Stolen: Surley Pacer

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light blue Surley Pacer with no decals. top tube mounted child bike seat “Wee ride”. has the following stickers: Blackw/ red “metal letters” Death Adder, Nethereye on back of top tube. LX rear derailer, Black Mavic/105 hub wheels, Ultegra double crank set, Ultegra sti shifters, Celeste Bianchi sadle, platform pedals. This bike was stolen on Thursday August 3 in front of my house on 4746 N. Borthwick near the intersection of N. Albina and N. Alberta.

I hope you can help me. Thanks a lot. Lainy (lainym [at] gmail [dot] com)

It’s official, Sprockettes make it to NPR!

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Mult. County Bike Fair!

[You’d be happy too if you
were interviewed on NPR!]

A while back I reported that the Sprockettes were due to make an appearance on the nationally broadcast National Public Radio show Day-to-Day.

Even though I knew the reporter had been in Portland to get the story, I have worked in PR and I realize you never know if a story will actually run until it does.

So I’ve been checking the web daily and lo and behold The Sprockettes made it on the show today! And they even link to one of my Sprockette photos on Flickr (which I have now modified for the occassion;-)).

The audio from the show has just been published too, so go on over and check it out:

Congrats to the Sprockettes on your burgeoning fame!

Stolen: Black/blue Shogun

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Stolen from 205/Johnson Creek area.

Black Shogun road bike with blue access. and blue bar tape.
SN# M8123209
52 cm size.
“Shogun” letters on downtube are upside down.
New tires.
Light in Motion brand headlight.
Pump and lock attached.

Bike was unlocked accidently overnight.

Please call Rhiannon at (818) 415-8558 with any info.

Are bike lanes a haven or a hazard?

Benson Hotel bike lane, Portland OR

[The infamous Broadway Blvd.
bike lane in front of the
Benson Hotel.]

The use and installation of bike lanes has long been a debate within bike advocacy circles.

On one side, you’ve got some cyclists who feel we should ride defensively on the roadway and that bike lanes offer only a dangerous and false sense of security. They believe bike lanes actually cause more accidents than they prevent.

On the other side are most bike advocacy groups and transportation planners. Their more widely accepted view is that bike lanes afford real safety benefits that encourage more people to ride. They would point to surveys and research that shows more bike lanes cause an increase in ridership, which in turns causes a decrease in crashes, thus making the roads safer (see chart below for an example of this).

Read more

Work starts this weekend on new Forest Park MTB trail

Timothy Lake MTB Ride

This Saturday, the Portland United Mountain Pedalers will break ground on the first bit of new mountain bike trails in Forest Park since 1988.

With a major assist from the Friends of Forest Park—who spearheaded the grant and permitting process—PUMP is holding a work party to make the new Firelane 5 trail a reality.

According to PUMP’s Roger Louton,

“By doing this, showing we care about the park, helping out, etc, we hope that the Parks Department will be open to adding more trails in the future. This weekend we’ll be adopting Firelane 5 and maintaining it to demonstrate that bikes can be ridden on a trail like this. It (adding MTB trails) does not happen overnight, but slowly but surely riding opportunities for mtb’ers will improve in Portland.

We would not have this opportunity if it weren’t for the hard work of Friends of Forest Park. We look forward to collaborating on more projects with them in the future.”

Read more

Get ready, here comes the Tour de Fat

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Tour de Fat: Portland, OR 8/6/05

[Red Bat sighting at
’05 Tour de Fat.]

It’s no easy task for an out-of-town group to come into Portland and throw a bike party that rivals our own…but the folks at New Belgium pull it off with their traveling cycling circus known as the Tour de Fat.

Last year’s event is still etched in my mind as one of the best things I did all year.

Even before I got drunk and danced like a fool, I reveled in the zany, costume-filled bike parade, was wowed by the Yard Dogs Road Show, and tested my bike skills (and my ego) in the mutant bike rodeo.

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Stolen: LeMond Croix de Fer

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Crumb. Some jerk stole my sweet Datsun 280zx and my LeMond Croix de Fer
in one fell swoop. Its a brand new bike. White/red. Serial number
WL3327221. Women’s style. I love that bike.

Thank you,
Megan C
503.380.1177

Stolen: Schwinn Mesa

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My trusty silver and blue 2001 Schwinn Mesa (and my silver and blue bike helmet) were stolen from my garage sometime during the late night hours of Monday July 31st. I live near Alberta Park around NE 19th and Killingsworth. The person who stole my bike walked up my neighbor’s driveway, opened my latched side gate, and then walked thru my backyard to my garage, which was also latched but not locked (I’d forgotten to attach the lock that night–never again!)

My bike’s serial number is M0CI03750. It is on the smaller side (15″ frame?), has thin knobby tires rather than the traditional mountain bike tires, has shocks on both the front fork and the seat, and has a kryptonite lock attached under the seat pointing toward the back of the bike. It also has a cordless odometer attached to the handlebars (right side). The handlebars aren’t the usual mountain bike type either, they have more of a rise to them, like a cross between a mountain bike and a cruiser. The seat has a small tear on the top side, I think on the right.

I am heartbroken about this. If anyone has any information or leads please contact me at heatherdoc@yahoo.com or call 503-804-2736.

Dangerous intersection chosen for community action

[This Friday (8/4) from 7-9AM there will be a traffic safety education action at NW Lovejoy and 9th Ave.]

Lovejoy and 9th

[Looking west on
Lovejoy approaching 9th.]

The intersection at NW 9th and Lovejoy (just west of the Broadway Bridge) is rife with traffic safety red flags; cyclists blowing the stop sign, cars turning without signaling, a senior home on the corner, cyclists going too fast on the sidewalk, and so on.

The City of Portland has received a steady stream of complaints about this intersection including several from a resident of the retirement home named Phil Staley. Phil was recently struck by a cyclist while in the crosswalk and to make matters worse, the cyclist didn’t even stop. Yep, a hit-and-run.

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Police perspective on fixed-gear enforcement

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Several cyclists out on the streets in the last few days have relayed their concerns to me about what they perceive as increased police enforcement of fixed-gear riders.

Given the recent court decision and heightened awareness of this issue, I asked Traffic Division Lieutenant Mark Kruger for an official stance on how the Portland Police Bureau are enforcing this.

Here’s his response:

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Stolen: Trek 6000

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It was a red Trek 6000, purchaced in 1999, with a large (maybe XL) frame. It had bright yellow grips that sorta stuck out. There was a black “Planet Bike” fender on it. And it had an Iron Horse seat. The left hand shifter on the front was repaced and dosent match the right hand (factory) one. There is a sticker from “The Denver Spoke” on the frame by the crank. The serial # is WTU2292016R.
It was stolen August 1st, between noon and 12:30 from the bike rack outside the Belmont library. It was locked up with a cable lock, which was cut.

contact:
dylan

crazyfidel1 [at] yahoo [dot] com

PSU Engineer wants to understand why you ride

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Sweet Summer Cycle ride

[PSU instructor
Brent Zenobia]

On a recent Sweet Summer Cycle Ride (photos) I met an interesting guy named Brent Zenobia. He was passing out a flyer about a research project he is undertaking as part of his Ph.D. candidacy in the Engineering and Technology management department at PSU.

What intrigued me about him was the nature of his research. He wants to use high-tech computer simulation models to analyze the how and why behind Portland’s success in encouraging alternative transportation choices.

Read more