BikePortland

From Iraq to BikeCraft

Joe Lontai at BikeCraft.
(Photo © J. Maus)

I’m working on a slideshow and a report about last night’s BikeCraft event. It was a thrilling night in many respects for both Elly and I, but I want to share a particularly touching moment.

Back in April 2006, I shared a story about Joe Lontai. Joe was a BikePortland reader serving a tour of duty in Iraq. He sent an email along with a photo of himself on a spinning bike in the Iraqi desert.

He was wearing a battle helmet, an Army-issue bullet-proof vest, and lycra shorts; he was training for the Seattle-to-Portland Classic.

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

This flyer was passed out at a
meeting last night to announce the
Springwater closure.
(Click to enlarge)

At last night’s Multnomah County Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee meeting, BikePortland.org correspondent Matt Picio was surprised to hear about a decision to close the Springwater Corridor Trail at night.

According to Picio, the issue came up at the end of the meeting under an agenda item titled, “Springwater Trail and the City of Gresham – Discuss (5 minutes)”. When the item came up, Multnomah County bike and pedestrian coordinator (and staff liaison to the committee) Jennifer Dederich, passed out a flyer (PDF here) that outlined the new policy.

[Editor’s note: Hi folks, this is a new feature that automatically displays a digest of all the updates I post to Twitter, which is sort of like a micro-blogging platform thingy. The “#” link will take you to the original post (called a “tweet”) on Twitter. — Jonathan]

Gresham Parks and Rec has decided to close the Springwater Trail at night due to safety concerns. Full story coming tomorrow. #

BikeCraft is packed! Wow. We’ll be here all night so come on down whenever you can. #

Gandhi protested against bike
licenses 100 years ago.
(Photo: Wikidpedia)

The topic of bicycle licensing has been growing into more than a buzz lately. It’s often brought up around watercoolers and on web forums, and at this year’s Oregon Bike Summit, one of the keynote speakers (Oregon Transportation Commission Chair Gail Achterman) suggested that licensing bicycles is a “conversation” we need to have, and soon.

If she’s right, we’ll be right there in the thick of it. In the meantime, I’ve come across two interesting articles in the past few days that offer a chance to start that conversation a bit early.

Trek CEO John Burke says Trek
sales are up…so far.
(Photos © J Maus)

The mountain of bad economic news in this country seems to get steeper with each passing day. But amid the slowdown, there are some signs that bike-related industries are still rolling along with ease, at least for now.

Signs from the local, national and global bike industry indicators are mixed. In this story, we take a look at some of those signs and ask several industry players how things are going.

Bike Europe, a trade magazine that covers the bike business on the other side of the pond, reported last week on Taiwan’s export numbers. Overall, their exports are down 5.5 percent over last year, but bicycles are one of only two “industry sectors” that are up (the other is pharmaceuticals).

A DIY kid seat for a Kona Ute longtail bike. Photo taken in bike racks at Trillium Charter School on N. Interstate Ave.
(Photos © J. Maus)

Former BTA director will be mayor’s transportation policy advisor

Catherine Ciarlo
(Photo courtesy Catherine Ciarlo)

Catherine Ciarlo, who was formerly the executive director of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) and currently serves on the Portland Planning Commission, has been hired to be the transportation policy advisor for Mayor-elect Sam Adams.

Ciarlo led the BTA from 1998-2005. In addition to her role on the Planning Commission, Ciarlo is the executive director of Oregon Women Lawyers and she has a law degree from Lewis and Clark College.

In a story on her appointment to the Planning Commission, she told BikePortland that she wants, “to see Portland head in the direction of environmental sustainability and transportation systems that truly serve people.”

New Years Day ride will benefit Oregon Food Bank

Jim Hensel, a self-described bike commuter with a “crazy big heart” is putting on a new ride that he hopes will raise money for the Oregon Food Bank.

Dubbed the “Resolution Ride”, the ride will be unsupported (meaning bring your own water and snacks) and the route will take riders on a 50 kilometer loop from Multnomah Village to the Steel Bridge.

Hensel is a corporate CEO by day and is on the board of the Oregon Food Bank. He wants to help feed Oregon’s hungry citizens and he hopes each rider participating in the event will raise $250 in donations.

To learn more about the ride, see ResolutionRide.com.

Willamette Greenway Trail heads to Planning Commission

Tonight, the Portland Planning Commission — a nine-member body appointed by the Mayor that advises the city on all planning issues — will hold a public hearing for the “North Reach” phase of Portland’s River Plan.

The River Plan is a massive planning project for all land along the Willamette River in Portland.

Buried among the many volumes and reams of pages in the North Reach section of the plan is language that would help establish easements and official policy for the northern section of the Willamette River Greenway Trail (which currently ends at the Steel Bridge).

From Iraq to BikeCraft

City of Gresham moves to close Springwater Trail at night

Twitter Updates for 2008-12-11

Gandhi, bike licensing, and a 100 year-old debate

A visit from Mr. SoupCycle, Jed Lazar

Will bike economy coast through recession?

A DIY kid seat and the debate about bike seatbelts

BikeCraft IV

Former BTA director will be mayor’s transportation policy advisor

Santa Lucia on the Bridge

New Years Day ride will benefit Oregon Food Bank

Willamette Greenway Trail heads to Planning Commission

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