Month: October 2007

Midnight Mystery Ride

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

MMR rides the 2nd Friday of any given month. Meeting Place & Destination changes – so be geared in. Meet at 11:00 p.m., Ride at Midnight. Destination: A Mystery. Rain or Shine. Ride an easy four miles or less to a mystery destination. Bring a little something to enjoy/share when we arrive.

karaoke beforehand — costumes encouraged! — it’ll be spooktacular, we promise.

When: Friday, , 11:00 PM
Event Location: Dad’s Restaurant, 8608 N. Lombard St., St. Johns, OR
Contact: Team Midnight
Contact E-Mail: midnight at yeabikes dawt net
Website: http://yeabikes.net/midnight

This weekend: presentation about Istanbul carfree conference

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The 2007 edition of the Towards Carfree Cities conference was held in Istanbul, Turkey this August/September. A delegation of four members of the Portland carfree conference planning team attended.

An informal slideshow presentation about our experiences in Istanbul is planned for Saturday, October 13th, 7pm at 705 N Alberta St (at Albina). This will be largely a travelogue — other opportunities to see our pictures, as well as more formal, shorter presentations focused on the conference itself will be announced soon.

The slideshow on the 13th will be preceded by a conference planning meeting, at 5:30 — everyone interested in being involved is welcome to attend.

For a sneak peek of some of our pictures, check out these (and the other pages linked to at the bottom right).

To view the slides from some of the presentations we attended, and to find out more about the Istanbul conference, take a look here.

Crash victim was a design student at PNCA

[Updated 12:29pm]

memorial for Tracy PNCA-3.jpg

A memorial for Tracey
has been created in the
lobby of PNCA.
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)

According to the Multnomah County Medical Examiner’s Office, the victim in yesterday’s fatal collision in downtown Portland was Tracey Sparling.

Sparling was attending design school at Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA). She was 19 years old and was living in an apartment just a few blocks from where the collision occurred. (Her parents live in Salem, Oregon).

A few minutes ago, I spoke to the Dean of Students at PNCA, Michael Hall. He said Sparling was five weeks into her first term (after transferring from Syracuse University) and was majoring in Communications Design.

Read more

Jobs of the Week

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Several great job opportunities have been listed on the BikePortland Job Listings this week.

Veloforma, a new carbon fiber bicycle company (based in Banks, OR) is looking for a sales rep, and component manufacturer Chris King Components (based in NW Portland) has several positions available.

Here are all the details:

Read more

A Ghost Bike appears at scene of tragedy

ghostBikeBurnside-3.jpg

The Ghost Bike at
W. Burnside and 14th.
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)

I just returned from the scene of today’s incident.

I spent the last several hours just being at the intersection where this tragedy occurred. I rode in the bike lane where the 19 year-old Salem woman last rode, I talked with passersby. But mostly, I just sat and thought.

Then, just before midnight, I watched two local cyclists chain a Ghost Bike to the pole.

Now, just a few feet from the fateful collision, there is a stark reminder that “A cyclist was killed here”.

Read more

Memorial ride planned for Friday night

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Sign at the corner of SW 14th and Burnside
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)

Please join us for a slow ride up Burnside to the location of today’s tragic collision.

It will start from the west approach of the Burnside Bridge (where the Burnside is closed to motor vehicles).

Meet at 6:00 pm. Ride at 6:30.

Candles, flowers, notes…bring whatever you think is appropriate.

Updated: Police; Truck driver will not be cited

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[Updated 5:12 pm, 11:21 pm – updated sections are italicized.]

Lt. Mark Kruger of the Portland Police Bureau says his team has finished their preliminary investigation of the fatal bicycle collision that happened earlier today at W. Burnside St. and SW 14th Ave.

Kruger says they are not issuing any citations at this time and that the driver’s blood and urine tests showed no signs of intoxication.

Read more

Greenspace advocate gets deserved recognition

Mike Houck
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)

The Editorial Board of the Oregonian devoted a column to Mike Houck today.

Houck is a dedicated advocate who founded the Urban Greenspaces Institute and who works to preserve natural areas in our city. From restoring the Columbia Slough to saving Oaks Bottom, Houck is a force to be reckoned with.

I know him primarily through the annual Visionary Voyage rides he helps coordinate. These rides bring together regional leaders for an up-close look at the highs and lows of our bikeways and trails.

Houck plays in invaluable role in creating and maintaining the natural areas many Portlanders take for granted. Learn more and consider donating to his work at UrbanGreenspaces.org.

Next Crusade stop; Horning’s Hideout

Cross Crusade 3 - Hornings Hideout

A scene from last year’s
race at Horning’s Hideout.
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)

Fresh off a record-breaking opening weekend, the River City Bicycles Cross Crusade continues the fun this weekend out at Horning’s Hideout.

If you missed last weekend’s action, you have a chance to redeem yourself by making the “short and scenic trip” out to North Plains on Sunday.

I’ll be out there again trying my best to stay upright and finish respectably.

For a glimpse of what to expect, check out my photo gallery from last year, or watch the video below (it’s a MTB race, but it will give you a feel for the venue).

Read more

Press Release: OBRA Announces Cyclocross Record

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For Immediate Release: October 10, 2007

Portland, Oregon- The Oregon Bicycle Racing Association (OBRA) announced today that 1,078 cyclocross racers descended onto Alpenrose Dairy on Sunday, October 7, 2007 for the 1st race of the Cross Crusade cyclocross racing series. Breaking last year’s record of over 750 racers, the event again established itself as the largest one-day cyclocross race in North America and solidified its designation as the largest participatory cyclocross bike racing series in the world. In 2006, the first race of the series attracted over 750 riders.

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From the Archives

With six kids and no car, this mom does it all by bike