Thursday, January 31, 2008

Greatest...Video...Ever!

This isn't at all related to cycling. but I have to share it.

Read more!

Monday, January 28, 2008

Tomas Delgado is a Humanitarian

After years of watching cyclists get man handled by motorists and various branches of the legal system you would think that nothing surprises me anymore, but every once and and a while something pops up in the news that makes me say "Huh... I wasn't really expecting that" Only to later think to myself " I should have expected to see that at some point."

I read this first on bike forums, then someone e-mailed me about it then Allen from PAA shot me an e-mail so I decided it merited comment. Usually if Allen thinks something is important it is because he's a teacher. You can read a relatively complete synopsis of what's got everyone so pissed at Bike Radar. Basically what happened is this: 17 year old Enaitz Iriondo was riding his bike in the evening and Tomas Delgado hit him with his Audi A8 while doing 100 mph. Needless to say Iriondo died. Delgado's insurance later paid Iriondo's family about 33,000 Euros (you do the math) acknowledging that Delgado's speed probably had something to do with the accident. Delgado has raised suit against the Iriondo's to the tune of 26,000 Euros to cover the damage to his car saying "It's the only way I can get my money back" (I read in another copy of the article that he also made the comment "Iriondo's family got something out of this, so I should too" but that's unsupported as I haven't been able to find that article a second time). What damage you ask? The damage Iriondo's body did to the A8 Delgado was driving when Delgado hit him, that's what damage.

I'm assuming that after paying out 33,000 Euros to Iriondo's family the insurance company told Delgado to go fuck himself when he came calling for them to cover the damages which is why he is raising suit. I'm hoping the Spanish legal system, being somewhat reasonable, tells him to do the same thing. I'm also assuming, and again this is an assumption, that Delgado is a real fucking prick. Honestly, if I were Iriondo's Dad I'd tell Delgado to meet me in the Desert so I could give him the cash myself. Then I'd accidentally forget the cash, but instead remember to bring a hungry Mountain Lion for some weird reason.

Enaitz Iriondo and his really sympathetic killer Tomas Delgado

Read more!

Saturday, January 26, 2008

PAA "Mystery" Covert CAT 4/5 Training ride

There are many operations that take place on a regular basis throughout the United States that are considered "Black" or off the budgets, off the records, and out of the news. Of those clandestine operations none is more notorious than the PAA CAT 4/5 training rides. Conspiricy theories and speculation are abundant, with the PAA CAT 4/5 team often being stalked by photographers looking to blow the cover on their highly guarded routes, Cold War inspired training tactics and a squad members list that is as secret as the identity of Paris Hilton's coke dealer... Unparalleled in the secrecy of team communique it is not uncommon for orders from the 4/5 coaches and captains to go out mere hours before the ride takes place. 4/5 riders are expected to be perched at the ready, prepared for a training ride that could take place at any time, and anywhere in the world. As a relatively unpopular member of the larger "Cover" known simply as the Pasadena Athletic Association, I was granted unfettered access on one of the 4/5 team's most clandestine training rides. I was ripped from my slumber at 6:30 and dragged to an unnamed location. What follows is a highly censored synopsis of today's clandestine training ride.



Through much investigation by conspiracy theorists it has been discovered that the PAA CAT 4/5 team seems to concentrate much of their training in Southern California, and more specifically in the Northern Suburbs surrounding Los Angeles. Today's ride left from an unnamed park directly north of Hollywood, headed north through some of the connecting suburbs before winding through the country and reaching the marque sections of the routes. I left with a group of 5 or 6 riders and then met two more in an area that I believe to be close to the freeway. We wound our way up to what I can only assume was S C , a northern suburb of Los Angeles. Before reaching the main sections of the training ride we stopped for what the captain, whom I've heard M-16 and the CIA refer to as "The Wall", for a refuel. I was able to snap a photo that I'm sure will blow the lid off the PAA CAT 4/5 teams nutritional plan, a plan that was designed after years of government experimentation on endurance athletes and Navy Seals between 1976-2001. Conspiracy theorists have speculated at length that 9/11 was an elaborate cover-up used to disguise the destruction of the testing facilities and all records of the experiments for fear they would be leaked and sold on the black market due to scaled back military security during the Clinton administration. It is also highly debated among conspiracy theorists that some of those government doctors have found their way into the ranks of the PAA CAT 4/5 team, thanks to the organizations deep coffers.



After the refuel, we continued on for another 15 miles before reaching the first marque climb of the day. I was amazed, nay in awe as I watched various member of the PAA CAT 4/5 team deftly handle this difficult and steep climb. The elegance with which they climbed was inspiring. It is not every day that a casual rider like myself finds himself surrounded by such greatness. It is no wonder they keep their squad list so highly guarded.

After descending from the first climb back to a relatively civilized area ( I say "relatively" as this area was heavily traveled by "bros" in their archaic and ridiculously modified American trucks, thus making me assume we were somewhere in the 909, I later determined I was wrong) the team regrouped to refuel again. One can imagine that a team that burns 50,000 collective calories would have to refuel often. The team split one taking a flat route for TTT training while my group went up the final marque climb. This climb was incredibly long, and difficult. It was guarded by a fast moving river, which the team easily negotiated. It's astonishing the skill level of this team. Again, as we went up the road I was in awe. I could not hold the pace of the rest of the group, and quickly fell off the back, losing contact with the group. We again regrouped and headed back to the original meeting location. From there the team went back to their daily life, assuming their "sleeper" identities.

I would not be surprised if this is my last post... I feel I may have revealed too much.
Read more!

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Dear John....

Yesterday, I wrote a blog about the Melissa Arrington article in the AZStar. For those of you who missed the giant AP News boat here's a quick rundown. She was drunk before 8 p.m. She swerved multiple times and then hit a cyclist, killing him dead. She later made a comment on the phone to the tune of "it's funny haha that I killed a cyclist" which happened to be recorded because she was in jail. She got 10.5 years. Oh, and it was her second DUI. All in all it was pretty disgusting...

Somehow my blog ended up on the top of the google search and I got 900 hits before I came to work. 32 of you kind folks (and I mean kind in every sense of the word) left comments. I stayed out of the commenteering since so many of you seemed to have it under control. One comment though caught be by surprise, and I felt it necessary to respond. It was sincere, honest and kind hearted; but what it said really pissed me off, and touched my heart at the same time. This is from "John", he says:

It is frustrating when you are driving and cyclist are also sharing the road. There should be paths for them to cycle on so they don't risk getting hit by cars. It is dangerous for a cyclist to ride his/her bike along with traffic. They cant' be seen around curves.

That being said, Melissa deserved her punishent because she did not care about killing a human being and bragged about it. I do not care about her, but I care about the person who drives a car and kills a cyclist by accident and feels remorse for the rest of his/her life.

Cyclists should not share the same roads as cars is my point.

First of all, thank you John, for being honest and forthright with your opinion. And thank you for being a motorist who seems to be honestly concerned with the well being of cyclists (...so they won't risk getting hit), I really, really appreciate that. I'm sure I'll never get to know you through this internet veil, but thanks for voicing your opinion here. The opinions you have aren't confined to yourself, and it's important that motorists and cyclists have open dialog about sharing the road. So for you john, this Buds for you!

To comment on what you say...
I'm sure it's "frustrating" sharing the road with someone who travels a fraction of the normal pace of traffic. Fortunately it's just that for motorists, "frustrating and irritating", Not "Dangerous or treacherous", which is the reality for bicyclists not because of road conditions or steep gradients but solely because of cars. So thank your stars that "Frustrating" is the only word you get to use when describing your commute. My commute is Frustrating and Irritating because of motorists and their inability to move to a completely open lane to go around me, but also dangerous and treacherous for the same reason.

Now I'm a mixed transit guy, I have a car and some bikes. I choose to ride my bikes to work from my house because its less than 5 miles one way. I've made that choice for a few reasons.
1. It's easier on my pocket book. With the rising cost of oil it makes sense.
2. It's easier on the environment. With the rising world temperature it makes sense.
3. It's easier on state infrastructure. Did you see the bridge in Minnesota? Have you ridden a bike on crumbling streets? it makes sense. why? me and my bike weigh 200 lbs together. You and your car? 3000 lbs.
4. It's better for my health. Have you looked at yourself in the mirror? I have. I look great and it's because I'm in great shape. you could be in great shape too.

I'm glad that you had the where with all to come out and say that cyclists should not share the roads with cars. You're absolutely right. Cyclists shouldn't share the roads with cars, we should get the rule of the road. Here's why: Cycling is more productive and better for the environment and infrastructure. It has lower impact on both and a lighter, smaller footprint. Additionally it's better for the bicyclist. Now, look around at the crumbling American infrastructure, and the expanding American waistline and tell me honestly... Would that be happening if Americans Rode bikes more than they drive cars? Probably not.

Now on my commute to work there is no bike path, nor even bike lanes. Thus I have to ride in the street, sharing lanes of traffic with cars, trucks and motorcycles since a bicycle is a vehicle, and not a form of pedestrian motion like walking or running. Just so you're absolutely crystal clear, riding on the sidewalk is illegal. Now I ABSOLUTELY agree with you that there should be bike lanes and paths leading to and from every single destination in the world. Unfortunately people like Mary Peters, the Secretary of Transportation, seems to think it's wasteful to build a bike infrastructure like that. Do you think it's wasteful too? I don't, and I think the 89 million Americans who ride a bike for one reason or another would agree with me. If you don't want to share the road with cyclists then I suggest you start writing letters to Mary Peters telling her that we need bike lanes and paths to and from everywhere that a citizen might need or want to go. That's what I've been doing, writing letters that say just that. And until those bike paths and lanes exist I'm going to ride on the street because that's my right as a tax paying citizen of the United States of America.

Cheers John,

Thank you for your contribution.
Read more!

"Stunning in it's Inhumanity"



That's a polite way of saying it I suppose. Read more!

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

F**k You Melissa Arrington

Recently, in Arizona, a Drunk driver hit, and killed a cyclist. Later, in a recorded phone conversation the driver was heard laughing about the death of the cyclist. She only received 10.5 years. The full article is at the AZStar. You can click here to read it, but if you are even slightly a more descent human than me you'll be offended...

After reading the article I wrote a long open letter telling Melissa in so many words that I hoped she met an untimely death. I debated back and forth for an hour about whether I should publish it or not. Obviously I decided not to. After reading it over and over again I just felt terrible, like I was no better than her and her friend. I can't remember the last time I was this mad at something I have no tangible connection with. Her attitude in Court shows that she doesn't assume responsibility for her actions and that she blames everyone else, even the witness who called 911. I hear shit like what those two said to each other all the time. It disgusts me that people have ZERO regard for human life, simply because it's a life that was on two wheels and not in four. I think about how there are so many people who HATE cyclists, just like Melissa, people who hate cyclists enough to kill one and laugh about it. A part of me feels bad for writing that piece, that part thinks about how she probably has some fucked up circumstances and a sad, sad life. But another part of me feels no remorse for writing it, and anger at myself for not publishing it. She said what she said and I was returning the sentiment. I suppose though; she should be forgiven.

I try to keep it cool here. I give out just enough abuse to get some laughs but not enough to hurt feelings. This though, I simply can't mask my anger. I suppose I'm probably projecting my anger at ALL the people who really do think shit like that. People who hit cyclists on purpose or throw full beer cans at us, people who intentionally run us off the road, who call us fags and who forget that we, like them, are humans.

So in an effort to return the my blog to it's light hearted nature I'll say this:

FUCK YOU MELISSA ARRINGTON

**EDIT**

I've read all the comments and I read the article on CNN. I think it's important to note that CNN decided to leave out the portion of the AZSTAR article describing Melissa's attempt to blame the witness for the accident, and how she tried to avoid responsibility for her actions by saying she was reaching for hand sanitizer. The CNN article makes it look like she made that comment to impress her friend, and that in actuality she's a really sweet girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time doing the wrong thing.

I also think it's important to remember that this is about someone who KILLED someone else, and then laughed it off like it was some funny game, which is absolutely disgusting. Take out the bikes, cars and and alcohol and someone is still dead. That someone had family and friends.
Read more!

Mary Peters: Big Oil's Sexy Spokesperson says: "Bikes Kill People on Bridges" RAWR!!!

I am way behind the times. WAAAAY behind. I miss stuff, lots and lots of important stuff. Like this comment by Mary Peters, Secretary of Transportation.



Huh...

I'm trying to wrap my head around this one but I doubt that Mary's assertions that Bicycles are somehow to blame for the Minnesota bridge collapse are accurate. I think they figured out that the cause was structural failure and poor engineering. Something having to do with 1/2" steal plates instead of the 3/4" steal that was designated by the engineers who designed it. You know, I think this has something to do with a combination of some DOT "oversight", heavy ass cars and trucks and not bicycles, since they're not allowed on that bridge. BUUUUT I could be wrong. It also could be the millions of dollars in Bridge Project money that Congress rescinded from the states, or that whole "Lowest Bidder" thing that government agencies are so fond of...

I also like how Mary has done a complete 180 from comments she made in 2002 regarding bicycle transportation. She said, and I quote: "Many people in our country use bikes for more than recreation. For them, bikes are their vehicle for the commute to work and for the errands of daily life. We need every mode of transportation to keep America mobile. What modes did you use to get to your hotel? Very few of us depend on a single mode. I strongly agree with Secretary Mineta, bicyclists are an integral part of our nation’s transportation system and we all need to work together to develop a better more balanced transportation system that provides facilities and programs for bicyclists on a routine basis."

Hmmmm...

From "We need to work together to develop a more balanced transportation system" to "the millions spent on bike lanes made the bridge collapse" sure does seem like a bit of waffling. But what would I know? I'm only college grad with a degree in Rhetoric. I find it interesting that in the last 8 years there has been a definite attitude of "Get in line with the Administration or kick rocks". I'm pretty sure this about face has something to do with that and Bush's love for oil, his lust for absolute power, and his obvious disregard for truth and honest discourse. But then again, what would I know since that Degree only includes a minor in Poli Sci.
Read more!

Sunday, January 20, 2008

I Still Hate PCH

I'm not sure what it is about the rides that I call, but my rides are the most unpopular rides ever. I'm unsure if it's the names (hammer-rama, sufferfest) or the distances (100+...usually) or the fact that I have complex routes with large amounts of elevation gain. Whatever the cause, this ride was no different only this time some people did show up. I sent out probably 400 e-mails for this ride and and two people showed up, one who didn't even get the e-mail...

Todays ride was to be a trip over Mulholland, to the beach, up PCH to Latigo, and then back through the Valley. It ended up being just that, minus Latigo, plus Topanga and Old Topanga and the Secret slopes. The mileage for me was just under 100. Leo from Bicycle John's and Chris from PAA came a long, making the ride much more bearable. being out on the road for 6 hours alone can result in one talking to oneself, so it was nice having actual real people to talk to.

The weather was great and the riding was awesome. I felt really strong the whole time and was even able to bang out an extra 2500 ft. of climbing after 80 miles. I even met Tony Cruz, that was awesome.

One of the e-mails I received regarding this ride was from my friend Vontz, who said "sounds like a great ride, but I'm retired from riding on PCH" My initial thought was "eh...whatever" but when we got onto PCH my mind changed. I don't know why people do this, but even when there are three lanes people still felt it necessary to pass us close enough that we could feel it. I don't know about you all, but that shit pisses me off. Seriously, WHY do people insist on driving like that? This is what made me change my mind about riding up to Latigo. I'd be the only one of the group going that way, and I just didn't feel safe after being breezed by 4 or 5 different minivans and SUVs. I decided at that point to go up Topanga with Leo and Chris. Chris brought up a really good point about motorists. When you ride a bike, you're not thinking so much about where you're going, but more about where you are. Your caught up in the environment, you're paying attention to the route, so on and so on. Drivers are different. Most drivers are thinking about where they're going. They're thinking about that next turn, the destination. So drivers aren't paying attention the way that cyclists are. So when they go to make that turn, they've already made it in their head. I thought about what he said, and I agree.

It sucks that on such a common cycling route, that drivers give almost zero regard for cyclist. Infact, there were two cyclist who were killed a while back on PCH in a hit and run accident. When cornered about the issue, the city of Malibu said they weren't going to add bike lanes because they didn't want to attract more cyclists to the route. It boggles my mind that in California, and in Malibu of all places people would have THAT attitude. Let's continue to put cyclists at risk, lets continue to marginalize this group of people even though we have such a HUGE cycling community here. It's just ridiculous. Just being on the road made me want to fight people.

Without the drama that is PCH the ride was pretty sweet. All the climbing that we did was awesome and then doing repeats on the secret slopes was pretty great, making me feel really confident.

Here's the route:

Read more!

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

A Sad Day for Cycling

This Article is reprinted from Velonews.com the full article can be viewed at www.velonews.com...

Scottish time trialist Jason MacIntyre has died after a collision with a van while training in Fort William, according to British press reports. The 34-year-old Scot, a multiple British and Scottish time-trial champion who had hoped to make the British Olympic team, died while being airlifted to a hospital. His death came a day after he had been given funding to train for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

Police said prosecutors will decide if charges should be brought against a 35-year-old man.

In a statement, MacIntyre's family said he was a "wonderful son, husband, brother and father. His achievements in the world of cycling were nothing short of wonderful too."

Last year, Macintyre broke cycling legend Graeme Obree's 10-mile time trial Scottish record. Obree told the BBC he had great respect for Macintyre and was shocked by his death. The cyclist was born in Lochgilphead but had lived in Fort William since the age of 10. Despite not starting cycling until he was 18, he progressed in the sport, winning the Tour of the North in Ireland at the age of 23. In 2002, he was selected to represent Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester. MacIntyre won the British 25-mile time trial twice and was the first Scot to win the British Circuit race time trial championship. He took two years away from racing to help his wife, Caroline, following the premature birth of their daughters, now 8. Tributes have been pouring in following his death. Scottish Olympic and world cycling medalist Craig MacLean told the BBC: "Jason was a really nice guy, his death is a sad loss to the world of cycling. It's very tragic. I think Jason was being considered for the Olympic squad in Beijing later this year and that would have been the pinnacle of his career."

Jackie Davidson, director of Scottish Cycling, the sport's governing body, said: "We are very sad for Caroline and the two girls and our thoughts are with them. Jason was a rider with so much talent and potential. Everyone is shocked to hear the news."

BBC Radio Scotland sports presenter John Beattie, who recently spoke to MacIntyre on his program, said the death illustrated the risks facing cyclists on Scotland's roads. He said: "Here was a young bloke out training and he got killed. It just shows to everyone sitting in cars how dangerous it can be to be a cyclist."

"He was a road racer, he broke time trials, and that kind of cyclist needs to train on the roads but with more and more cars on the roads it is more dangerous."

This is a sad day for cycling. As is every day that someone dies on their bike, whether it be on a training ride, a commute to work or school, or just a run down the street to get groceries.
Read more!

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Stagecoach Century

Well... it's done. I've completed the first century of my regiment, so the 15 rides for cyclists rights is officially started. I wasn't really sure what to expect with this ride. I'd never done it before, I'd heard very limited feedback from other riders on the difficulty of it, and I had no idea what the weather was going to be like. The year before I heard it was wicked cold, so I prepared for that. Everything couldn't have come together better though, it was a pretty sweet ride...

I drove to San Diego Friday night and stayed with my friends Matt and Theresa. They graciously gave me a couch to sleep on and showed me a really, really good Mexican Restaurant. Theresa even woke up early and made pancakes. De-lish. I rolled out around 5:45 in the A.M. and headed east on the 8 freeway. If you've never driven the 8 from San Diego to El Centro I recommend you do. There is some beautiful country there.

This ride was unlike anything I'd experienced before. When I left San Diego at 5:45 it was very cold. When I got to Ocotillo it was debatable as to whether I needed my arm and knee warmers. I checked in, hit the port-o-john and rolled out. I haven't spent a lot of time in the Desert and I was Awestruck. there were times when I was looking around thinking "I've got to take a picture of this" but I didn't. I didn't take enough pictures the whole ride since I was busy hauling ass the whole time. About half way between SAG 1 and SAG 2 I caught up with a couple guys from Banning's Bikes in Fullerton, Chris and Bob. It turned into an all out interval work out between Chris and I as we paced each other at 20-25 mph to SAG 2. We traded pleasantries at SAG 2, discussed a couple things about bikes and agreed to slow the pace for the rest of the ride. I had heard there was no real climbing on this route, that it was mostly just a false flat for 50 miles and then you turned around and it was downhill for the last 50...usually with a sweet tailwind. That wasn't really the case. There were a couple climbs, and some steep grades here and there, as much as 13% in places. Of Course those climbs turned in to descents, which was sweet.

There were a number of humorous points (by points I mean riders) that gave us a laugh. The most laughed about was the guy on the Tri-bike in the Arrogant Bastard Jersey. Chris and I were rolling up to the turn around point, debating how far it was when we saw this guy turn around. He just gave up. literally right after that we crested the hill and BOOM, there was the turn around, not a half mile away. Chris and I definitely gave that guy a ton of shit... to ourselves of course. Another humorous point was Cologne guy. This guy smelled like he had spent the night in a bathtub full of stetson, despite participating in an activity that induces body odor. My personal favorite though was Mr. Headphones-in-the-middle-of-the-road-guy. When I train alone I wear headphones, especially if I'm just riding in Griffith Park, but along with that comes greater responsibility, one of which is staying glued to the right, since you can't hear oncoming cyclists, or traffic. This guy was firmly out in the middle of the road, almost on the yellow divider line. Chris and I came up on him first during our interval. I yelled "Left" over and over again, and was forced to slow WAY down, then cross the yellow to get around him and his group. Real nice dude, real nice.

The turn around, lunch, and the first part of the ride back was fairly uneventful. However after the last big descent we caught a group of guys who were ready to hammer, and since that famous tailwind we were supposed to get was actually a pretty burly headwind, these guys were a welcome addition. We paced down the road to the last climb at about 23-30 miles an hour. We'd chat about riding and how great it was to not race, but just to ride and have fun. Bob, the guy who was something like 7 ft. tall but only weight 150 seemed to become the Marshall of the group, I'm not sure why, probably because he was the tallest. The other guys in the group, who's names I either didn't get or forgot were awesome as well, especially the guy with the Beer Jersey. Beer Jerseys are the best. We stuck together through two SAG stops and everyone put in their work. I've honestly never been in a group that worked that well together, except 4/5 training rides. Everyone took their turn and it just worked really really well. At the end though Chris tried to ramp it up to 30 mph, I took a pull, Beer Jersey guy shot around Chris and I stayed on his wheel. I managed to get away for a sprint finish, despite it not being a race. Chris would have handed my ass to me on the sprint, but he had just come off the front, and I had been planted firmly at the back of the group for a minute or two. It was a fun ride all the way around, from start to finish. Great people, great riding, great country.

The Jersey managed to get some attention as well, all of it positive. I suppose in a way it's kind of preaching to the Choir, taking a "Share the Road" campaign to a century. I'm still really pleased though, especially since I wasn't expecting them to get to me in time for this event anyway. Hopefully the people taking pictures got some shot of the Jersey that I can put up here soon. In the mean time, here's a picture of my stankin' salty ass post ride.

Check the Pretty Pictures Gallery for more Illustrated Awesomeness from the 2008 Winter Stagecoach Century!

Here's me at the event! weeoooo!
Read more!

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Effin' Sweet...Share the Road Bike Jersey is finally in!

The Jersey's came in today. They look flippin' sweet. I don't think I could be any happier right now. Actually I could. If I wasn't still at work, didn't have a ton of errands to run and had a Cape Cod in my hand I'd be a little happier, but not much. Here are the pictures of the jersey, front and back. They send a pretty clear message to drivers. I think everyone should be able to understand. You can't see it too well in this picture, but the left sleeve has a black arm band printed on it. Black for those who have died, on the left arm so drivers can see it really, really easily... except in England...














I have one Men's large left over. If you want it you should Email me. If you're interested in getting one that isn't a large I'm planning on placing another order sometime in January, which will get them here first thing in the spring. If you want to order one, you should Email me, as well. My E-mail is coreykeizer@yahoo.com Cheers!
Read more!

A Step in the Right Direction

While the rest of the Country's towns and cities sits by doing the minimum to be considered "bicycle friendly", Portland Oregon has begun to take an aggressive stance to force cooperation on the road between bicycles and cars. After much attention was given to two cycling accidents that took place at the same intersection the city of Portland has begun to create "Bike Boxes" at intersections to prevent what they call the "right hook"... I found it humorous that they used this fairly innocuous term for a driving technique that has lead to multiple deaths in Portland. If I had coined a term I would have called it something more dramatic like "Death on the Right" or "Right turn to Deadly st." or something like that. Although I've read reports that Portland's Police chief was less then sympathetic to the family of the cyclists who were killed during a rally for cyclists rights, I still applaud the city for it's commitment to bicycle awareness and cyclists rights. Jonathan Maus, whose bikeportland.org has been a focal point for Oregon cyclists commented that "It’s something the city has been talking about for a long time, but these two deaths have certainly given an added sense of urgency. The community has just made it so clear that this is very important, that they’re very concerned following these fatal crashes that things need to change." (nytimes.com)

Why can't more large cities follow Portland's lead? I know the cycling culture in this town is much more mainstream than in other major cities like Los Angeles but with the tide slowly turning away from motorized transportation, and a very obvious need to decrease traffic, carbon emissions and increase the health of it's population you would think, logically, that cities would be jumping on board with efforts like this in an attempt to change the transportation culture and make cycling, or walking for that matter, more desirable.

Well, I'm sure we'll catch on somewhere between now and never; just look at all the stuff Pasadena was doing to make itself more bicycle friendly (for those of you who don't know, Pasadena tried to ban the Tuesday/Thursday ride, known as the "Pack" but continued to court the Tour of California in an attempt to bring the finish to the rosebowl, extremely ironic). I'll keep riding my bike regardless, taking a full lane like I'm allowed when there is no bike lane, and rolling off the line at a green light as whatever pace I feel like.

See the full N.Y. Times article on the Portland issue by Clicking here, riiiiight here.

Here is a Diagram of the Portland "Bike Box" The greatest traffic thing so far.


Read more!

Monday, January 7, 2008

The Week in Review

The first week of 2008 has come and gone and I'm none the wiser for it. I might be a little fatter for it, since this weekend was nothing but rain and rain, and I just couldn't will myself away from the XBox 360. Here are a few things that happened last week that merit some coverage...

Crazy guy sabotages bike trails to gain sick revenge on cyclists he's never met:

To give further credence to my belief that everyone located south of the 10 freeway is completely insane is this story reported on KNBC News. Apparently this 50 year old was walking his dog on a MTB trail and was passed a bit to close by a Mountain biker. In retaliation for the poor judgment by that one Mountain Biker the guy decides to sabotage the trail for ALL mountain bikers, since you know, we're like the Borg in the fact that we all share one brain.

Click here for Crazy guy story

Another Dead Cyclist, Another Motorist who will talk about how painful the situation is for him

in the continuing saga of Motorists vs. Cyclists, a Fed Ex Driver ran down a kid on a bike in Santa Cruz where, according to local comments on the Sentinel website, there was clear markings on street signs giving cyclists the right of way. This apparently wasn't enough, as the Fed Ex truck turned right and plowed the cyclist down, killing him to the point of being pretty much dead. Like all motorists who hit and/or kill cyclists, I'm sure he'll do everything he can to avoid responsibility, not say sorry to the poor family of the deceased, and go on and on about how difficult his life has been since the accident. Poor Mr. Fed Ex driver, I'm sure this event will leave an unimaginable scar on your existence that is totally comparable to the pain and suffering the family and friends of the cyclist you killed are feeling.

Click here for big time Sadness

Elected officials continue to not care

In typical, completely pre-packaged fashion I received this response from Barbara Boxer to my letter writing campaign regarding the bicycle commuter tax break issue being left out of the energy bill.

Thanks Babs. Thanks for reminding me that civic action is completely useless unless you have millions of dollars or lots of guns and explosives.(read below to see what I mean)

Dear Mr. Keizer:
Thank you for taking the time to write and share your views with me. Your comments will help me continue to represent you and other Californians to the best of my ability. Should the Senate consider legislation on this or similar issues, I will keep your views in mind.

If you would like additional information about my work in the U.S. Senate, you might wish to visit my website, http://boxer.senate.gov. From this site, you can access my statements and press releases about current events and pending legislation, request copies of legislation and government reports, and receive detailed information about the many services that I am privileged to provide for my constituents. You may also wish to visit http://thomas.loc.gov to track current and past federal legislation.

Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. I appreciate hearing from you.

I'm so glad my letters are being read by people who care.

Stuff About Me and Share The Road/15 Rides

I spoke with my Rep at Champion Systems today and the Jersey's should be here by Thursday. This is very exciting to me since I wasn't expecting them to show up in time for my first century which is this weekend. The Stage Coach Century is the first of my 15 centuries and happens this weekend in Ocotillo. For those of you who aren't familiar with were Ocotillo is, its about halfway between the boonies and bumble fuck.
Read more!

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

New Years Resolution

In the past I've always thought new years resolutions were stupid. I'd make them, then forget about them after February. The only one I've kept relatively well was to stop drinking soda, and that is iffy. However on the Highway 39 ride Joseph and I got to talking about New Years resolutions and he had a really good one. He resolved to put more miles on his bike than on his car. This would include mileage that he would accrue going to races, some of which can be hundreds of miles away. I thought this was a great resolution, so great in fact that I decided to copy it. Sorry Joseph, I'm taking your idea.

So for 2008 I resolve to put more miles on my bike than on my car. I'm even going to put a little window on the right to log the total number of miles that I've ridden vs. the miles I've driven. this is going to include all miles, even miles that I'm driving to get to events (including the Death Ride which is over 400 miles away).

I actually think this resolution will be easy for me to do. I found out today that my company is moving it's office to a location that is literally 3/4 of a mile from Griffith Park. This means I'll have a 4-5 mile commute to work, and I'll have ample time to do quick hill repeat rides in the park. I used to do lunch time rides in Azusa when I worked for that printing company, and that was great for my over all fitness. Even if I count my daily commute at 9 miles a day, and multiply that by the number of days worked in a year it's about 2,400 miles.

In fact, I'm actually ahead of the curve already. I did about 27.5 miles on Tuesday, and I rode to work from Corina's house today. So my totals look like this so far.

Bike mileage = 31.65
Car mileage = 0

Awesome. Read more!

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Happy New Years!

Happy New Years everyone! There are a lot of different things going on right now, and for cyclists, there were a few different new years rides such as the PCH ride or the Mt. Wilson ride. True to form I did neither, as both would have been two difficult for me. Not difficult because they're hard, but seeing how my New Years eve diet typically consists of Doritos, "Pig in a Blankets" and Vodka, I just didn't feel like getting up at 6:00 a.m. to do a ride at 7:30.

Instead I opted to sleep in till 11:00, mosey around until my friend Corina made breakfast, play some video games, eat, and then go for a ride. Corina makes some great pancakes, and I was starving so they hit the spot. I kicked it around the house for another hour after we ate and played some Tony Hawk, then hit the road around 1:30 p.m. I just did a quick 30 miles around the park.

I took some pictures as usual, but nothing of real note to talk about on this ride. It was pretty standard Griffith Park fare today. One awesome thing of note: It was so clear, that you could see all the way to Long Beach. LONG BEACH!!!

I wish I could sleep in like that


The best pancakes ever.


This spot is pretty sweet. In Los Angeles, none the less.


No New Years day ride would be complete without a view like this.
Read more!