[Photo: Dabby] In response to the following comments made by the traffic court judge in the Ayla Holland/fixed-gear trial, “If your client had a stick she could rub against her tire, you’d have a case.” many local messengers are now equipped with stick-brakes. They are also holding a stick-braking competition.
[PDXK TV’s Dan Kaufman.] Musician and producer Dan Kaufman didn’t start cycling until 2003. Since then, the 38 year-old Brooklyn neighborhood resident has become a “cycling evangelist.” Last year, he and his wife Kirsten launched PDXK Productions and decided to pursue Internet television. Dan thinks the future of TV will consist of independently produced shows … Read more
[Update: The Police Bureau has just debuted their new web page for bike safety and theft info.] [Recovery number 15!] This week has been good and bad for bike theft. First the bad news. In the last 7 days there have been 39 new stolen bike listings (I haven’t published them all yet). That’s a … Read more
[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 … Read more
[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 … Read more
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 … Read more
[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 … Read more
[This Friday (8/4) from 7-9AM there will be a traffic safety education action at NW Lovejoy and 9th Ave.] [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 … Read more
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 … Read more
[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 … Read more
I have had several phone calls and emails about the enforcement mission being carried out by the Portland Police Bureau on the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge this morning. I have heard reports of up four cyclists being pulled over at one time. This was a planned enforcement mission and I remember an email … Read more
[What a healthy street looks like.] “What about ambulances?” a friend who is visiting from New York asked recently as I was excitedly telling her about our bike community and recent car-free activism. I had no idea what she was referring to. “And what about handicapped people?” she added by way of explanation. I was … Read more