporting the volunteers, remember that the Paseo es de TODOS (it is everyone's ride)
-Follow instructions of volunteers and law enforcement.
-Maintain order and respect towards motorists, pedestrians and other bicyclists.
-Avoid screaming things that could offend the integrity of others.
-Avoid littering.
-Avoid consuming drugs and alcohol during the ride.
-Pay attention while crossing intersections.
-Be responsible for minors that are riding and their education, or tell your mom/dad to take care of you.
-Remember that you are the only one responsible of your safety to transit the street and taking care of others helps you become a part of a harmonious society.
-Enjoy the ride.

After
Take advantage of the experience that you gained during the ride and share it with other bicyclists.

Remember:
-This ride is fun and festive, violent attitudes are not welcome.
-The motorist is a potential bicyclist...smile and explain to him that this is el Paseo de TODOS (everyone's ride) and thank him for waiting

It's great to see an event taking place in Tijuana that combines direct purposeful action, well-thought-out advocacy goals w/ clear objectives, and never forgets the importance of fun. If you're not having fun, you're doing it wrong.

This Saturday: Tour De Fat at Balboa Park

2010-09-30T20:59:00.000-07:00

This Saturday Tour De Fat--the traveling bike carnival sponsored by New Belgium--is coming to San Diego. At Balboa Park (6th & Laurel) from 10am to 4pm, the day will be packed w/ bike parades, car funeral processions, and performances. Beer will most certainly be served.

Here's the schedule:

9:00 a.m. - Bike Parade Registration
10:00 a.m. - Bike Parade
11:00 a.m. Performances Begin
1:30 p.m. - Funeral procession for the car belonging to the Car-for-Bike Trade volunteer
3:30 p.m. - Car-for-Bike Trade Celebration
4:00 p.m. - Curtain Closes

Come out, ride some crazy mutant bikes, and have some bevvies. A significant portion of SD Tour De Fat will benefit the SD Mountain Biking Association the SD County Bike Coalition. SDCBC is a non-profit who works hard to improve bicycling conditions for all cyclists throughout the county. So come support!

More info: http://www.newbelgium.com/content/san-diego-balboa-park

Tomorrow: SD Bike Polo to Play Match In Between Horse Polo

2010-09-25T18:20:00.001-07:00

So punk gettin' on this bill! Can't believe I'm seeing what I'm seeing. Awesome.

Right f*cking now!: Benefit Race/Party for Local Messenger, Willy

2010-09-25T18:17:00.001-07:00

From Bryan:

This Sat. meet at the balboa fountain @ 6pm, race starts @ 7pm SHARP!!!

Bring $5, bag, lock, pen, and optional map if you need it.

Afterparty with awards, trackstand, beer, etc. at Space 4 art. Hosted by GS Cicleria. No admission to the afterparty unless you register to race.

This is a benefit to help pay for Downtown Wet-Willie's $20,000 uninsured medical bills, 100% of race donation fees go directly to his bill!!!

sponsored by: SAN DIEGO BIKE SHOP, PENNYFARTHINGS, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA UNITED MESSENGERS, ADAM'S AVENUE BICYCLES, TREE-TREE CYCLEWORKS, ETC.

Tomorrow: Chula Vista Bike Plan Public Workshop

2010-09-21T23:41:00.000-07:00

Help fix Chula.

Tomorrow (Sept. 22) you can play a huge role in doing so! The City of CV is holding a Bicycle Plan Public Workshop and you're invited. City staff and urban planners will be present to take notes of your suggestions to include in the Master Plan. Your comments help (1) define what will get done and will (2) determine what projects get priority in getting complete first.

The meeting is being held from 5:30 to 7:30pm at Heritage Elementary School, 1450 Santa Lucia Road.

Help shape our urban future by making Chula a better place to ride a bike.

Tomorrow! PARK(ing) Day to be celebrated at vacant Peason Ford lot

2010-09-16T22:25:00.001-07:00

International PARK(ing) Day is happening tomorrow, September 16, and livable streets advocates will be meeting at the giant vacant parking lot (Fairmount & El Cajon Blvd.) formerly occupied by a Ford dealership in City Heights from noon to 5pm. A few more organizations are spearheading PARK(ing) Day events throughout different parts of SD.

The El Cajon Blvd. Business Improvement Association and the International Rescue Committee are taking the lead on PARK(ing) Day in City Heights this year by transforming the vacant unused lot into a park for people accompanied by plants, sustainable furniture, and a BBQ party. Feel free to bring some grillables. If you don't have any to bring, some will be provided. The only requirement for free grub is that you must be a human being, and not a car.

PARK(ing) Day is about taking back public space for people, rather than the space being designated for the exclusive use of temporary automobile storage.

One reason why City Heights was chosen is because it's one of the most dense neighborhoods in San Diego, yet remains one of the most park deficient.

Last year was the first-known official PARK(ing) Day celebration in San Diego. In an optimistic sign for livable streets advocates in this extremely auto-centric city, the SD Union Tribune published a photo of SD (PARK)ing Day on their front page last year.

9/17 update:

SD PARK(ing) Day 2010 in action. People in Little Italy turn a space normally used by an unoccupied sitting automobile into a mini-park; all while feeding the meter.

Calling all working class bike jerks---L.A. is on the phone

2010-09-03T19:01:00.000-07:00

According to one of my favorite Missing Persons songs, 'Nobody walks in L.A.'...I've realized that this is because they're all riding bikes...Okay, well some are. Actually, lots are!

L.A.'s bike community is booming. And this weekend people from bike communities in Phoenix, Bay Area, SAN DIEGO and more are visiting L.A. for a couple of reasons.

1. The POLO-Q Labor Day BBQ/friendly invite is goin' down Saturday and Sunday from 3-8pm each day. Ponder your memories of laborious toil and then raise your mallets in the air for polo unity and celebration!:

Act! 11455 Magnolia Blvd. I'll be there along w/ the core SD polo kids.

The other reason (#2) some SD heads are makin' the trip to LA is for the Bike Film Festival!

Which reminds me, the SD Bike Film Festival is goin' down next week/weekend, September 9-12! Don't miss it.

And while I'm in L.A. this weekend I'm gonna see what's up w/ the Fuck Yeah Festival. Hopefully I'll get to see San Diego's 90s hardcore band Unbroken and !!!, one of my favorite bands for live shows and for riding music.

Put simply, LA is goin' off.

Next weekend, however, it's all about SD.

Out!

Tomorrow at 5pm!: The Cretins Present First-Annual PUNKOLYMPICS

2010-08-28T16:37:00.000-07:00

This is gonna go off!

(Flier by Muerte).

(Flier by Acamonchi).

Tonite at 6pm: Manivela Delivery Alley Cat Race

2010-08-28T13:00:00.000-07:00

San Diego's own bicycle-drive food delivery service, Manivela, is organizing their second-ever alleycat race tonite:

If you get into a crash tonite Manivela will deliver you a band-aid, most likely for free. Food, however, costs $5 anywhere in the center/mid-city area. Support.

Ride safe tonite, homies.

Cyclist Struck From Behind By Motorist Suffers Severe Head Injuries

2010-08-28T12:58:00.001-07:00

A cyclist riding on Clairemont Mesa Blvd on August 25 was struck from behind by a motorist. The motorist was going so fast that the cyclist "went over" the hood of the car after being struck from behind by the motorist. Severe head, pelvic, and facial injuries were/have been sustained by the cyclist.

Fortunately, the motorist did not flee the scene. According to the Advisory Message report released by the SDPD, 'The driver of the car did not see the bicyclist due to the sun in his eyes.'

Analysis w/ possible solutions for crash prevention:

Obviously, the driver should have used more discretion when driving under conditions that prevented him from having the ability see. But what does the law say?

According to the California Vehicle Code's Basic Speed Law,

CVC 22350. No person shall drive a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, the traffic on, and the surface and width of, the highway, and in no event at a speed which endangers the safety of persons or property.

[Italicized emphasis has been added]

Sounds like the motorist violated the Basic Speed Law since the sun was in his eyes and failed to safely control his car and yield. It's nice to know that there was a law that's meant to protect us from such situations. However, this law did not protect this innocent cyclist. One innocent man may have the mental and physical quality of his life comprised forever, while the other is sitting fine.

So, what can be done? Prosecution of the above-mentioned motorist is certainly desirable.

How can these crashes be prevented in the future? One SD Bike Coalition email list contributor suggested that California create a Strict Liability Law that is similar to countries in Europe:

In summary, as far as I understand, a motorist involved in a crash w/ a vulnerable road user (such as a cyclist) is assumed to be guilty and must prove how he/she could NOT have prevented the crash from happening, under the Strict Liability law.

It's reasonable to assume that under the Strict Liability law, drivers would drive far more cautiously. Doing so would create a safer and more pleasant society for all road users; cyclists, other motorists, pedestrians, the disabled, the elderly, and children.

To get involved, contact your local political representatives and/or the California Bike Coalition to learn how you can help.

If you have any info in regards to the above-mentioned crash please contact the SDPD investigators who are working on this case. More info on the crash and contacts here.

Our thoughts go out to the cyclist and his family.

Edit to original entry: Meant to italicize 'visibility' rather than 'weather' when citing the Basic Speed Law. Thanks to the reader who pointed this out. My mistake. Now fixed.

Saddle up tomorrow nite at CM and keep it posi

2010-08-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

The last official CM of the summer is goin' down tomorrow nite. Same place and time that's been for several years.

Please remember the following:

Keep it posi.

Communicate. See something you do or don't approve of? Then use your voice, positively, in a constructive manner.

Thank motorists for waiting. This goes a long ways.

Please stay off the bridge--it's unsafe.

And most importantly ride safe, look out for one another, and have fun.

This is a huge weekend for bikes, so check the following entries for more on what's goin' down.

Band Touring On Bikes Set to Ride/Play SD this Wednesday

2010-08-17T00:47:00.000-07:00

Kentucky-based cellist, singer, songwriter Ben Sollee and his band have chosen SD to kick off their bike-powered tour of the U.S. This tour, known as the Ditch The Van Tour which has pulled sponsors like the League of American Bicyclists, is extremely impressive. The band will be riding--with equipment in tow!--from SD to SF to Colorado to D.C. and more in between.

The Ditch The Van Tour is about going car-free, minimizing your carbon footprint, discovering one's preferred pace of life, it's about the city and its infrastructure, and about connectivity not just across the country but about connectivity to towns and to the people who live in them.

Connect w/ the first leg of the tour this Wednesday, Aug. 18 when Sollee and band ride to Sushi Art (390 11th Ave) in Downtown SD to perform. Sollee and band are asking people to join them on the SD ride. This ride meets at Velo Cult at 5pm, departing at 6:30pm to head downtown for the show.

Come support this working-class bicyclist on the mic.

Tomorrow: Tour De Five Cities, B.L.A.H. Benefit for Bike Coalition

2010-08-14T14:07:00.000-07:00

Blind Lady Ale House (B.L.A.H.) and Adams Ave. Bike Shop are organizing a bike ride and benefit for the SD County Bicycle Coalition tomorrow, Sunday Aug. 14. The ride meets at Adams Ave. Bikes at 8:30am. The group will then head down to the ferry landing to catch the ferry into Coronado and ride down the Strand, around the bay, and back up to Blind Lady Ale House. B.L.A.H. is a bike-friendly restaurant/ale house who is sponsoring the Bicycle Film Festival and is a member of the SD Bike Commuter Discount Program.

15% of all purchases made at B.L.A.H. on Sunday, Aug. 14 will be donated to the Bike Coalition, who works to improve bicycling for all cyclists in the entire county. So come support a group who takes action to make life better!

This Weekend!: SD Bike Polo Invite & BBQ!

2010-08-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

Super stoked for this!

I heard that players from Utah, Arizona, LA, and Claremont (the City) are coming down for this. Technically it's not a tournament--it's basically a friendly invite for comp. gaming and a polo fest w/ party elements.

Either way, it's gonna be awesome. Be there. Saddle up and mallet up.

This Weekend!: Street Art Rides in Tijuana and San Diego!

2010-07-30T18:47:00.001-07:00

This is going to be a blast!

I love riding Tijuana. I've been riding from SD to TJ since I was 15 years old as a mountain bike-loving high school kid growing up in Chula Vista (several miles from the border).

The ride in Tijuana tomorrow is going to be very special--Sezio and Rurista Libre are leading the ride to a number of secret spots featuring sick street art.

The TJ Ride (the first of two rides) is meeting at the south side of the pedestrian border crossing in Colonia Federal at 1pm.

The second ride is the SD Ride goin' down this Sunday. That ride meets at 11am next to Shepard Fairey's new piece that he put a couple weeks ago on the Urban Outfitters in Hillcrest.

More info at the Facebook event page and on the Sezio website.

Both rides are fully backed by Los Cruzadores, the SD to TJ transnational bike crew and this blog, Bic Control: Bicyclists on the Mic!