Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Beer Cat

Just got this in the inbox.....


Here are the details,


Hey man, Thomas and I are putting on an Alleycat on August 22nd at 8:30 PM. It's going to include drinking, side events and all around good times. Drinking is a part of the race since this race is the spiritual successor to the "Too drunk to fuck race" that happened a while back. All cyclists and spectators are welcome.
The time and info are all on it but I'll recap it here.

Date/Time/Place: August 22nd, 8:30 PM, Lamar Ped. Bridge
Entry Fee: $5
Race, and Side events including Footdown, Skid Comp. and Track Stand Chug.
Winners get shirts and whatever else I can scrounge up.

Also there will be spoke cards! I hate races without spoke cards.






There you have it folks....BEER CAT!!!!

Friday, July 24, 2009

couple of gems, that are the tits!!!!








We should totally learn the dance.... and do it on a ride.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

DoubleDown Alleycat!

....was a TON of fun!!! I don't have much time to write about it this morning, but I did want to say thanks to Jessica and Heather for putting on an awesome race :) Barton Springs was the best stop anyone could ask for!!

Thanks for organizing and getting lots of ladies out to race. I saw sooooo many new faces at Uncle Billy's.

Also, good-bye to Heather. She's moving back home and will be missed. Sorry for the crappy, short post, but work is work, and I get paid to work, not to write blogs ;)

Ride Safe :)
Jenny

Friday, July 10, 2009

break

I will be taking a break from the blog for a bit. Jenn may keep posting, I don't know. Once I start again, it will be full force.


til next time


OLC

Thursday, July 9, 2009

polo BBQ Sunday

Do you think Lance can win?

This just in, paint your own lane....

Saw this over at our friends site. Tell me what you think of the idea....


"The illegal practice of guerilla bike lane painting or painting bike lanes where there currently are none is a growing problem in Los Angeles. The issue is now getting national attention and sparking debate here in Austin.
The July issue of "Bicycle Magazine" features an article about a group of L.A. cyclists who are now going out painting bike lanes on roads where the city of L.A. has either refused to put them or is behind on bicycle infrastructure.
The topic is currently being discussed on local cycling blogs. One local cyclist in fact suggested that cyclists start doing the same thing here.
Employees with Austin's Public Works department are strongly discouraging people from creating their own bicycle lanes.
"We are a fragile program we're small and it's hard for us to make the progress that we're already making and if we have to backtrack by taking out that type of action then that really hurts us time wise and funding wise," said Annick Beaudet with Austin Public Works.
Beaudet told KVUE that she didn't know of any guerilla bike lanes in Austin. However KVUE found a stretch of hand painted lanes in north Austin in the 7200 block of Arroyo Seco between Anderson and Koenig Lane.
The issue of guerilla bike lanes gets mixed reaction even within Austin's own cycling community.
"It sounds nice. An extra bike lane would be good but I mean, you know I almost get hit three or four times a day depending on where I bike to. I think this is a protective measure to protect bikers," says Ben Sabin, an Austin cyclist.
Thomas Vidal, another Austin cyclist disagrees.
"I don't support that because it's not their job to be doing that, it's the city's job. Obey the law, pretty much you know. They should just take other routes, take it to the courts, write their Governor a letter and whatnot," says Vidal.
Austin Public Works told KVUE that Austin is making great strides with bike lanes especially compared to Los Angeles.
Annick Beaudet says last year Austin built 10-miles of bicycle lanes last year. Thirty five miles of bicycle lanes are planned for this year in Austin.
"If there was ever a time to trust public works department that we are making progress in those areas is now," says Beaudet.
This summer the city is planning to add bike lanes on Amhearst, Rosewood, East 11th and East 12th.
Austin Police say painting bike lanes without the city's consent is considered criminal mischief, a violation of the city's transportation code."

If you want to watch the
video

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Safe Passing Bill

Today I received an email from the MS150 Safety Committee urging cyclists to contact Governor Perry regarding the Safe Passing Bill (SB488). I know most of us are upset that the Safe Passing Bill was vetoed by Rick Perry, so lets express our anger.

You can get all of his contact information here as well as send him an angry little email.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

- Fixed Gears banned in Berlin -

Apparently Berlin has taken a major step backwards in advancing bike culture and has banned fixed gear bikes. As the article says, "Seeing what they considered a growing danger to traffic safety, Berlin police announced this spring they would begin cracking down on fixie riders. Since only April, they’ve confiscated 18 bicycles."

Not only does this law discourage some cycling, it also effects the "safety in numbers" concept where the more people that ride, the safer the streets will become. According to this chart, as ridership in NYC increases, the number of related deaths decreases. Obviously drivers, pedestrians and cyclists are all becoming used to the different modes of transportation and looking out for each other a little bit more.















As for the reason for this post, we've had our fair share of discussions over fixed gears and the proposal of requiring a working brake on the bike, but I never thought it would come to out-right banning them. I wonder if Berlin passed a mandatory brake law on fixed gears (to track if accidents decreased) before banning them completely?

Personally, I think it's wise to have an emergency brake on your fixed gear for that sole purpose - emergencies. You never know when someone's going to cut you off or pull out in front of you, and I think it's nice to have that extra stopping power. BUT - I do not think requiring a brake should be made law. It's every rider's preference as to how & what they want to ride. That being said, I also think it's a horrible idea to ban a specific bike. If a cyclist is going to ride like a douche, they're going to ride like a douche on any type of bike.


The damage a bike can do as opposed to a car is far less. Usually, if a car and bike collide, it's only the cyclist who is hurt. Being a cyclist, I think that's a conscious choice each one of us make every time we get on a bike. We know the dangers and probabilities are against us, yet we still ride.

...are the bikes really so dangerous that they shouldn’t be street legal?

Take this as you will. I hope Austin doesn't like this idea.

Ride safe.
Jenny

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