Month: November 2014

Kirke Johnson’s BikePortland comments are chilling and inspiring

kirke

(Photo: Johnson Family)

It turns out that Kirke Johnson, the man killed last Thursday when a truck driver turned his vehicle into Johnson’s path while he rode on NW Cornell Road, was a regular commenter here on BikePortland.

Given how involved Kirke was in the regional bike advocacy scene, I thought he might have sent us an email or two over the years. When I checked my inbox archives, sure enough an email address belonging to “kirkej” popped up; but it was only a CC’d message, not one directly to me. Then, out of curiosity, I copy/pasted his email address into our comment database. A few seconds later I was reading the 100 or so comments left by “bikesalot” — which was Kirke’s screen name here on BikePortland.

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Tenth annual BikeCraft set for December 6-7

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BikeCraft VI -88

BikeCraft, where you can always find
wonderful bike-inspired things.
(Photo by J. Maus/BikePortland)

BikeCraft, the holiday gift fair for bike lovers, is back.

This will be the 10th time we’ve gotten together to highlight the best local, bike-inspired makers and artisans. Time flies when you’re having fun doesn’t it? I can still remember that icy-cold December night in 2005 when I invited a handful of creative folks to a coffee shop to share their wares. When we ended up with 20 vendors and a huge, happy, crowd I knew we’d struck a nerve.

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The Monday Roundup: Extreme anti-theft measures, mapping ciclovias and more

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venge

Yikes!
(From VengeCycle.com)

Here are the bike links from around the world that caught our eyes this week:

Modest anti-theft proposal: VengeCycle.com promises to “make thieves think twice about taking your bicycle” by strapping a GPS-activated explosive to the handlebars. (“Damage is generally limited to the hands and is not considered lethal. … You will have to purchase a new handlebar. … Make sure to check that unlicensed use of explosives is legal in your state beforehand.”)

Open streets: Here’s a map of every ciclovia festival in the Americas, Sunday Parkways included.

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Bike Theft Chronicles: Accosted, chased, then recovered

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

As more Portlanders get sick-and-tired of the bike theft-related activities happening in broad daylight all over our city, we’re hearing more incidents like the one just shared by reader Spencer B. this morning on the OBRA Chat email list:

SUBJECT: accosted, chased, chased suspect, then recovered high end MTB fork- Portland

long story short, this AM i rode underneath the Burnside Bridge where a group was finishing up chopping a high end bike. I yelled, they stalled, skeazy mkskeazo took the fork and bolted on his bike while I was surrounded. I broke free, chased the guy down in Old Town, the man proceeded to chuck the fork in the gutter when I got close.

Its expensive, its what I’d race MTB’s on. If you’ve lost anything recently send a message soon, otherwise its going into the black hole bike vault of the Portland Police Bureau.

Lock that business up.

Cheers

Spencer

— Read more Bike Theft Chronicles.

Photo Gallery: Dogs and humans get wet and muddy at ‘Kruger’s Crossing’

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Having the time of her life.
(Photos by J. Maus/BikePortland)

Special thanks to Sellwood Cycle Repair for sponsoring our 2014 cyclocross coverage.

There aren’t many outdoor activities that embrace wet, cold, and muddy weather quite like cyclocross does. That truism was on fine display out on Sauvie Island yesterday at the annual Kruger’s Crossing event. The conditions went from standard mud early in the day, to epic flooding for the later races. There was even a bout of thunder and lightning.

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Comment of the Week: Teaching your kid to be a millionaire

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piggyback ride

(Photo: J.Maus/BikePortland)

We didn’t all love math when we were 15, but most of us probably liked buying stuff.

In a comment Wednesday evening on our post about how much money bikes can save a city, reader Gutterbunnybikes shared a story about helping his teenage son understand how big a difference bikes can make to one’s personal finances.

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EnSelle ‘The Road Bike Shop’ to close after 16 years in business

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Veloshop Cyclocross Race at PIR

EnSelle, a bike shop that focuses exclusively on road bikes, will close its doors at the end of this year.

EnSelle was founded by Jask Liskear in 1998 and has built a strong niche as “the shop for connoisseurs of fine road bikes.” Liskear is a dealer for BMC and Land Shark bikes and his shop (located just off SW Macadam Blvd) is officially certified for repairs by Campagnolo and Shimano. In addition to the latest and greatest bikes, EnSelle is full of classic memorabilia of the sport he loves.

Liskear announced the big news via a customer email sent out today at noon:

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After years of disappointment, single track lovers have reasons for optimism

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Newton Rd in Forest Park

With renewed energy from Portland’s off-road biking advocates and a Metro project that could open up 1,300 acress of trail possibilities, 2015 could be a very big year for advocates itching for more local single track trails.

As we reported yesterday, local advocacy and trail building group the Northwest Trail Alliance has thrown down a gauntlet of sorts by launching an online petition in the form of an open letter to members of Portland City Council. The petition urges them to “catch up with the overflowing demand for off-road cycling opportunities.” By the time this story is published there will likely be close to 1,000 signatures collected in its first two days.

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30-day jail sentence handed down for drunken hit-and-run in SW Portland

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Lisa Vesely after her arrest back in July.

A woman who drove her car recklessly while drunk, then rear-ended two other road users, only to drive away and leave them lying in the street with serious injuries was sentenced to just 30 days in jail on Tuesday.

The incident happened back in July when 32-year old Lisa Vesely was arrested for Assault, DUII, and Reckless Endangerment. Vesely was driving her car east on SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway when she swerved into Cameron Duff and Jasmine Zamora. The pair were headed home from training at the Alpenrose Velodrome. Zamora, 30, sustained serious back and neck injuries while Duff, 25, escaped with only cuts and bruises.

Vesely claimed she didn’t even know she hit anyone, yet a police statement at the time said she drove back to the scene of the crime, only to drive away again before being arrested at her home. It’s worth noting that Vesely had a blood alcohol level of .17, which is twice the legal limit.

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Friends remember Kirke Johnson, identified as man killed in Cedar Mill collision

johnsonlead

Kirke Johnson.
(Photos: Portland Community College)

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the man who was killed yesterday while bicycling on NW Cornell Road in Cedar Mill (just west of the Portland city boundary).

The victim is Kirke Johnson, a 70-year old former employee at Portland Community College’s Sylvania Campus. He worked in the school’s IT department for over 20 years and just retired last week. People who knew Johnson remember him as being a prolific and very experienced rider who logged thousands of miles a year on his recumbent (which he was riding at the time of the collision).

He was also a regular commenter here on BikePortland. Under the screen name “bikesalot” he published about 100 comments dating back to early 2009.

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