David Zabriskie (left) and Floyd Landis. (Photos J. Maus/BikePortland)
It takes moxie for someone whose name is closely associated with a controversial drug use to make his comeback drafting off a product derived from a controversial drug.
That was my thought when I heard former professional bike racer and Tour de France winner Floyd Landis would come to Portland to launch his new product, Floyd’s of Leadville CBD Hemp Oil. CBD, short for cannabidiol, is derived from the stalk and seed of cannabis (hemp) plants. It’s non-psychotropic so it won’t get you high, it’s categorized as a dietary supplement and it’s considered a more natural alternative to ibuprofen.
I can say Landis is no stranger to drug use and not even mention his positive urine sample that stripped him of that 2006 Tour de France crown — just four days after he celebrated it on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. That’s because he broke his hip during a training ride in 2003 and turned to opioids to escape the pain. Three years later, after achieving the biggest victory of his life only to be labeled a “doper” and ultimately thrown out of the sport he loved, Landis used the drugs to escape reality. He eventually switched to marijuana, a move that might have not only saved his life, but could help him create a new one.
Now 41, Landis is ready to re-enter the public eye as CEO of a company he founded last year in marijuana-friendly Colorado with former teammate and friend David Zabriskie.
Both of them spent a few days in Portland this week to launch the product at River City Bicycles (a well-known local shop whose owner, Dave Guettler, is a marijuana advocate). [Read more…]
Sunday Parkways Northeast is a great excuse to explore parks and soak in the Portland spirit. (Photo: J. Maus/BikePortland)
Got plans for the weekend? If not, we’ve got you covered.
The Weekend Event Guide is sponsored by Abus Bike Locks. Thanks Abus!
From mountain biking with the family to fast road rides, and from rural Washington County to the eastern city limits, there’s something for everyone in this week’s guide.
And did I mention that it’s Sunday Parkways Northeast?! Don’t miss their special attraction: a Bi-lingual Bike Fair held in partnership with the nonnprofit Andando en Bicicletas en Cully.
As part of his rationale, Scott says other types of vehicles pay a tax so it’s an issue of fairness. “If we’re not going to tax bicycles, then let’s not tax boats, ATVs and every other vehicle out there that already pay all these taxes… how many rights do we give to cyclists that we don’t give to everybody else on the road? I’m asking.” When someone reminded him that bicycles don’t damage the roads, Scott replied, “Snowmobiles don’t hurt the snow, ATV’s don’t hurt the dirt, boats don’t hurt the water and they pay a tax, maybe we should eliminate those taxes.”
New to me, Kingsley Road above Hood River was a welcome alternative to Dee Highway. (Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)
One of the ways I fit cycling adventures into my life is to ride to places where I’m already planning to do something with my family. So, when we planned to meet some friends in Hood River on Sunday, I knew it was a golden opportunity. [Read more…]
This week’s Monday Roundup is brought to you by… you! Thank you for supporting BP by being a subscriber or a donor. Learn how you can support this site here.
Welcome to Monday.
Here are the best stories we came across last week… [Read more…]
It’s cool. I’m 1-year-old. No big whoop. (Photo: J. Maus/BikePortland)
Can you believe Biketown is already one? This Wednesday is the official anniversary of the launch of of Portland’s bike share system.
To mark the occasion, the Portland Bureau of Transportation has a full week of festivities and promotions lined up (see below). We’ve also got the latest numbers to show that — while it’s not perfect and there have been bumps along the road — Biketown has been a success. [Read more…]
For an ever-growing grocery store chain, New Seasons Market is pretty responsive. Don’t see your favorite crackers? Chances are they’ll either start carrying them or tell you why they don’t or can’t.
The (mostly) Portland-based business even responds to bicycle-related requests. When I contacted them a few years ago about making sure their North Williams Store (situated adjacent to the best bike street in Portland) had great bike parking, they not only listened, they invited to help plan the racks. They even went for one of my crazier ideas: storage lockers for bicycling customers.
Now they’ve done it again. On Saturday, the New Seasons in Concordia (5320 NE 33rd) will host a bike fair aimed at raising awareness of just how easy (and popular!) it is to ride a bike to the grocery story. ‘Safe Routes to Groceries’ was the brainchild of retired Portland optometrist Armando “Jerry” Zelada. Zelada is a fixture in bike advocacy circles and is former chair of the State of Oregon Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee.
He approached the Concordia store’s community coordinator Tanya Leib with the idea of, “Teaching and inviting people to bike to the store as a way to be active and reduce use of automobiles because we know that half of the automobile trips are three miles or less.” And because, believe it or not, many people still assume it’s impossible to get your groceries home by bike. [Read more…]
Another person was killed in a collision involving an automobile user just after midnight this morning. It was the 20th 24th fatality on Portland roads so far this year and the 10th in just the last three weeks.
Portland Police say the latest tragedy occurred on Southeast Powell Blvd east of 50th. In a statement they wrote that,
“Preliminary information learned from the investigation suggests the pedestrian crossed southbound over Southeast Powell Boulevard east of Southeast 50th Avenue and was struck by a vehicle. The pedestrian reportedly made an unexpected movement in front of an oncoming vehicle while crossing… The pedestrian was not in a cross-walk at the time of the collision. The driver of the vehicle remained at the scene, contacted 9-1-1 to report the crash and is cooperating with the investigation. At this time it does not appear the driver of the vehicle was impaired while driving.”
While the PPB includes a boilerplate paragraph about Vision Zero in all their traffic crash statements these days, the statement fails to live up to the spirit of that goal.
A city committed to zero traffic deaths by 2025 should not publish blame-oriented statements about a traffic crash so soon after it happens. Especially when the victim is a vulnerable road user. That type of tone and framing is speculative, unnecessary, and makes the culture change we need much harder to accomplish.
Beyond this death on Powell, it’s clear that Portland isn’t doing enough — fast enough — to achieve Vision Zero. [Read more…]
On its 20th anniversary, one of Portland’s best ride guides has taken another evolutionary step. The Rubber to the Road guidebook is now available as a series of short films on YouTube. [Read more…]
U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer, who served six years in the Oregon House of Representatives and nearly 10 years as a Portland city commissioner, shared via a phone interview yesterday that he feels the tax is a “modest fee” that isn’t that big of a deal when viewed in the light of the overall infrastructure funding package.
I caught up with Blumenauer from his office in Washington D.C. where he’s standing against strong political winds.
“I think this is a really great opportunity for the cycling community to take a step back and think about the bigger picture,” he said.
Blumenauer probably knows more about the “bigger picture” than anyone in the bike advocacy game. He has fought for bicycle-related transportation funding for about 40 years. During that time he’s heard all the anti-bike arguments you can imagine.
“One of the arguments we hear repeatedly is that cyclists don’t have any skin in the game… so there’s been blowback.” Blumenauer thinks the “cyclists don’t pay” argument has only gotten louder as more money has gone to bike projects. During his tenure in politics, Blumenauer has seen Oregon implement the pioneering 1971 “Bicycle Bill” which sets aside 1 percent of all the state’s highway gas tax money for biking and walking infrastructure (which should equal about $3.7 million per year over ten years in the new bill. And federal programs like Safe Routes to School, Transportation Enhancements, and TIGER grants have funded billions in bike infrastructure. “That’s big money,” he said. [Read more…]
More rentals options for these bikes are coming soon! (Photo: PBOT)
One year ago Portland was readying for the big debut of its Nike-sponsored bike share system when a thorny issue popped up: The 1,000 Biketown bikes were useless to those with disabilities and who otherwise are unable to ride a standard bicycle.
Instead of ignore the problem, PBOT put their heads down and got to work. They launched a survey to garner feedback from people with disabilities (192 people responded) and convened a task force to figure out how the program could work. The result is a new bike rental system that will be separate from — but complementary to — the Biketown system. It’s set to launch next Friday July 21st.
The new program isn’t fully fleshed out yet; but based on the survey and interviews with adaptive bike users, PBOT has figured out enough to launch a pilot.
The city will work with two existing shops: Kerr Bikes, a rental company; and Different Spokes, an adaptive bike specialist. Each of them have agreed to provide a selection of handcycles, trikes, and tandems to registered users for short-term rentals. Kerr has locations on the Esplanade (near OMSI) and at Salmon Street Fountain in Waterfront Park. Different Spokes is located at SE 4th and Ivon, just steps away from the entrance of the Springwater Corridor.[Read more…]
Some of the upgrades PBOT is in the process of making throughout the city.
As many advocates and insiders reading this already know, before a project can get funded it must be on a list. The more powerful the list, the more important it is that your project gets on it. These lists are were the money goes first and inclusion of a project on them is often the only justification needed to get it built.
Tomorrow at City Council the Portland Bureau of Transportation will ask Mayor Ted Wheeler and the four other commissioners to approve a list of 105 “Vision Zero projects” PBOT says are critical to, “systematically address the safety needs” on our most dangerous streets (see the full ordinance and list here). The total estimated cost of all the projects could be close to $750 million. About one-quarter of the projects on the list are already funded. PBOT has also requested that 17 of the 105 projects (estimated to cost upwards of $74 million) get added to Portland’s Transportation System Plan — which would give them the highest priority possible.
“This historic investment in walking, biking, & transit puts [Oregon] on the map as a leader in accessibility & active transportation. — The Street Trust via Twitter
It’s no small task that Oregon legislators passed a $5.3 billion transportation package last week. We haven’t had a new way to fund transportation projects and programs since the Jobs and Transportation Act passed in 2009 and this year’s bill was nearly dead just days before being resurrected thanks to a few major compromises.
But a small part of House Bill 2017 — a $15 tax on new bicycles — has gotten a lot of attention from transportation reformers (did you see the tweet from former New York City DOT Director Janette Sadik Khan?!). And for good reason. The tax an unprecedented step in the wrong direction from a state previously famous for passing the forward-thinking “Bicycle Bill” way back in 1971. And while our debates and discussions about the bike tax will continue, let’s not forget the other major components of this bill.
After all, there had to be something good in the bill for The Street Trust and other progressive nonprofit groups to support it.
So… What exactly did they come away with? Here’s how transit, biking, and walking fared. [Read more…]
The closed gate with path to the side for bicycle users to get by. (Photos
As several of you may have noticed there’s a new gate at the lower entrance to River View Cemetery just across from the new Sellwood Bridge.
The bad news is it’ll be closed at 4:00 pm from now on. The good news is that it’s intended for motor vehicle drivers and they’ve left a space for bicycle users to walk around it.
We received several emails about the gate last week from readers concerned that the gate was the disaster we had hoped to avert when we reported on this issue last month. As you recall, cemetery staff are in a tough spot. The private nonprofit must balance its desire to maintain public access to their roads while maintaining a safe and respectful environment for their customers. The issue continues to bubble up because the cemetery receives many complaints about people riding bicycles too fast and without respect for others.
After hearing about the newly closed gate we contacted River View Cemetery Executive Director David Noble. He said the gate is now operational and is programmed to open at 6:00 am (specifically for morning bicycle commuters — staff doesn’t show up until 8:00) and close at 4:00 pm daily. [Read more…]
Nearly five years after it first opened, it’s time to implement a permanent design for the protected bikeway on Northeast Multnomah Street through the Lloyd District. Hopefully one that’s truly befitting of one of America’s best biking cities — not an overly comprised, on-the-cheap, paint-and-posts half-measure. [Read more…]
Supporters toast Kim Minhyeong (smiling in center) at Apex on Thursday. (Photos courtesy Bryan Hance)
What Portland bike thieves took away, our community is giving back.
As we shared last week, South Korean bike tourer Kim Minhyeong was pedaling through Portland on his dream trip when his bike was stolen from outside the Southeast Hawthorne Fred Meyer. It was fully loaded with all his gear, including his laptop, camera, and more. As word spread, Bryan Hance from Bike Index decided to help. Hance swung into action and held a fundraiser for Kim last Thursday.
According to Hance, about 40 people showed up to Apex Bar — many of them with gear and donations in-hand. They showed Minhyeong what Portland is really all about as they shared free food donated to the event by Grind Musubi. “Definitely made me proud to be a Portlander! It was overwhelming, I won’t lie.” Hance wrote on in an email to supporters. [Read more…]
