Month: May 2010

Event of the Week: Bike Economics Fundraiser and Showcase

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward
Tapas Ride - Pedalpalooza 09-44

Clever Cycles co-owners
Martina Fahrner (L) and Rachel Mullin.
(Photo © J. Maus)

On Thursday night, twenty local, women-owned bike businesses will take center stage and a new scholarship fund will be created at Bike Economics.

The event is being put together by Elly Blue and Ellee Thalheimer and will be hosted at the Portland campus of United Bicycle Institute at 3961 N Williams Ave.

Since we announced this event a few weeks ago, many more businesses have been added and a huge list of door prizes and sponsors has been put together.

Here’s the list of presenting businesses:

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Bike shop, tour company team up for e-bike tours and rentals

The Express from Giant is one of
the models available for rent.

Two local businesses have teamed up to put more electric bikes on the road in Portland.

A new partnership between The eBike Store (201 N Alberta Ave) and Pedal Bike Tours (2249 N Williams Ave) gives tourists and locals alike a chance for a guided bike tour of Portland on an e-bike or an extended test ride on one of the e-bikes that will become a permanent part of Pedal Bike Tours’ rental fleet.

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gray red Schwinn Rocket 2007

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Year: 2007
Brand: Schwinn
Model: Rocket
Color:gray red
Size:21″
Stolen in lake oswego, OR 97034
Stolen:2010-05-4
Stolen From: Stolen from our apartment patio on 5015 Foothills Rd, in Lake Oswego.
Neighborhood: downtown lake oswego
Owner: Brian Turner
OwnerEmail: brturner63@gmail.com
Reward: $100
Description: Full suspension bike gray frame with red highlights, black fork.
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

Witnesses help police find and arrest man for hit and run in Clackamas

Blake Sharkey Steve; arrested for hit
and run and vehicular assault.
(Photo: Clackamas Co. Sheriff’s Office)

Given our recent discussion of police responses to vehicular assault, I thought this story from Clackamas (about 11 miles SE of downtown Portland) that just came over the wire was interesting.

According to the Oregon State Police, at just before 2:00 today a man named Blake Sharkey Steve, 20, was talking on his cell phone while driving his GMC Suburban when he pulled out of a gas station and struck 20-year old Bonnie Ingersoll as she rode her bicycle on SE 82nd just north of Highway 224. Steve then fled the scene.

Thankfully, several witnesses saw the collision and stuck around to tell Oregon State Police troopers what had happened. One astute bystander got Steve’s license plate and vehicle description and police were able to trace it to his residence and make the arrest.

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Event: Splendid Cycles Grand Opening (6/10/10)

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Event Name: Grand Opening Celebration: Splendid Cycles
Event Start Date: Thursday, June 10, 2010
Time: 5:00 pm – 9:00pm
Web Site: http://www.splendidcycles.com/
Event Description: Come celebrate the newest shop in southeast! Dedicated to the cargo bike, Splendid offers Larry vs. Harry Bullitts along with local producers, Metrofiets and Ahearne Cycletrucks. Food and beverages provided. Swing by on your Pedalpalooza kickoff ride!
503-954-2620.

Event: Urban Assault Ride (5/23/10)

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

New Belgium Brewing’s Urban Assault Ride
Benefitting: Northwest Trail Alliance

Packet Pick Up:*** (Saturday 5/22 11-2pm)
Plan B Bar: 1305 S.E. 8th Ave

VENUE: (Sunday 5/23 9am)
Pioneer Court House Square 701 SW Sixth Avenue

Price: $45-$60/person – registration required.
Plus: a limited number of free registrations are available.
More details at: http://www.urbanassaultride.com/participate

Complete info including prizes and sign up form: http://www.urbanassaultride.com/portland

Event: Bike to Work Breakfast – (5/11/10)

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Portland Bureau of Transportation is hosting a celebration for bicycle commuters at Pioneer Courthouse Square next Tuesday, May 11. May is National Bike Month for the League of American Bicyclists.

All Portlanders are invited to join the breakfast from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. at the square. Attendees will be treated to free coffee, tea, bagels, donuts and fruit.

Last year, approximately 250 cyclists and supporters stopped by on their morning commute.

For more information, visit: http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?event_id=47677&mode=calendar&cal=DisplayEvent&a=0&&c=34749.

Attend open houses for Holman, Klickitat bike boulevards this week

Family biking-4

NE Holman is already a relatively
pleasant place to ride, but improvements
are needed.
(Photo © J. Maus)

We’ve already mentioned how important it is to speak up at PBOT’s bike boulevard open houses (a.k.a. neighborhood greenways), so today I’ll just offer a gentle reminder of two that are coming up this week.

Tomorrow (5/4) and Thursday (5/6), PBOT will hold their second round of open houses for projects on NE Holman and NE Klickitat respectively.

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315 bikes from Portland headed to South Africa

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Bikes await loading into South
Africa-bound container.
(Photo: J. Leonard)

Thanks to a huge effort by Portlander Jenny Leonard and her friends and volunteers, 315 bikes and a bunch parts, tools, tubes and tires will soon be headed to rural South Africa where they’ll be used by kids who need a quicker and easier way to get to school.

Leonard hoped for 400 bikes and when she was well short of that number after the first publicized collection event, she decided to hold the container open for donations throughout last week.

In an email to supporters yesterday Leonard wrote, “I am so pleased with the fullness of the container and so impressed with everyone’s effort in getting the word out.”

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Denver goes big for bike-share, while Portland waits and sees

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward
City of Portland bike sharing demonstration-26

Portlanders demo’d public bikes at a
City hosted event last summer.
(Photos © J. Maus)

With their recent launch of 500 bikes and 50 kiosks, Denver is now home to the largest bike-sharing system in the United States. Bike-sharing has yet to catch fire in the U.S. like it has in Europe, so Denver’s foray will be watched closely by other U.S. cities, like Portland, that have shown interest in the concept.

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Guest Article: Oil, coal, and thoughts on a fossil-fuel conscious life

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Sarah Gilbert
(Photo: Amy McMullen)

[This article was written by Portland resident Sarah Gilbert, a professional writer who blogs at AOL’s Daily Finance, CafeMama.com, and many other places. She’s also known as the woman who got a local food chain to open up their drive-thrus to bicycles. When not writing, Gilbert is tending to her three young boys, whom she pedals around on her Xtracycle-equipped Electra Townie with a “One Less Minivan” sticker on it.]

“I no longer feel I must defend my choice to go by bike instead of car; instead, I feel I must hold it high, a banner of hope and, perhaps, victory over these heart-clogging disasters.”

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From the Archives

Opinion: If we’re serious about cycling, let’s get serious about cycling infrastructure