Long Beach.
(Photo by Russ Roca)
A website, a lot of dedication, some like-minded people, and a dream for a more bike-friendly future — that’s what Russ Roca and the Long Beach Cyclists hope will be the start of something big.
Russ is a freelance photojournalist who rides a bike (or takes transit) to the many assignments he gets in and around Long Beach, California. (For one job, he took a foldable Bike Friday, packed up his panniers and set out on a bike/bus/train combo journey to San Luis Obispo, 226 miles away).
I don’t recall how I first met Russ, but I met him (in person) for the first time at last year’s Tour de Fat. He and some friends were on a Pacific Coast bike tour and made the Portland detour to check out the event.
bike advocacy in Long Beach, CA.
Then, during my trip to California over the holidays, I connected with Russ during my visit to the BikeStation in downtown Long Beach.
Since that visit, I’ve noticed Russ get pulled deeper and deeper into the abyss of bike activism.
It all started after a neighborhood meeting to talk about a new bike boulevard turned sour and resulted in an editorial by Russ in a local weekly newspaper. So when he emailed the other day and said he was part of a newly formed advocacy group, I wasn’t too surprised.
Russ says Long Beach Cyclists already has several members (including the executive director of BikeStation and a few local bike shops) and that it hasn’t taken long for him to realize that fighting for bikes isn’t easy. In a recent email he wrote, “I really have to commend you and all the bike advocates in Portland. It is hard work! Change is never quick and easy and it certainly takes some stamina.”
I’m excited to see the beginnings of a new bike advocacy group in the city where I used to live, and I have feeling there are many more Russ Roca’s embarking on similar efforts all across the country.
Good luck Russ and all your fellow Long Beach Cyclists. Keep your eyes on the prize and keep pedaling ahead…
Thanks for reading.
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Cute, but I prefer to have bikeportland.org focus on Portland metro issues.
There\’s lots and lots of other good biking in lots of other towns. Maybe you can start a bikelongbeach.org?
Thanks Jonathan! We hope to make Long Beach a little bit better bicycling city the next time you come around.
Also, thank you to all the tireless work of the bike advocates and bike groups in Portland. I have to tell you, that it is by reading about your great work through sites such as this, that have inspired our group to come together.
Your work may be localized in Portland, but we feel its impact here in Long Beach! You guys inspire and motivate us to make our own city a little bit better every day.
@1 – um, I think this is the only non-Portland post in all of April so far…
I like a sprinkling of out-of-town content, and not just because I don\’t live in Stumptown myself anymore…
I rolled through Long Beach on my way to La Paz, Mexico, last fall – once I figured out how to get off the horrific Pacific Coast Highway, downtown LB was nice: mellow traffic, cool old buildings, a movie shoot going on, nice park, etc… one of the nicer bits of the socal sprawl, I thought.
I\’m sure Russ has plenty of projects of his own, but more signage for us out-of-towners to find good routes would be great. Lots of touring cyclists go through since it\’s on the coast highway.
I\’m all for stories about biking in, around and outside portland. That may be because I\’m in Milwaukee. Notice that that\’s the Milwaukee with 2 e\’s at the end not the one near Portland. It\’s the one in Wisconsin and even though I\’ve never been to Portland, bikeportland.org is one of my best sources for bike advocacy info. Keep up the good work.
Jeff
Nothing wrong with sprinkling stories from around the world. Jonathan may want to consider taking contributions from readers outside the area, e.g., BikeSafer from Milwaukee – \”Algonquin for Land of Good Biking.\”
Portlanders may consider themselves leaders in bike culture, but it is conceited to think we cannot continue learning from, or sharing with, other bike communities.